DOWNTOWN / UNIVERSITY / 4TH AVE

That Corner Shop: Hydra

October 8, 2012 | Teya Vitu

photo by Krysta Jabczenski

Eighteen years at the corner of Congress Street and 6^th Avenue, the biggest change yet came to the avant-garde fashion shop Hydra this summer.

A new face joined owner Margo Susco’s one-woman show at her “store with the windows” – new maybe to Hydra clientele but a lifetime companion and best friend to Susco.

Her brother, Joey Susco, just returned to Tucson after 11 years in Rome, where he launched a sister Hydra II (ee-drah dué in Italian) store.

They have stunningly similar retail sensibilities, as if they were the brother and sister and best friends that they really are. Yet they are contrasting characters.

Margo had put up streetcar protest signs in her windows earlier in the year. Joey suggested she take them down when he came on board in August.

“I’m likeable but have an intensity that he doesn’t have,” Margo said.

Joey Susco brings a more mellow demeanor to Hydra.

“I’m back with a lot of new energy and ideas,” Joey said. “I’m updating the look, the racks, the merchandising. We’re getting a lot more Europeans lines. We’re bringing in vintage from the 50s, 60s and 70s.”

Joey replaced some of Margo’s slot wall displays with black grid walls. He got rid of the small wall behind which the shoe section was tucked away. Now the store is wide open. New spot lighting is in place. Soon black marble tile flooring will be installed in front of the jewelry showcases.

“I let Joey loose. I just say ‘Wow!’” Margo said.

The colors – inside and out – are Margo’s touches. She just adorned the interior with an upper layer of purple and lower layer of periwinkle lavender.

Q: You have the boldest exterior color scheme of any Downtown merchants. What are the colors?

Margo: “High gloss safety red and high gloss pure black.”

Q: Why such striking colors?

Margo: “I just think they look clean and sharp. It was important to me to get the right look. Part of being professional is making sure everything looks sharp.”

But what type of store is Hydra with its red-and-back color scheme? Most people think sex, fetish, risqué, that kind of store. Margo Susco has yet to shatter the misconception of how she regards her store.

Q: What’s the theme of your store?

Margo: “I like to call it a diverse avant-garde boutique. We have women’s clothing, lingerie. The misconception is we’re a little weird, but I’m more of a high-end clothing boutique. You can be a little more conservative. You can be a little more saucy. We have costumes and dance wear. We have 50s bowling shirts. We have club wear and western wear for guys.”

Yes, there is lingerie and attire with locks and latches, but Hydra is much more mainstream these days.

“I can get you a nice dress to go to a wedding, a nice top to go to the office and the basic black dress.” Joey Susco said. “18 years ago it was more of a fetish store.”

Back then, vinyl fashions was the hot thing in the alternative crowd. And now?

“Vinyl clothing is coming back in style. Corsets are coming back in style. This is for mainstream use now,” Margo marveled.

What Hydra really is, is a store for women, mostly aged 25 to 45 (and increasingly for men, too), who regularly come in and say “I want to look amazing,” “I’m going to a party and I need a fabulous dress” and “I want to step out of the norm and look fabulous.”

“I help them step outside the box. Absolutely,” Margo said.

Hydra late-2012 mixes what Margo Susco has been doing Downtown since Nov. 4, 1994, and what Joey had been doing since 2004 at Hydra II in Rome with his business partner, Luca Orlandi.

The Susco siblings (Kanella Conklin, a third sibling, earlier this year closed her Kanella’s shop on 4^th Avenue. The fourth sibling, Nick, is the only one not in retail) were both born and grew up in Tucson and both moved away in their early adult years. Margo was gone for eight years before returning and opening Hydra.

Joey first went away to Los Angeles for five years and worked at Armani and Guess before embarking to Italy in 2001.

“I’m half Italian. I been to Rome a couple times before. I basically moved there as a foreigner,” he said. “I started working at a retail store. I didn’t speak Italian but a lot of customers were tourists.”

Joey also taught English and was assistant to a photographer.

“Meanwhile, I was just keeping my ears and eyes open,” he continued. “They didn’t have much of a selection or choice. You do have a lot of Goth kids and glam rocker kids but there was nothing there for them. So I decided to open a shop.”

Hydra II was similar to Tucson’s Hydra, but Joey Susco carried more European fashions, and he also had a lot of vintage cowboy boots and western wear, which were hugely popular, especially among tourists from American, Germany – and Texas.

“I was working with so many stylists. It amazed me,” Joey said.

Alas, as successful as Hydra II was, high Italian taxes, the decimated Italian economy and Susco family matters convinced Joey and Luca to sell the shop. Joey returned to Tucson – and Luca Orlandi joined him and is now here, too.

“I had money to invest and I was thinking of America,” Orlandi said. “For me, it’s a change of life. If you have good ideas, it’s easier in America.”

The Suscos are thinking of expanding to Phoenix. Orlandi may operate that store.

Margo said Hydra is so popular in Phoenix that in some Phoenix retail rankings Hydra is listed as the best in Phoenix.

“Joey says ‘I can’t believe the number of Phoenix people that shop here,” Margo said. “There’s already a buzz going on in Phoenix.”

They have been scouting the Phoenix metro for an ideal location for another Hydra store.

“We’re hoping in maybe a year opening something in Phoenix,” Margo said. “We’re keeping our eggs in this basket for now, but we’re doing the legwork.”

Joey’s arrival gives Margo a chance to reduce her hours at the store, really, for the first time since she opened Hydra.

Q: What do you like to do when you’re away from the store?

Margo: “I love being outdoors. Being outside helps me clear my head. I enjoy hiking. I have a 1966 Chevelle Malibu. I love to ballroom dance. I’m happiest listening to Tommy Dorsey and Glenn Miller.”

This article appears courtesy of the Downtown Tucson Partnership

Tucson Meet Yourself Tapestry

October 8, 2012 | Monica Surfaro Spigelman

Prepare to meet, eat and dance yourself silly

Relish that Cubano sandwich quickly, because it’s almost time for foot-tapping and the waila band. Head over to the courtyard to admire that Hopi carver, but save a minute to talk shop with the lowriders and get a mehndi tattoo. Swim back into El Presidio crowds, because next you’re ready for fry bread and folklorico.

It’s coming, this scenario of incessant Tucson folk life that you’ve dreamed about since last year. Whatever traditional performer, art or food you crave, the 39^th annual iteration of Tucson Meet Yourself (TMY), scheduled for Friday, October 12 through Sunday October 14, certainly will have it all.

Tucson’s largest and most jubilant street festival is rolling back into 60 acres of downtown – combining cultural magic with a procession of ethnic pageantry that will start in Jácome Plaza, wind across Church Avenue into El Presidio Park, continue across the bridge through La Placita Village, rumble past Eckbo Fountains and finally fill TCC Plaza. As in previous years, this cultural pulse on Tucson’s diversified communities will be a free and authentic folk life experience, an educational platform that also serves up fun and a thoughtful mélange of tradition for the crowds.

Themed “Live your story, share your world,” this year’s TMY transforms downtown into its own city of cultural self-expression, featuring more than 180 traditional artists and 45 ethnic and occupational groups. “Whether you come for the music, the food or the folk arts, there’s something for everyone at this participatory multi-cultural celebration,“ says Dr. Maribel Alvarez, folklorist and TMY’s Program Director who also is UA Associate Research Social Scientist/Research Professor. “Tucson Meet Yourself invites a dialogue between our city and our cultures, and in a festive way pays homage to the traditional, living arts of the folk groups who reside here.”

What’s New
Attendees should watch for surprises and unique happenings throughout this year’s event. Some highlights:

Cultural Kitchen: Start your tradition-happy TMY fun with a meander through the Cultural Kitchen, a new Pavilion in Jácome Plaza where there will be hands-on activities and demonstrations from local farmers, ranchers, heritage food artists, chefs and gardeners who support local food economy.
Kidlore: If you’re looking for what’s kid-inspired and family-friendly, caravan over to TCC where Kidlore: The Culture of Kids will offer a heritage-rich playground and activity area focused on the rhymes and traditions of play, such as games, riddles, jokes and rituals enjoyed by children between the ages of 6 and 15.
Lowriders: This “Show and Shine” along Church between Alameda & Pennington will be TMY’s tribute to lowriders, a mix of hot rod fever and fun presented in conjunction with the world’s oldest lowrider car club, the Dukes. Cash prizes and trophies will complement a “Chop Shop” garage, storytelling with car owners, and “oldies” DJ music in the tradition of lowrider gatherings.
AIDS Walk: In this 25th anniversary year of the AIDS WALK nationally, TMY will add a dimension and reflect on the traditions of AIDS activism (including the Red Ribbon and the NAMES Quilt Project) through exhibits, talking stages, a guest lecture by the foremost expert on AIDS lore and inclusion of the Tucson AIDS walk in TMY’s Sunday Festival footprint. The Tucson AIDS Walk will begin on Sunday morning, October 14, at Jacome Plaza, and traverse the Festival, culminating with the ritual unfolding and display of 10 national and 10 local NAMES Quilt panels.
Pow Wow: Extending out from the Festival this year in a coming-together of native tradition will be the first installment of TMY’s new statewide folk arts scope “Arizona Traditional Arts.” Through a fun and meaningful exchange, Pow Wow 101 in Jácome Plaza will introduce this intertribal Native gathering to the public, offering drumming and singing, drum maker demonstration, sales of Native crafts, fancy and traditional dancers and community dance.
Caribbean Tradition: An authentic interpretation of Trinidad’s annual Carnival will be ongoing throughout TMY, with performances, dress-making and limbo demonstrations, arts and calypso bumping shoulders with attendees.

Old Favorites Return
As always, attendees will be able to feast on the works of veteran participants, some appearing at TMY for decades. These artisans will explain as well as serve-up cultural heritage through performance, folk arts or foods. In addition, a TMY Marketplace will be located in the Folk Arts Courtyard, providing festival-goers an opportunity to take home unique arts not found elsewhere. This pleasingly old-fashioned bazaar, styled in the tradition of the Mercado, will be quaint and Tucson-eclectic all in one, offering curated and out-of-the-ordinary books, CDs and handmade gifts.

To keep the poets among us spellbound and engaged, there will be Gran Concurso de Corridos that will lavish senses with ballads. Enjoy the love songs or enter yourself for cash prizes. This year’s corridos can be heard October 13, 3pm, in El Presidio Park.

Watch for entry areas at TCC, Jacome Plaza and El Presidio, where volunteers will distribute programs, passports for kids and offer directions. Once inside, more teams will be patrolling to keep the Festival area clean and green. You’ll also find information booths (check map for locations) where more volunteers will help festival goers get cozy with updates and merriment.

Dr. Alvarez underscores the context of scholarly research and extensive relationship-building within the region that have led up to the festival. “It all demonstrates how our cultures knit together in some way,” she says. “Tucson Meet Yourself was conceived and has always tried to exist as an educational experience, opening windows onto all different cultures that coexist in this region.”

“Of course it’s all about fun, too,” the professor adds with a grin.
TMY Fast Facts

TMY has been held each year in Downtown Tucson, Arizona since 1974.
TMY was founded by University of Arizona folklorist and anthropologist Dr. James “Big Jim” Griffith, who in 2011 was honored by the National Endowment for the Arts with a prestigious recognition as a “National Heritage” treasure.
TMY funnels the revenue generated at the festival directly back into the local economy. In 2011, participating ethnic clubs and nonprofit associations raised collectively $250,000 through their sales at the festival.
TMY presents the Festival in collaboration with sponsors including Arizona Bilingual Magazine/Learning A-Z, Arizona Commission on the Arts, Arizona Humanities Council, National Endowment for the Arts, The City of Tucson, Pascua Yaqui Tribe, Pepsi, Pima County, Pima Dermatology, Southern Arizona AIDS Foundation, Southwestern Center at the University of Arizona, State Department Western Passport Center and Tucson Pima Arts Council.
You can set up a schedule on your mobile. Go online to TucsonMeetYourself.org for additional information, or to create a customized route.

A Slice of Innovation

October 3, 2012 | Jon D Auria

Downtown Tucson welcomes an elegant new addition to its already impressive culinary family with the opening of Reilly Craft Pizza & Drink located on the Northeast corner of Pennington and Scott. The historic building that was built in 1906 now boasts lavishly modern décor, a warm atmosphere and some of the best pizza and Italian food in the region. But don’t go into it expecting the same dated menu that you’d find at traditional pizza digs, as Reilly places innovation and execution as the impetus of their vision.

“We took the traditional concept of a pizzeria and then elevated it,” says chef/owner and operator Tyler Fenton. “But we kept it familiar enough to where people can still enjoy it even if they aren’t as adventurous in their dining. We use high quality ingredients and better techniques to enhance the food. We offer traditional, regional Italian food, but we didn’t fully follow the rulebook on the dishes.”

Offering eclectic menu items such as zucchini chips, squash blossoms, shrimp and grits, soft polenta and pizza that boasts ingredients such as Yukon potatoes and rosemary, speck and eggs and a take on pepperoni pizza that features roasted red peppers and Calabria salami on it (Fenton debated seven different types of salami before deciding), Reilly is quickly becoming a hot spot in town for foodies and pizza lovers alike.

“I went to a lot of different pizzerias to research techniques and awhile back I went with Daniel Scordado on a trip to Seattle when he was opening up his Pizzeria Vivace and that really inspired me,” says Fenton. “I’ve cooked my whole life. My mom’s side of the family is a big Italian family, so I grew up eating and learned to love cooking. I always liked that a meal brought people together. Community is so important to me, so it feels great to have a place where people can gather to enjoy themselves.”

Fenton, who has accomplished a tremendous amount for a 22-year chef, came up with the initial concept for Reilly while he was daydreaming through one of his classes at the University of Arizona. But while Tyler is responsible for the main vision, he credits the success and execution of the restaurant as a family affair.

“My dad bought the building in 2007 and gave us a tour of it and I thought it was really cool,” says Fenton. “My freshman year at U of A I was bored in one of my classes and I drew up a concept and a floor plan of the place. From there my brother helped me raise the finances and build the business plan. I’m the creative side and operations, my brother is on the financial side and my dad is the landlord.”

The timing couldn’t be better for Fenton to bring his confectionary prowess to downtown, as the recent revamping of the area is attracting more people than ever. And while Reilly sits next to some hard competition, Fenton doesn’t seem to view them as rivals at all.

“We’re thrilled to be members of the downtown community and are happy that we can add something new to it. Even just on that corner of Pennington and Scott, we have a little community with Café Poca Cosa and 47 Scott. We don’t view them as competition, because we all have different niches and we’re fans of their food. We all share a parking garage across the street and it’s perfect. I love it over here.”

Fenton is preparing to unveil the final phase of Reilly, as he is expanding the back patio into an indoor/outdoor beer garden with ample seating and a drink menu that offers over 40 draft beers. While that addition will be completed in the coming months, make your reservations to dine in today, because if the line from the waiting room to the street is any indication, it is well worth the wait.

For reservations to Reilly Pizza & Drink call 520-882-5550. Visit them online at ReillyPizza.com

Rory O’ at Wilko

October 3, 2012 | Hannah Joyce McCain

Back when Rory O’Rear began frequenting the Red Room, where bartender Luke Anable poured the drinks that helped Rory develop his appreciation for bartending, Rory mostly drank his spirits straight. Luke and Rory are now head bartenders at Wilko, where they preside over an impressive cocktail list, but back in the day “no one in Tucson did this ‘cocktail stuff’ that’s becoming so prevalent,” Rory explains. The revival of craft cocktails is undoubtedly a good thing, says Rory. However, this new direction in drink mixing is sometimes misunderstood.

“There are certain people who, when they think of craft cocktails, imagine a bartender with suspenders and a handlebar mustache who refuses to make you your favorite drink,” he tells me. “But that’s not it. The craft cocktail revival isn’t at all about snobbery, it’s about raising the standard that you hold that favorite drink to. It’s about taste as an experience.”

Craft cocktails demand the highest quality ingredients — from the booze down to the ice cubes. At Wilko, the bartenders go so far as to hand-carve ice cubes for certain drinks. I tell Rory that sounds like the punchline of a joke about overzealous bartending, and he smiles. “It feels like a joke sometimes when you spend six minutes carving at ice cube for one drink!” But the finished product — “a drink that stays cold even as you linger over it, allowing subtle flavors in the spirits to unlock — is worth it,” Rory says. The attentiveness and care that goes into each drink creates a unique experience every time.

That experiential nature that Rory identifies as a quality of a good drink makes it hard for him to pick a favorite, but his preferences seem to lean towards the classics. “I like drinks that are comfortable and well-worn,” he says. Indeed, a “classics” section was recently added to Wilko’s cocktail list, and the ingredients to these drinks are simple and straightforward: things like lemon, raw sugar, and bitters. The drinks don’t end at the menu, either. Rory tells me that he loves to make a patron his or her favorite drink, “but the best one they’ve ever had.”

Pressed to choose a favorite drink, Rory finally chooses the Vieux Carré, a New Orleans take on the Manhattan. Rory describes the drink — with its classic foundation and hints of nutmeg and cinnamon, as “a gesture towards nostalgia.” I ask him the best place to drink it. He thinks for a second. “New Orleans,” he says, and then smiles. “Wilko’s not a bad spot, either.”

Vieux Carré

1 oz. High West Double Rye Whiskey
1 oz. Laird’s Apple Brandy
1 oz. Carpano Antiqua Formula
½ oz. Benedictine
2 dashes Peychaud’s Bitters
2 dashes Angostura Bitters

Stir. Serve with a twist of orange peel.

Kidical Mass TUCSON: Kids Rule the Streets!

September 27, 2012 | Zocalo Staff

Kidical Mass is a national grassroots movement designed to provide an organized, safe, and fun family bike ride through city streets and it’s back in Tucson by popular demand. On Saturday, October 6^th at 10am participants will gather near Himmel Park Library before pedaling over to The University of Arizona, looping around Old Main, and returning to Himmel Park for ice cream and other treats.

With the support of many partners and sponsors, including El Grupo Youth Cycling, Pima County and City of Tucson Bicycle and Pedestrian Programs, Performance Bicycles, Outdoor Nation, and Merrell, Living Streets Alliance will present a second Kidical Mass ride on Saturday, October 27 at 10am beginning and ending at the Tucson Children’s Museum.

Kidical Mass began in 2008 in Eugene, Oregon, organized by Shane Rhodes, who wanted to see more families excited about using their bikes. Since it’s inception, the movement has spread to communities across the globe all in the name of having fun – on a bike – with kids!

Families will practice pedaling with the kiddos during these short, leisurely, rides. Participants are encouraged to bring their helmets, however a limited supply of children’s helmets will be provided for FREE courtesy of the City of Tucson Bicycle and Pedestrian Program. Families can also decorate their bikes in advance for increased visibility and for fun! All kids will receive stickers and “Kidical Mass Tucson” temporary tattoos.

This is a family-friendly, law-abiding ride designed to bring families together and ride safely as a group. Ride leaders and sweepers will be present to assist in making sure no one is left behind, but all parents are asked to take responsibility for their children on the road for the safety of all.

Kidical Mass is hosted by the local non-profit organization, Living Streets Alliance whose mission is to “promote healthy communities by empowering people to transform our streets into vibrant places for walking, bicycling, socializing, and play.” LSA is improving access for active modes of transportation in the region through outreach, education, advocacy and research.

For more information, visit www.livingstreetsalliance.org/category/events

Information provided to Zocalo by Living Streets Alliance.

Streetcar Construction Update 9/17

September 17, 2012 | Zocalo Staff

This update is for the week of September 17, 2012: Due to heavy rains that have occurred during the month of August the Sun Link Tucson Streetcar construction team has experienced significant delays to the construction schedule for the entire alignment. The construction team and contractor are working to reevaluate the construction schedule to make up for the delays that the inclement weather has caused. READ ALL ABOUT IT.

Presidio Fashion Exchange

September 8, 2012 | Teya Vitu

Call to artists, designers, sellers of unique items.

Dinnerware Artspace, 425 W. 6^th St., is beginning a new Saturday urban market called the Presidio Fashion Exchange in its parking lot.

This event will be every Saturday morning from 8 a.m. to noon-ish.

Tucson area designers and artists who use primarily repurposed and recycled materials are invited to offer their wares. This includes fashion, accessories, and art.

This is an uncurated event, open to anyone. It’s free to set up. Tables and chairs provided. Advertising will be primarily online.

Sell your unique articles of clothing. This is a great Saturday morning event for independent designers and artists. The public is looking for quality, originality, and cleverness of method in design.

Presidio Fashion Exchange is meant to show how sustainable design is on the forefront of fashion in Tucson. It’s primarily recycled clothing, art, some household items, and collectibles.

Looking to promote your brand? This market is for you.

What’s new in the fashion universe? These brands are small, regional, and up and coming. Looking to write about local fashion? This is the place. Searching for style? This is the place.

Find that truly unique piece of jewelry.

There will also be a District Clothing Trade table for clothing waiting to be repurposed. Bring at least 5 gently used items for the table. Take as much as you want.

Participants RSVP with David Aguirre at DinnerwareArtspace@gmail.com, or text 520-869-3166.

This article appears courtesy of DowntownTucson.org

Congress Street Awaits Saint House, Lulu’s Shake Shoppe and New Things for the Rialto Building

September 2, 2012 | Teya Vitu

This article is from DowntownTucson.org

The people behind the popular HUB Restaurant & Ice Creamery, Playground Lounge, 47 Scott and Scott & Co., and the Rialto Exhibition Center are ready to make their next moves as soon as streetcar construction wraps up on Congress Street.

All of it revolves around the empire of Scott Stiteler, owner of the Congress Street properties on both sides of the street between Fifth Avenue and the Arizona Avenue alley and co-owner of the Rialto Exhibition Center building across from Hotel Congress.

A new life is coming for the Rialto Exhibition Center, hints Stiteler, who co-owns the building with Don Martin.

“We couldn’t have scripted that better to have four exhibitions in succession,” Stiteler said.

But time has come for perhaps something else in the historic building attached to the Rialto Theatre.

Stiteler has eight spaces ranging from 800 to 1,500 square feet on the three blocks. So far, eateries of one sort or another fill much of his holdings in the One North Fifth Apartments commercial space at 245 E. Congress and across the street from 256 E. Congress to 278 E. Congress.

“I’ve been very mindful to keep space open for retail,” Stiteler said.

“That’s highly coveted,” he said about the vacant space between HUB and Playground. All of his available space garners interest but he has never rushed to lease to just any business. “I get lots of offers. I’m waiting for that eureka moment when I say ‘perfect.’”

Kade Mislinski is at it again, too, in his share of Stiteler’s property, this time with what he’s calling Lulu’s Shake Shoppe, 270 E. Congress St.

Mislinski is the out-of-the-box visionary behind Playground Lounge, where he recreated the pleasures of the childhood playground, and HUB Restaurant & Ice Creamery, where ice cream gets equal billing with beef and beer.

Lulu’s follows the same scratch-your-head wackiness. The name may be shake shoppe but Mislinski sees it as a cross between a little league baseball snack bar (expect hot dogs) and a French fry/falafel stand in Amsterdam, where fries come with mayonnaise.

Lulu’s will have four standard shake flavors and two special flavors every day.

Lulu’s will be located behind HUB, serving out of the same window as Chocolate Fox. Chocolate Fox will continuing delivering chocolate creations during the day, and Lulu’s will do its thing from 5 p.m. to 3 a.m. seven days a week.

“I think we need a pick-up window. We need a snack bar Downtown.”

Lulu’s Shake Shoppe opens for business on Oct. 15 at 5 p.m.

Travis Reese and Nicole Flowers are finally ready for their Congress Street debut after two years on a stretch of Scott Avenue that an Olympic long jumper could leap sidewalk-to-sidewalk.

Reese and Flowers instantly became media darlings when they opened 47 Scott in May 2010, followed next door with Scott & Co. in October 2010.

Sunset magazine, the Chicago Tribune, the New York Times, the Los Angeles times and numerous airline magazines have short-listed 47 Scott as a Tucson dining must.

“I just got an email. Food & Wine wants to do something,” Reese said.

Travel and dining media will undoubtedly have more to write about once Reese and Flowers open their Saint House, 256 E. Congress, in the former Sharks Lounge location at the westernmost extent of Stiteler’s Congress holdings.

“We have just been wanting to work with Scott because he has such a vision,” Reese said. “We wanted to work with people doing such great projects. 47 Scott was always supposed to be the start of something. We never knew what.”

They have dreamed up a Caribbean theme for Congress Street.

“Saint House is based on cuisine where rum is made, from Venezuela to Miami,” Reese said. “We are encompassing food from that region. We wanted to do something unique.”

Reese said the ambition is to open Saint House before the gem show.

“January 1 would make us happy. Jan. 20 would make us just as happy,” Reese said.

FORSight

August 20, 2012 | Teya Vitu

It’s not really about the buildings or furnishings for married architects Miguel Fuentevilla and Sonya Sotinsky. Perhaps you know their names, perhaps you don’t. You do, however, most certainly know their interior designs. They are the design team behind HUB Restaurant & Ice Creamery with its upside-down lamp shades, Playground Lounge and its swings suspended above the bar and marbles ground into the floor, Downtown Kitchen+Cocktails, Borderlands Brewing Co. and the new eatery opening soon at 50 E. Broadway.

Beyond Downtown, Fuentevilla and Sotinsky have delivered their whimsical touches to North (in Tucson, Austin, Denver and Phoenix), Zinburger, Blanco, Tavolino (and its San Diego sister, Isola Pizzeria), Sir Vezas and dozens more restaurants, offices, and homes they have designed from the ground up.

“We definitely like to have fun moments with all our restaurants,” Sotinsky said.

They like to have fun moments with any waking moment, it seems – their conference room has dark blue Astroturf as carpet and running up one wall – Sotinsky calls it “shag” – and the open office area has white Astroturf on one wall (normally used for hash marks and lines on sports fields). “We have one person a day just come in to touch it,” Fuentevilla said.

Fuentevilla and Sotinsky are the names behind FORSarchitecture + interiors, 245 E. Congress St. The’ve been in business for fifteen years, and since January 2012 in the Congress Street location. FORS stands for ‘Fuentevilla OR Sotinsky‘. Not “and” – rather, “or.” They are both equally colorful personalities à la Cary Grant and Rosalind Russell or Spencer Tracy and Katharine Hepburn, except Fuentevilla and Sotinsky bring this wit and sparkle to the world of architecture and interior design.

“People sometimes come to us and say ‘I just want a set of drawings to get a permit.’ Really?” Fuentevilla said. “We try to get them to buy into the project, so they put value into that design. They get to the point where they say ‘I have to have that faucet.” How does this transformation unfold? Clients have to complete a multi-page questionnaire that addresses matters such as who are you and how do you live, so that FORS can create a unique project tailored to the client. “Our philosophy is of storytelling through our projects,” Sotinsky said. “Even if they don’t see our story, they feel something experientially.” It really isn’t just about buildings and interiors for the FORS couple – it’s about creating an environment. “It’s giving it a life,” Fuentevilla said. “It’s more about a space than architecture. I think people want to be part of something, belong to something.”

Sotinsky and Fuentevilla met at architecture school at the University of Arizona. Sotinsky grew up in New Jersey but had an aunt and uncle who lived in Tucson and grandparents who snowbirded in the city. Fuentevilla is a Tucson native, born to Cuban refugee parents who were recruited as faculty for the opening year at Pima Community College. Sotinsky went on to graduate school at UC Berkeley and Fuentevilla followed her. They married while living in Berkeley and joined separate architecture firms. Sotinsky’s firm tended toward residential projects, and Fuentevilla’s focused on commercial projects. To this day, if there even is a distinction between the two, Sotinsky leans residential and Fuentevilla commercial. But since the 2008 economic downturn, residential architecture has gone on the shelf, and FORS does more interiors than architecture.

Even when they designed custom homes, both easily crossed over from commercial to residential. “It’s not a straight line at all. On every single project we collaborate,” Sotinsky said.

She is the lead on some projects, he takes the lead on some projects. “When she’s the lead, she has the final say. When I’m the lead, I have the final say,” Fuentevilla said.

Before they started FORS, while they still lived in Berkeley, Fuentevilla was the lead designer re-imagining the ghastly 1970’s Park Mall into Park Place with its barrel vaulting and endless skylights. “When Miguel told me he got that as a job, I just laughed, because the place was such a dog,” Sotinsky recalled.

They returned to Tucson in 1997 after seven years in the Bay Area to start their own architecture firm.

“I was hugely pregnant when we moved here,” Sotinsky said.

“She was eight months pregnant and we had to paint the house,” Fuentevilla added.

“We wanted to open a business, buy a house and have a kid – all in the same month,” Sotinsky continued.

Starting a company coincided with wanting to enter an architecture competition put on by Metropolitan Home magazine. The only problem: they didn’t even have a business name yet. On the spur of the moment they came up with FORS.

FORS has had high-profile projects all along, but until this year their office was anything but high-profile. They worked out of their Sam Hughes Neighborhood home until moving onto Congress this year. “I did North (restaurant) in Austin out of my bedroom,” Fuentevilla said.

They actually had a back bedroom that served as an office, and in 2007 they added an office to their home with a separate entrance. “We were laboring anonymously,” Fuentevilla said. “Now we are front and center. People are recognizing us.”

Last year they realized they should be Downtown. “We were trying to convince people that Downtown is this great place and we were holed up in Sam Hughes,” Fuentevilla said. “It was time to be part of the urban fabric of Downtown.” Sotinsky was less enthusiastic, at first.

“Initially, I was opposed to moving out. I’ll have to drive to work,” she said. (Mind you, they live barely 2 miles from Congress and 5th Avenue.) “Now being down here and feeling all the energy, I just love being here on a daily basis.”

FORSarchitecture+interiors is in the street-level commercial addition to the One North Fifth Apartments. Their neighbors are Sparkroot, Xoom Juice, Yoga Oasis and Sacred Machine.

Their landlord is Scott Stiteler, who owns the One North Fifth complex, the Congress Street buildings across the street with HUB and Playground and he co-owns the Rialto Building with the Mars and Beyond exhibit. FORS designed the interiors of HUB and Playground and is master planning the future use of the Rialto Building.

You’d think it’s a natural progression that the FORS office ended up in Stiteler’s building. Sotinsky was aghast when Stiteler suggested it:

“Why don’t you go in here,” Stiteler offered.

“That’s horrible,” Sotinsky responded. “You don’t put an office in a store front.”

“It will be great,” Stiteler encouraged.

“Now we can’t leave,” Sotinsky said. “Next month we are going to do a tiny little gift shop up front with modern gifts and small housewares.”

FORSarchitecture+interiors is located at 245 E. Congress, #135, 520.795.9888 and at ForsArchitecture.com This article appears courtesy of DowntownTucson.org

Photo, top: Miguel Fuentevilla and Sonya Sotinsky, by David Olsen. Photo, bottom: Blanco by Bill Timmerman, courtesy of FORS

The 1960s: Urban Renewal and Barrio Destruction

February 4, 2012 | Jamie Manser

This article is part of a special February 2012 issue commemorating the 100th anniversary of Arizona’s statehood. The complete section of Tucson snapshots over the last 10 decades begins at this link.

Cover of “La Calle: Spatial Conflicts and Urban Renewal in a Southwest City,” published by UA Press, 2010.

No discussion about Downtown Tucson over the last 100 years would be complete without paying homage to Los Tucsonenses and the late 1960s decimation of la calle – 80 acres of Downtown that was once a culturally diverse residential and business district.

Tucsonenses, as described by Lydia R. Otero in her book “La Calle: Spatial Conflicts and Urban Renewal in a Southwest City,” is a self-indentifying term for a population of (mostly) Mexican-Americans which “dates back to the nineteenth century that expresses a distinct cultural and historic connection to the city and the region around it.”

As Tucson’s population grew post-Gadsden Purchase (1853), the immigrating Anglos overtook the city’s business core along Congress Street and settled Downtown’s north and east ends. “In 1860,” Otero wrote, “Anglos constituted less than 20 percent of the population but controlled 87 percent of the wealth.”

Over the subsequent decades, Anglo dominance prompted Tucsonenses, along with Asian and African-American residents, to shift their businesses and homes (generally) south of Congress Street and west of Stone Avenue. These populations built and encompassed a thriving, ethnically diverse community.

Otero cites the “WPA Guide to 1930s Arizona” description of la calle: “Residents of Mexican extraction comprise around 45 percent of the Old Pueblo population. Most of them live in Old Town, called El Barrio Libre… Old Town is centered around South Meyer [Avenue] near the city’s main business area, is also peopled by Chinese and Negroes… This is the exclusive Mexican shopping district… In most of the bars around Meyer [Avenue], Negro chefs are busy concocting hot chili sauce to pour over barbequed short ribs.”

However, Tucson’s municipal power structure seemed to view the area as a hindrance to modernity and growth. In “Rehabilitation of Blighted Areas: Conservation of Sound Neighborhoods,” the 1942 study published by the Tucson Regional Plan strongly asserted the area’s real estate “ruination.” Some telling descriptions in the publication of the city’s motivations include defining blight as “the visible evidence of inability to attract profitable investment, the intermingling of incompatible uses… overcrowding of dwellings designed for fewer persons, occupancy in violation of local zoning.”

It is a wry irony that the current and ongoing goals of Tucson’s downtown revitalization call for mixed retail and residential use, in order to create critical mass and reduce vehicle dependency, yet when this was happening south of Congress Street for many decades, it was considered a worrisome zoning issue.

But the most telling description to shed light on the ambitions behind the recommended “rehabilitations” was the statement that an “intermixture of racial or ethnic groups” was considered another attribute of blighted neighborhoods. The 55-page study specifically targets the barrios as areas that “required major redevelopment.”

Aerial view of the barrio and la calle pre-urban renewal, circa 1940s.
Photo courtesy Arizona Historical Society #1303 (A.E. Magee Collection)

In 1961, the city’s Urban Renewal Director/Assistant City Manager S. Lenwood Schorr issued the “Urban Renewal: For Slum Clearance and Redevelopment of the Old Pueblo District” study.

While not as overtly racist as the 1942 publication, the undertones were still there – stating the district was afflicted by “crime, fire and juvenile delinquency rates,” without providing specific evidence, such as hard numbers of police and fire responders to the area over any given time period.

The cumulative effects resulted in Tucson voters approving the Pueblo Center Redevelopment Project on March 1, 1966. Despite the efforts of the La Placita Committee, the city razed 80 acres of irreplaceable culture, shops, homes, restaurants, entertainment venues (notably La Plaza Theatre) – wiping out over 100 years of historically significant buildings and scattering its residents asunder. In its place stand government buildings, the Tucson Convention Center complex and the La Placita Village complex.

All that remains of the neighborhood’s cultural heritage north of Cushing Street is the gazebo in La Placita Village, a kiosko originally called Plaza de la Mesilla. The locale dates back to the early nineteenth century and was the site of innumerable neighborhood fiestas.

Details on “La Calle: Spatial Conflicts and Urban Renewal in a Southwest City,” are available at UAPress.arizona.edu and on Amazon.com. Also check out these great titles by Thomas E. Sheridan: “Los Tucsonenses: The Mexican Community in Tucson, 1854-1941,” and “Arizona: A History, Revised Edition.”