Stories in the Wash

We live an a little midtown, middle class neighborhood with cute brick houses that were built in the late forties. It boasts a small park that closes at 8pm. The Arcadia Wash runs through the heart of the neighborhood. If you walk along the arroyo you will get glimpses of the stories of people who have lived there: clothes, bedding, and trash. Like many Tucson neighborhoods, we have our share of unhoused people. I've lived here for 30 years. Raised my boys here. Never really saw a problem with the unhoused until I became president of our new neighborhood association and listened to neighbors' concerns.

One concern was the trash build up from the campers in the wash. We responded by adopting the stretch from Fairmount to Speedway. At our first wash clean up 35 people picked up 80 bags of trash. My husband took load after load of trash to the pick up spot with the help of a young man living by the wash. Unfortunately, the area near Speedway is a "hotspot" for drug deals, so that area was soon littered with more trash.

When the city passed an ordinance prohibiting the unhoused from camping in the wash, many neighbors expressed concern about where they would end up. Some residents had already experienced problems with the unhoused in the easement behind their homes, going to the bathroom on their back wall, doing drugs, starting fires and destroying property. An elderly woman was frightened in the night by an unhoused man banging on her bedroom window demanding water.

Pinecrest leaders met to draft a response to the ordinance. Each participant was given a chance to share their stories about the unhoused. Two hadn't had much contact, but expressed that they wouldn't feel safe with them near their own homes. Zoraida, the administrator of Desert Sky Community School, shared some personal stories about dealing with unhoused loved ones. Her stories really hit home. On my walks, I'd met people who lost their homes and were still living in their old stomping grounds. They are our neighbors.

Then I shared my story... One morning I discovered a young man sleeping just outside my garden with his coat over his head. Feeling pressure from my next-door neighbor (who had planted prickly pear to block the unhoused from the easement), I asked the young man if he was planning to camp there. He replied, "No. I'll be moving along." He refused the water I offered and left. Later, a Facebook friend suggested that he may have just aged out of the foster care program and had no place to go. I still feel bad about not offering him more help. What if it was my child? 

Our fear of the unhoused is hurting everyone. There are no public restrooms because people don't want to encourage them to stay in their neighborhood. Where are they supposed to go? People chop down trees so they don't camp under them.  The police remove them from one area just to have them pop up in another. There must be a better, more humane way.

I spoke to a shop owner who was being robbed every day. Thieves would fill up the shopping basket and escape into the wash. One time she even closed down the store and chased after them. Recently, she mentioned that she had managed to make friends with one of the unhoused. He told his friends not to rob her because she was a good woman. They actually stopped stealing from her. Could this woman be onto something? 

I've heard of another neighborhood that had succeeded in creating a relationship with some campers living in the nearby wash. The campers agreed to clean up after themselves and were living in harmony with some of the residents. One woman even left her hose out for them to get water.  Could that work in our neighborhood? 

Reflecting on all the stories, I have mixed feelings. I want the criminal activity out of our neighborhood. But it's complicated. Not all unhoused are criminals. They all have their own stories. My husband and I started the neighborhood association to build community and to look out for each other. But what constitutes a community? What if we tried to form a real relationship with the campers? Could we find a way to live safely together?

I asked my brother, an addiction counselor in Missouri, for his thoughts. Would it be possible to have that kind of relationship with the unhoused? He said that it would take time to build trust. They have been hurt so many times. I would really have to be there for them for the long haul. I asked him where to start. He suggested that I ask what they needed. 

First meeting

Soon after that I got an opportunity to try that approach. I was watering some prickly pear pads I had planted along the wash (to keep drug addicts from that area near the school) and I spotted a couple of campers on the other side of the fence. I asked them how they were doing and that's how I met Dan. This skinny young man brought out my maternal side. I expressed how worried I was about the monsoon rains coming. One summer a young woman had been swept away in a sudden storm.

I also urged them not to start any fires in this dry season because neighbors were worried about them so close to their houses. (A nearby tree had caught on fire...) I reminded them that it is against the law to be too close to the school. And they seemed genuinely concerned when I shared how the teachers had to do a sweep of the area for needles before bringing the children there for a nature walk. Dan assured me that he wasn't doing drugs anymore and promised not to start any fires. He said they just want to be good neighbors.

I remembered what my brother said about being there for them. So I asked if there was anything I could do. They requested that I contact the city about not allowing the police to bulldoze their camp before they had a chance to grab their belongings. I was upset to hear that they have both felt harassed by the community resource officer. It was my understanding that community resource officers should build trust with the homeless in order to refer them to the correct organizations to help them. 

Second meeting 

I came back to let them know that I had contacted our rep at Ward 6. I yelled over the fence for Dan, but someone else answered. I asked if there was anything I could do for him. He asked for money for food, but I didn't have any money on me.

It bothered me that I didn't help him after offering. The next day I gathered canned food, cut up some melon and boiled some eggs. I also filled some glass bottles with ice water. I went around to the other side of the fence and approached the campground. This was the first time I had entered that area by myself because, honestly, I was afraid to go near them. But I marched right up there armed with my bag of food and water. Dan was in his tent with his dog resting after picking up trash in the hot sun. He and another camper, Brennan, came out when I took out the food. They were grateful - especially for the cool melon that they immediately dug into.

They said that the Community Resource Officer had posted an eviction notice. They were supposed to be out of there in a day, but now they might have until Tuesday to pack up their things.  During our neighborhood wash cleanups, we had assumed that the unhoused had trashed the place. But while I was there a big white pickup truck came by to dump trash on the lot. The campers said that was a regular occurrence. It looked like they were cleaning someone else's mess. 

After a long heart to heart about being good neighbors, I said I could look into them being allowed to stay. On the way home I ran into their friend coming back from bringing several loads to the dumpster a block away. He said that he had thrown up three times from the heat. I asked if there was anything I could do. He asked for a rake. 

That night I contacted our rep from Ward 6, and asked her about looking into the possibility of campers being allowed to stay. She called the Housing First people and found out that they had already been offered services in the past. And they had previously been starting fires and probably doing drugs at the time. Because it is privately owned property, the city can be sued if they do any damage. So they would be removed Tuesday. The wheels had already been set in motion. She was afraid that something might happen to me. But I wasn't afraid anymore. I was sad that it didn't work out for them to stay. I hope they accept some services this time.

Third meeting 

I returned to bring the guys ice water and an old rake. The only one there was their friend who was exhausted from spending all day cleaning the area. I asked him why he did it if the city was going to take down their camp anyway. He said he felt responsible for protecting the area. Since I had been kind to them, he opened up and admitted that they were all still addicts. He shared his story about how it took him months to get on AHCCS to get into a treatment center. Unfortunately, it didn't take. He said that Dan felt bad for lying to me - but he really wanted to stay there. I was relieved to hear that Dan was considering finally getting treatment. 

Fourth meeting

Tuesday morning I went back to make sure that they were treated Ok while being evicted. There was no sign of the police yet. Dan was in his tent with his dog. This was the first time I saw him high. Brendon explained that he was upset about leaving. Brennan's wife Elizabeth gave me a tour of their area. I took in the little details that made it a home - a dog dish, water bottles, a bird house hanging near the tree that shaded their tent, a scavenged teapot lamp that Brennan had brought her for a gift.  Brennan was busy planting seeds along an area that he had raked up and lined with rocks. I asked him why he was doing that when he was being removed that day. He said he likes to leave an area better than when he came. Yes, it was their home. How could we ever think that a bed at a crowded shelter could take its place?

In an email wrapping up the effort to the Pinecrest officers, I admitted to feeling foolish for believing the unhoused were clean and putting my good name on the line to stick up for them. While I wish I wouldn't have rushed into believing them, I am still glad I made an effort to create a relationship. Of course, that takes time. If only I had started earlier. As for me, I still want to come from a place of love, still bring food, water and kindness. I'm sorry I didn't really get a chance to hear their stories before they were pushed out.  I often think of Dan, Brennan, Elizabeth and their friend. I hope they got the help they needed.

Note: I asked Brennon if it was alright if I included them in a blog and he said it would be good for more people to learn about their situation. 

UPDATE 9/4/2025: I ran into Dan today. He was in another area of the neighborhood. He helped me pick some goat head weeds and trash at a nearby church. 

Signs in the Wash 

(Poem with pics)

https://tucsonwashart.blogspot.com/2018/08/blog-post.html

Community comes out for Arcadia Wash Clean up

Dan and I have been anxiously waiting for rain to nourish our bone dry catchment basins. This time of year our cisterns and basins are usually filled to the brim by our Winter rains. Talk about bad timing! As dark clouds gathered on Valentines Day, we held off on emailing the reminder about our first neighborhood wash clean up scheduled for the next day. We had mixed feelings as we came out of The Loft Cinema to find puddles in the street. Our holiday dinner was delayed as we checked out the wash to see if it was full of water. Luckily, the little bit of rain had already sunk into the sandy floor.

 The Pinecrest Neighborhood Association's Arcadia Wash Cleanup was on! But would the rain dampen the spirit of the neighbors? Would anyone show up? 

We needn't have worried. At 9am a good sized group of neighbors, families from Desert Sky School (including Ward 6 city council candidate Charlie Verdin and son), and the Trashy Divas showed up eager to start picking up trash!

People grabbed tools and recycled trash bags at Desert Sky Community School. Thanks Tucson Clean and Beautiful for supplying the bags and tools and Desert Sky for providing a meeting place with water, snacks, and bathrooms. Also, thanks to Andrea, Jane and Dan for providing breakfast goodies and coffee. 

Then we broke into three groups to cover the different sections of wash from Fairmount to Speedway. After this group took off, another showed up. Thanks to our community (about 35 of you!) for showing up to make our neighborhood more beautiful and protect our water system from trash! 

I led the last group, that included Miranda Schubert who is running for city council for our ward (bending over to pick up some trash). Wow! This little group kept cleaning for 3 hours - all the way to Speedway! Charlie Verdin was there all day too.  In fact, Charlie was so impressed by Miranda's community spirit that he dropped out of the race and is now supporting Miranda's run. 

And it was a good thing too. There was plenty to pick up! 

The Trashy Divas showed us some mad skills on how to compact trash and use a plastic bottle to safely collect needles. 

People gathered at the water station at Bellevue to drop off full bags, pick up more bags, or take a much needed break. 

Not to mention, chat with neighbors and new friends! 

Greg and Dan got their wheelbarrows to carry trash from Bellevue to the city trash pickup location on Fairmount. The guy gabbing in the red shirt is my husband Dan Stormont, the Wash Adoption lead. Someone even recruited a young homeless man to help!

And boy, did they need the help. Look at all this trash we collected! Over 80 bags!

Thanks to everyone who helped to make Pinecrest Neighborhood's first cleanup a success!  It was definitely a community effort! That's what I call neighborhood spirit! 

You can find more information on what we are up to on our Pinecrest Neighborhood Facebook and Nextdoor pages, as well as our webpage. Our events are also posted on the bulletin board at Pinecrest Park. Keep a lookout for more information about our Potluck Brunch on March 8th.