📚 Library Legacy: A New Home for Knowledge Amid Community Clash | PIMA BOS

🧩 From Labor to Libraries, a Day of Decisive Actions: Explore how labor rights, gun violence prevention, and community safety took center stage in Pima County's latest meeting.

Jun 04, 2025

😽 Keepin’ It Simple Summary for Younger Readers
👧🏾✊🏾👦🏾

🏛️ Pima County leaders spent many hours making big decisions about 🏠 housing, 📚 libraries, and community safety. 🌟 Progressive supervisors scored major wins for affordable housing—securing 💵 millions to help families find homes they can afford, while 🐘 conservative supervisors tried to stop them, claiming it would hurt property owners.

The meeting showed how local government becomes a ⚔️ battleground between people who want to help everyone in the community versus those protecting wealthy homeowners. 🗣️ Community members spoke passionately about everything from preventing 🔫 gun violence to stopping military takeover of 🏜️ desert lands, while others attacked libraries and public services.

😊 The good news: progressive leaders are building real power and making concrete changes that will help thousands of families, workers, and students—proving that local politics can create meaningful change when people organize and show up.

🗝️ Takeaways

🏘️ Housing Justice Wins Big: $8.5M immediate funding (FY26) + $200M ten-year commitment passed despite conservative opposition
🚫 Border Militarization Defeated: Resolution 2025-19 passes 4-1, protecting sacred lands and wildlife corridors from military occupation
💪 Labor Rights Celebrated: Jobs with Justice Day honors 35 years of worker organizing and coalition building
🔫 Gun Violence Prevention Recognized: National Gun Violence Awareness Day proclaimed with survivor testimony
📖 Library Controversy Explodes: $6.2M Wells Fargo purchase triggers Facebook warfare, revealing deep community divisions
👥 Progressive Coalition Solidifies: Supervisors Heinz, Cano, and Allen consistently advance transformative policy
⚖️ Sheriff Accountability Demanded: Internal affairs investigation faces renewed scrutiny after sexual assault conviction
🏥 Public Health Pragmatism: Mobile vaccination units approved despite anti-vaccine opposition

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Housing Justice Under Siege: Pima County's Pivotal Battle for Affordable Housing and Human Dignity

June 3, 2025 - A Critical Analysis of Power, Progress, and Pushback

Executive Summary: When Housing Becomes a Human Right

In a marathon session that spanned hours, the Pima County Board of Supervisors grappled with fundamental questions of human dignity, economic justice, and community responsibility.

The June 3rd meeting became a microcosm of America's housing crisis, where progressive advocates clashed with conservative defenders of property tax privilege, while immigrant rights, gun violence prevention, and worker solidarity shared the spotlight with corporate interests and border militarization debates.

Speakers and Their Messages: Voices from the Frontlines

The People's Champions

Ashley LaRusa (Founder, Blax Friday) delivered a powerful testament to Black economic resilience, announcing that their directory now includes 2,000 Black-owned businesses statewide despite representing only 1.5% of Arizona's demographics. Her words carried the weight of economic survival: "It takes a community to support us... We are so privileged to be able to locate these black owned businesses statewide."

Patricia Maisch (Everytown for Gun Safety/Moms Demand Action) brought moral authority forged in tragedy, having personally disarmed the Tucson mass shooter in 2011. Her statistics cut through political rhetoric: "100 people plus a day die in this country by gun, and two-thirds of those are by suicide... we have a mass shooting every day." The orange she wore wasn't just a color preference—it was the color that told hunters, "We're humans and don't shoot."

Steve Valencia (Jobs with Justice) embodied 35 years of labor organizing, his voice carrying the decades-long struggles of workers. Flanked by his reunited wife after 42 years of separation during civil rights battles, Valencia's presence reminded everyone that "the value of labor that job of justice is committed to" remains under constant attack.

Eric Mesa (Sierra Club Borderlands Coordinator) brought field-tested knowledge of environmental devastation from border militarization, warning that "border militarization is not a solution to bring peace to border residents" while describing the "massive operational cost" of military vehicles terrorizing remote desert communities.

The Establishment Voices

Rex Scott (Chair, District 1) walked a careful political tightrope, supporting affordable housing funding for fiscal year 2026 while opposing the long-term 10-year commitment. His calculated opposition revealed the limits of even "progressive" leadership when faced with sustained political pressure.

Steve Christy (District 4) emerged as the unabashed defender of property owner privilege, repeatedly framing affordable housing as an attack on homeowners. His rhetoric consistently portrayed taxpayers as victims of government overreach, asking whether it would be "more accurate to describe it as taxpayer-subsidized housing" rather than affordable housing.

Dr. Matt Heinz (District 2) stood as the meeting's progressive champion, citing biblical scripture (Philippians 2:3-4) while pushing for both immediate and long-term affordable housing commitments. His medical background informed his understanding of housing as healthcare: "It's something that I see, frankly, every day when I'm working in the hospital."

Andrés Cano (District 5) brought sophisticated political analysis, emphasizing that "affordable housing is a human right" while strategically supporting policies that avoided primary property tax increases—a position that satisfied progressive goals while maintaining fiscal conservatism.

Jennifer Allen (District 3) delivered perhaps the most powerful systemic analysis, declaring that "taxpayers are already paying for the lack of affordable housing" through expanded court systems, law enforcement, hospitals, and social services. Her argument reframed the debate from a cost perspective to an investment perspective.

Community Resistance and Corporate Power

Lori Moore delivered a xenophobic tirade that exposed the racist undercurrents of anti-housing sentiment, demanding that unhoused people be transported to "sanctuary states" while sarcastically praising the county's treatment of "illegals" who were "treated like royalty." Her words revealed how housing policy intersects with anti-immigrant sentiment.

Chris Conniff brought accountability demands regarding sexual assault within the Sheriff's Department, his testimony highlighting how 100 minutes passed before anyone attempted to help the victim while "command staff took their swords and stuck them in the victim's back."

Dave Smith embodied reactionary resistance to social progress, declaring that "housing is not a human right" because "for you to house others, you've got to take." His opposition to affordable housing merged with anti-immigrant sentiment and attacks on labor organizing. One wonders if he was referring to the stolen Native land on which his house is built?

Robert Royce - Provided the most class-conscious economic analysis of the entire meeting, connecting local housing unaffordability to federal tax policy: "These people have taken their unwarranted tax breaks and they have bought up our real estate market. They have literally priced people out of being able to live in homes." His 23 years of attending Board meetings gave him a historical perspective on how "voodoo economics" created the current crises.

Dinah Bear - Environmental attorney delivering sophisticated legal analysis of border militarization, noting that "this morning, the Department of Homeland Security published yet another waiver of 27 federal laws" for border wall construction. Her testimony connected federal law-breaking to local environmental destruction.

Mark Kelly - Delivered explosive testimony about developer harassment and police misconduct, escalating to direct threats: "If Chris Nanos wants to send his deputies out to try and kidnap me and take me to a cage again for some unlawful blanket trespassing order, I can assure you I will not go willingly." His raw anger exposed how corporate development displaces working-class residents through legal harassment.

Grant Krueger - Restaurant owner advocating for Rillito Park preservation, emphasizing its historic significance as "the birthplace of quarter horse racing in the United States" and criticizing government agencies for working in "silos" rather than collaborative partnerships.

Robert Hartman - University of Arizona professor and Horse Racing Commission chair, providing expert testimony about Rillito's cultural and economic importance, noting that horse racing generates "$293 million in economic activity" statewide while serving as "a melting pot of the community... Latinos, every socioeconomic strata."

Carol Kovalik - Parks and Recreation Commissioner, offering measured critique of affordable housing proposals while supporting comprehensive park planning. Her dual role revealed tensions between appointed officials and elected leadership.

Mike Story - Attorney bringing legal expertise about Sheriff's Department union elections, arguing that "corrections officers and civilian employees" were being illegally excluded from voting for their own representation, exposing how labor rights get trampled even within law enforcement.

Eric Mesa - Sierra Club coordinator providing field-based analysis of border militarization's environmental destruction, describing "striker vehicles... war vehicles, military humvees, helicopters, drones" terrorizing "really remote areas of the New Mexican desert."

Kylie McPherson - Young activist delivering intersectional analysis connecting animal rights, immigrant justice, and housing policy. Her passionate defense of affordable housing directly challenged Supervisor Christy: "I find that preposterous. That truly saddens me... Let me start by saying every human being, no matter race, no matter origin, no matter social status, deserves necessities."

Jonathan Salvatera - Real estate broker offering technical solutions for first-time homebuyer assistance, emphasizing "sweat equity" and Habitat for Humanity models while criticizing "artificially high" interest rates.

Agenda Analysis: Policy Battles and Power Dynamics

Affordable Housing: The Central Battlefield

The meeting's defining moment came through two interconnected housing items that revealed the Board's political fault lines with surgical precision.

Item 19: Fiscal Year 2026 Affordable Housing Appropriations Supervisor Heinz's proposal to increase affordable housing funding from $5 million to $8.5 million represented immediate, tangible progress. Crucially, this increase came from budget savings and ARPA interest earnings rather than property tax increases—a strategic move that neutralized conservative opposition. The money flows directly to the Regional Affordable Housing Commission, ensuring community control over allocation decisions.

Addendum Item 6: The 10-Year Policy Battle The proposed Board Policy D22.17 aimed to generate $200 million over a decade, potentially creating 12,500 affordable housing units. Supervisor Heinz's biblical citation—"do nothing out of selfish ambition or empty pride, but in humility, consider others more important than yourselves"—reframed housing policy as a moral imperative rather than an economic calculation.

Chair Scott's opposition to the 10-year plan, despite supporting immediate funding, revealed the limits of incremental politics. His preference to wait for the Regional Affordable Housing Commission's November recommendations reflected institutional caution over transformative action.

Gun Violence Prevention: Grassroots Organizing Meets Political Recognition

The proclamation recognizing National Gun Violence Awareness Day represented more than a symbolic gesture. Patricia Maisch's presence transformed routine ceremonial actions into powerful testimony about the life-saving potential of community organizing.

Her reminder that "two good guys without guns tackled the shooter" challenged dominant narratives about armed response to violence.

Labor Rights: Jobs with Justice Day Recognition

Steve Valencia's recognition ceremony became an unexpected masterclass in labor history and coalition building. The presence of construction workers, bricklayers' union representatives, and longtime labor activists demonstrated how worker solidarity transcends traditional boundaries.

Valencia's emphasis on community grievances rather than workplace actions alone—"stay in your job, protect your job and let the community take this up as a community grievance"—offered strategic lessons for contemporary organizing.

The Library Wars: When Public Knowledge Becomes Political Battleground

The Vote: Historic Preservation vs. Fiscal Responsibility

Buried beneath the housing justice battles and border militarization debates, the Board's 4-1 approval of the Wells Fargo building purchase for downtown library relocation revealed another fault line in Pima County's political landscape.

What appeared as routine infrastructure decision-making—choosing a $30.2 million solution over $86 million in renovations—instead exposed the deep ideological divisions threatening public institutions across America.

The Financial Reality:

Current Building: $86 million renovation cost for leased property (county builds no equity)
Wells Fargo Purchase: $6.2 million purchase + $24 million renovation = $30.2 million total
Space Efficiency: 61,274 square feet vs. current 90,000 square feet (right-sized for actual usage)
Added Benefit: 219 parking spaces address chronic downtown accessibility issues

Supervisor Cano's support emphasized community benefit: "This new space will replace the aging library infrastructure that we have and give our community a modern, accessible, and inspiring downtown hub for learning and connection." His framing positioned libraries as essential infrastructure rather than discretionary spending.

Supervisor Allen's support connected historic preservation with practical economics: "I think putting the library in an important historic building is a perfect fit. It is a way to ensure that the integrity of the building and that history is valued and lives on."

The Lone Opposition: Supervisor Christy's resistance revealed his consistent pattern of opposing public investments that serve diverse communities. His questioning about removing the building from tax rolls—"We're going to take a similar building with a similar history, spend all that money to make it into a library, removing it from the tax base"—prioritized private profit over public service.

Settler Colonialism and Border Politics

The border militarization resolution and housing policy debates intersected around questions of land use and community control. While affluent homeowners mobilized property rights rhetoric to oppose affordable housing, the same political forces supported military occupation of indigenous lands for border enforcement.

The Tohono O'odham Nation's opposition letter offered an anti-colonial analysis: "Without any notification or discussion with the Tohono O’odham Nation, the Gadsden Purchase in 1854 re-drew the U.S.-Mexico border, splitting our people’s traditional lands in half."

This historical context reframed contemporary border politics as ongoing colonization rather than security policy.

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Border Militarization: Environmental Justice Meets Immigration Policy

Resolution 2025-19, opposing border militarization, represented Supervisor Allen's boldest stance on environmental justice. The resolution targets explicitly the Roosevelt Reservations, which transfer public lands from the Interior Department to the Defense Department's control, threatening the Buenos Aires Wildlife Refuge, Organ Pipe National Monument, and sacred Tohono O'odham lands.

The Tohono O'odham Nation's supporting letter provided devastating critique: "These and other deterrents have been working, and crossings are now at an all-time low. The notion that additional border walls or militarization is needed to warrant it makes no sense."

Public Health: Mobile Vaccination Deployment

Dr. Cullen's presentation of mobile MMR vaccination units revealed both public health pragmatism and political calculation. The program targets schools with vaccination rates below 95%, the threshold for achieving community immunity. Supervisor Christy's opposition, framed through rhetoric of parental rights, exposed how public health becomes politicized during health crises.

The program's voluntary nature—schools must opt in, parents must consent—represented a compromise between public health necessity and political feasibility. Yet underlying tensions remained visible in discussions about religious exemptions and personal belief exemptions, with staff acknowledging that "there are no mainstream religions that have issues with vaccination."

Critical Votes and Their Implications

Housing Justice Scoreboard

Social Justice Victories

Infrastructure and Development

Power Dynamics and Political Maneuvering

The Progressive Coalition's Strategic Evolution

The meeting revealed a sophisticated three-member progressive coalition (Heinz, Cano, Allen) capable of advancing transformative policy despite institutional resistance. Their coordination on housing policy—immediate funding without tax increases, followed by long-term commitment—demonstrated strategic thinking that neutralized conservative opposition while building sustainable political support.

Supervisor Cano's political sophistication proved particularly crucial. His framing of affordable housing as both a human right and an economic necessity—"Housing is infrastructure. Housing is public safety. Housing is economic development"—provided a rhetorical foundation for policy advancement.

Conservative Opposition's Tactical Limitations

Supervisor Christy's consistent opposition across multiple agenda items revealed ideological rigidity rather than strategic thinking. His attacks on affordable housing as "taxpayer subsidized housing" and demands for "countywide listening sessions" represented delay tactics rather than substantive policy alternatives.

Chair Scott's selective opposition—supporting immediate housing funding while opposing long-term commitment—suggested institutional caution designed to preserve political flexibility rather than principled conservative philosophy.

Community Organizing's Growing Influence

The meeting demonstrated the increasing sophistication and political impact of community organizing. From Ashley LaRusa's economic development through Black business networks to Patricia Maisch's gun violence prevention advocacy, grassroots organizations showed the capacity to shape policy agendas and influence political outcomes.

Steve Valencia's 35-year history of organizing provided a living testament to the transformative potential of sustained political engagement. His emphasis on coalition building across labor, community, student, and faith organizations offered strategic lessons for contemporary social movements.

Economic Justice Analysis: Follow the Money

Affordable Housing Investment Breakdown

Immediate Funding (FY 2026): $8.5 million

Source: ARPA interest earnings + budget savings
Tax Impact: Zero property tax increase
Community Control: Full allocation through the Regional Affordable Housing Commission

Long-term Commitment (2027-2037): $200+ million

Projected Impact: 12,500 affordable housing units
Population Served: Families earning 60% or below Area Median Income ($48,720 for a family of four)
Strategic Approach: Addresses one-third of projected 36,000-unit shortage

Corporate Welfare vs. Human Needs

The meeting's contrast between affordable housing investment and corporate subsidies revealed stark policy priorities. While conservative opposition framed housing assistance as unsustainable spending, the Board simultaneously approved multiple corporate contracts and development incentives without comparable scrutiny.

The Wells Fargo building purchase ($6.2 million for the downtown library) received enthusiastic support from the same supervisor (Scott) who had previously opposed long-term housing commitments, revealing how the concept of "fiscal responsibility" is applied selectively based on the beneficiaries' social class position.

Looking Forward: Organize, Engage, Transform

Immediate Action Opportunities

Housing Justice Organizing:

Regional Affordable Housing Commission meetings provide direct community input on $8.5 million allocation
January 31, 2026, deadline for Commission recommendations creates an organizing timeline
County budget hearings offer opportunities to expand housing commitments

Community Accountability:

Sheriff's Department Internal Affairs investigation requires continued pressure for transparency
Attorney General follow-up provides avenue for independent investigation
Public records requests can expose command staff misconduct

Environmental Justice:

Border militarization opposition requires federal legislative pressure
Public lands protection needs sustained community organizing
Climate adaptation planning offers entry point for environmental justice advocacy

Long-term Strategic Considerations

The meeting revealed both the growing influence of progressive politics and institutional resistance to transformative change. Building sustainable political power requires:

Coalition Building: Connecting housing justice advocates with labor organizers, environmental activists, and immigrant rights defenders
Electoral Strategy: Supporting candidates who demonstrate consistent progressive voting patterns rather than selective support
Policy Expertise: Developing community capacity to engage complex budget and policy discussions
Direct Action: Maintaining pressure through organized community mobilization when institutional politics proves inadequate

Questions for Community Reflection

As we process this pivotal meeting's implications for our community's future, consider these critical questions:

How can we build sustainable political coalitions that connect housing justice with environmental protection, labor rights, and immigrant solidarity, recognizing that these struggles share common opponents in corporate power and white supremacist political structures?

What organizing strategies can effectively counter the individualistic "taxpayer rights" rhetoric that conservative forces use to oppose collective investments in community well-being, while building broader public support for transformative social policies?