Animal salvation

Chris Richards Arizona Daily Wildcat The view from Tumamoc Hill, on Tucson's west side, where the UA has had an desert ecology research station since 1956. Researchers fear that encroaching development may cut the area off from wildlife movement, making it a biological "island."

The lab is home to some of the longest-running vegetation studies in the country, said Jay Quade, laboratory director.

It's also home to desert animals like javelinas and coyotes.

Now hemmed-in by development on three sides, Tumamoc connects to open desert only on the west, an area zoned for high-density housing.

The link, however, may still be saved.

The Tucson City Council voted Monday to look into a deal that could save that last link to the undeveloped desert of the Tucson Mountains.

The council voted to study a proposal offered by Starr Pass developer Christopher Ansley that would sell the city a 130-acre swath of desert between the Tumamoc Hill lab and Tucson Mountain Park, a 22,000-acre desert park which borders Saguaro National Park West.

The 130 acres along a wash would be maintained as a wildlife corridor to allow desert animals to move between Tumamoc Hill and the undeveloped desert of the Tucson Mountains.

Javelina, mule deer, bobcat, coyote and desert tortoise are the most common larger animals to move between Tumamoc Hill and the adjoining desert, Quade said.

Ansley, who wants to build a 500-room resort on land he owns west of "A" Mountain, has offered the corridor property to the city for $9.5 million, proposing that it be paid for by tax revenue the hotel will generate.

Quade said the scientists at the Desert Lab helped develop the wildlife corridor idea and support it.

Ansley's proposal is the only one that would protect any land west of Tumamoc, said Quade, a geosciences assistant professor.

Although he admitted there is no guarantee that wildlife corridors will maintain the biological links between the Desert Lab and Tucson Mountain Park, Quade said the idea represents the best in a bad situation.

"It is sort of a best case scenario of what can come out of development of that area," he said.

The council vote disappointed some who felt swift action needed to be taken.

Ward 1 Councilman Jose Ibarra said the City Council should move to protect natural desert space in Tucson.

"This is a classic case of do you step up and buy wildlife corridors to protect them, or do you pass the buck onto somebody else," Ibarra said. "The bottom line is we need to buy land to protect open space."

Ansley said the council's decision to postpone a decision was disappointing.

"I was seeking a clear commitment from them, which this was not," he said.

"Here is a great opportunity for the city to stand apart from other communities and show an ecological and educational commitment, yet they don't do it. It just baffles me," Ansley said.

Monday's approval to study the plan is by no means a go-ahead for the proposal.

Even critics like Ward 6 Councilwoman Molly McKasson, who said she does not favor the hotel deal, voted to study the proposal.

She said the land must be appraised to determine its value because she suspected the land was not worth the asking price.

McKasson wants the council to explore other options, such as purchasing the land with money from a state Heritage Fund grant or having the UA buy the property to protect its own research, she said.

McKasson said she may be prepared to write-off the west Tumamoc area to development.

Irresponsible zoning decisions and lack of past planning have created the current situation that Tucsonans may have to live with, she said.

The city can't just "subsidize away" past mistakes, McKasson said.