Crime Map of Tucson

I debated whether or not to just add this information to the post on finding an apartment in Tucson or to give it it's own post. I decided it was an important enough resource to be given it's own post.

There is a Web site called Spot Crime that creates almost real time maps of crime reports for major cities around the world. Here is the map for Tucson:

http://www.spotcrime.com/az/tucson

While I am dubious of its 100% accuracy, it probably gives a fairly accurate picture of reported criminal activity in Tucson. It would be a useful resource to help find "safe" areas of town if you're relocating here, or to compare with your own hometown.

Grocery Shopping for Organic and Natural Food in Tucson

I rarely shopped at, or even looked for a natural or organic foods grocery store when I lived in Michigan. I had one or two friends that frequented these places, but as much as I considered myself a new-age liberal tree-hugger, going out of your way to shop for organic food seemed a little too “out there” even for me.

That changed very quickly once I moved to Tucson. There are so many choices, and the prices are so competitive with ‘regular’ groceries you have to ask yourself “Why wouldn’t you shop there?”

Of course there are conventional places to shop for groceries for when you reeaaally need to have that Twinkie, or it’s time to pick up some more Ban roll-on. Tucson has Bashas’ and Fry’s aplenty.

But today’s post is all about going natural, and for that you basically have three choices here in Tucson. Here they are, in alphabetical order:

Sunflower Farmers Market
Sunflower is a small Western grocery store chain with two locations in Tucson. I’ve been to their location on Speedway Boulevard. Two things impressed me about Sunflowers. One is the sheer volume of fresh fruits and vegetables they have. It takes up most of the center of the store. This is the spot if you’re looking for variety in fresh fruits.

The second thing that impressed me was… the chocolate in their bulk food bins. I know, natural/organic foods and chocolate don’t seem to go together (“Hey, you got chocolate on my tofu!”). But trust me, this is some of the tastiest chocolate I’ve ever had. I recommend the chocolate covered peanuts and chocolate covered raisins.

I think their strategy is to lure you in with awesome chocolate, and then once you’re in the store you’ll think ‘as long as I’m here I might as well get some healthy food, too’.

Trader Joe’s
Trader Joe’s is a larger grocery chain, and they have four locations throughout Tucson. I’ve shopped at the location at Wilmot road.

On my first shopping trip there, an employee was handing out fresh baked chocolate chip cookie samples. It’s almost as if these places are DARING you to buy junk food while you’re there.

I really like shopping at Trader Joe’s. They have a great variety of foods that you don’t often find in any grocery store. If you’re tired of having the same old same old for dinner every night, give Trader Joe’s a try. You’re bound to find something unique to take home.

Another bonus with Trader Joe’s is the quality of their house brand of foods has been excellent for the items I’ve tried, including their chocolate (I do buy fruits and vegetables too, honest!).

Whole Foods Market
On a recent Daily Show with Jon Stewart, Lewis Black was doing a bit on inflation in Zimbabwe. He showed a clip of a reporter that had just come out of a store where he had paid over a billion dollars for a can of beans. Lewis came back with “A billion dollars for a can of beans?!! I didn’t know Zimbabwe even HAD a Whole Foods Market!”

A billion dollars for a can of beans may be a bit of an exaggeration, but the prices here are noticeably higher than the other places I’ve shopped. This is probably where the misconception was born about natural and organic foods being so expensive.

Whole Foods does have two pluses. It has a nice variety of foods, and it has a wine selection that has a section for sulfate-free wines. It was the only one of the three food chains that did that as far as I know.

Whole Foods has two locations in Tucson, and I’ve shopped at the location on Speedway Boulevard. While standing outside taking a photo for this blog entry I noticed an old man in a security guard uniform keeping a close eye on me. Because, you know, a middle aged white guy with a digital camera is obviously a security threat. As I headed into the store to do my shopping he approached me about what I was up to. My blog explanation seemed to confuse the old gentleman even more and he talked about taking me ‘up to see the owners to see what they think of you taking pictures’. I thought for a moment the guy thought by taking his picture I was stealing a bit of his soul but then it dawned on me he probably didn’t have one. I realize now that since I mentioned a ‘blog’ and the ‘Internet’ he probably thought I had just stolen his identity.


"You kids get off my lawn!"

I told him I would be happy to go with him to see ‘the owners’ so I could let them know how the company they hired for security purposes was hassling paying customers that would also give them free Internet publicity. I left him muttering to himself about not knowing I was a customer, and finished my (last) shopping trip at Whole Foods Market.

So there you have it. Three choices with eight locations total, for natural and organic grocery shopping. My recommendations would be for Sunflower Farmers Market for fresh fruit and vegetable variety and totally awesome chocolate, and Trader Joe’s for a great variety of unique foods and an excellent house brand line of groceries.


Sunflower - http://www.sfmarkets.com/
Trader Joe’s - http://www.traderjoes.com
Whole Foods Market - http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com

Finding an Apartment in Tucson

I had a lot of help with this blog entry from someone I met at a recent Tucson Single Professionals event. His name is Dave and I asked him for his advice for renting an apartment in Tucson.

I asked Dave for his advice because he is a long time resident of Tucson and was recently involved with a project involving local real estate developers. This project allowed him to become familiar with quite a few rental properties and their managers. Another advantage is these properties are all nearby Dave’s neighborhood so he is very familiar with this area.

I told Dave I was looking for a safe, quiet neighborhood. Here is his list along with a few notes:

Cottonwood Creek. 3111 E 4th St. (520) 795-9856. Pricey at $760-$1100. Web site at: http://www.hslcottonwoodcreek.com.

Elcon Gardens Apartments. 3507 E 3rd St. (520) 795-2327.

Knollwood Terrace. 3528 E 2nd St. (520) 327-7125. Well-run, quiet. Manager has lived there, in addition to being manager, for about 10 years.

Las Villas Apartments. 3424 E 2nd St. (520) 325-6545. Quiet neighborhood.

Palace 3814 E 4th St. (520) 327-5671. Older residents.

Palm Gardens Apartments. 3727 E 5th St. (520) 325-4422. Being remodeled, responsible new owners.

One More Choice
I should point out that all of the places listed above are in what is known as ‘central Tucson’. Very close to shopping, dining, theaters, parks, and just a short drive to the downtown area. In other words, where the action is.

If you’re looking for a little slower pace, you may want to look in the foothills area. A very nice set of apartment complexes there is run by Tucson Rental Homes. They run thirteen complexes throughout Tucson, with three of them in the foothills area. Tucson Rental Homes are unique because they are (with the exception of single bedroom units) free standing units, so you don’t share walls or floor/ceilings with neighbors.

This remote and individual setting comes at a price of course. The price range for Tucson Rental Homes is $750-$795 for a single bedroom up to $1030-$1270 for a three bedroom unit.

Their main office and model units are at 4647 N Campbell Ave. Their phone number is (520) 299-4466, and their Web site is: http://www.tucsonrentalhomes.com.

Another Resource
If you’d like to do some more research, all of these rental units and more can be found at apartmentfinder.com.

* Of course, these prices were in effect at the time this blog was published. YMMV.

All of these apartments have been added to my blog’s Google map. The link to the map is here.