Keeling Desert Park(let)

If you aren't looking north as you drive along this part of Glenn (just east of Stone), you probably won't notice this beautiful new pocket park:

There are a few picnic tables, though they aren't shaded — mid-days, at least:

There are some shady patches under the trees — and, in the afternoons, under these rooflets (try bringing a folding chair to sit here):

The small play area has a nice padded covering on the ground that should help kids from being hurt if they fall.

Some fun public art and sculpture are scattered around:

The City of Tucson's Keeling Desert Park webpage was mostly empty when I wrote this mid-June, but it may be ready by the time you see this.

There's no water fountain, so bring your own H₂O.

Location: 1½ blocks east of Stone on Glenn

Hours: No gate, but no lights either. (There are neighbors close by on three sides, so quiet is appreciated.)

Parking: If you're in a car, park along Incas Place, across Glenn from the parklet.

Shady and artistic spot in Dunbar/Spring

How about exploring for some fun and funky art this Fourth of July? One of the best places in Tucson to find impromptu art is the Dunbar/Spring neighborhood. It runs north and west from the corner of 6th Street and Stone Avenue. You'll find traffic circles with whimsical direction posts, several murals (especially the longgg mural on 9th Avenue, as seen on the Tucson Murals Project blog), a bicycle on the roof of a home, some sculpture scattered around, and more.

We have two other articles about the neighborhood on this blog: Dunbar/Spring playground on Playable Parks blog and Sit on a Gila Monster, share a book.

Anyway, while you're in the neighborhood, a shady spot to sit is under the spreading trees in front of a dragon mural:

The photo is from David Aber. (Thank you!) I'd been at the corner back in 2010, after neighbors painted the dragon over graffiti. (You can see the scene back then on the Tucson Murals Project blog entry Topping taggers.)

The table and seats were added sometime before August, 2016. (They suddenly appear on a Google Street View timeline of the corner taken during that month.)

Location: southeast corner of 10th Avenue and University Boulevard

Hours: There's a dim street light next to the spot. (Neighbors will especially appreciate quiet in the evening and early morning!)

Parking: Street parking.