Tucson Hotel and Wine-Tasting Room Proposal Under Review

A project that will see the upgrading and repurposing of a more than century-old building in downtown Tucson is currently being looked at by members of the city’s Design Review Board.

The building in question, located at 82 S. Stone Avenue, was for some 30 years the home of the former Tucson Daily Citizen newspaper.

In more recent decades the two-story, 4,300 square-foot structure housed the main offices for the Tucson Chamber of Commerce.

Now, according to plans filed by the Tucson-based A.23Studios architectural firm, the structure will have a new life as a hotel called The Citizen featuring a wine-tasting room.

That tasting room will be centered on Sand-Reckoner wines native to southern Arizona.

For nearly 4 years, the Sand-Reckoner Vineyards has successfully operated a similar wine-tasting room in Tucson’s Warehouse Arts District.

Plans for the Stone Avenue building call for a space expansion into an adjacent building, giving the project a total footprint of 14,800 square feet.

Public documents indicate that the transformation of the Stone Avenue building will see exterior colors conforming with the overall color palette and context of the area, with all cornices, lintels and arches designed in keeping with the historic style of the structure.

Depending upon city approval, work could begin on the Stone Avenue building next year.

By Garry Boulard

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