I’m planning to do a lot of posting about businesses and restaurants located downtown and in the 4th Avenue area because they need your help! Tucson is getting its own modern streetcar, which is great. Its route is going to look like this:

The street car will go from west of the freeway through the heart of downtown…

…to continue along onto 4th Avenue…

…to finish in the UA medical plaza area.

Although it’s a myth that most small businesses fail within their first year, studies by the U.S. Small Business Administration purport that 70% of new businesses make it through the first two years, but only 30% stay around for at least 10.

One of the best ways we can help Tucson’s downtown continue its growth is to support its local merchants, especially right now. Some of them have been around for a long time, and have made it past most of those two-year, five-year, ten-year benchmarks. Hotel Congress opened in 1919. But  some of the new venues along the street car route have only recently opened within the past year or so. I’d love to see them make it to 20.


Fourth Avenue is in the same boat, and their merchants’ association has developed a banner to remind us to shop local, especially now. 




Keep your eyes peeled for upcoming posts about my favorite places to shop, eat and hang out in this fabulous streetcar stretch!


Do you have any favorite places along this construction corridor? Share them in the comments!