It took a few years to accomplish, but a 2,500-square-foot outdoor facility for interpretive programs, special events, and other programs has been built at Saguaro National Park's Rincon Mountain Visitor Center.
This "outdoor classroom" also will offer visitors with spectacular views of the Rincon Mountains that are not visible from any other location within the Rincon Mountain Visitor Center building.
The history of this space dates to 2015 when, with the help of $180,000 in support from Friends of Saguaro National Park, Saguaro National Park replaced the 55-year-old interpretive exhibits in the Rincon Mountain Visitor Center with new, bilingual exhibits to help visitors understand the story of Saguaro and appreciate the connection between people and place. But unlike the (newer) Red Hills Visitor Center in the Tucson Mountain District, the Rincon Mountain Visitor Center had no outdoor interpretive space where rangers could provide talks to visitors and school groups.
In 2017, with the help of $65,000 in support from Friends of Saguaro National Park, national park staff began designing the 2,500-square-foot, year-round, fully accessible, outdoor program space next the Rincon Mountain Visitor Center. The space was designed to include a hardened surface, accessible benches, a shade structure, and an educational donor mural created by local artist Gail T. Roberts.
The grand opening ceremony for this space is scheduled for 10 a.m. on Monday, October 14, at Saguaro National Park’s Rincon Mountain Visitor Center (3693 S Old Spanish Trail, Tucson, AZ 85730). The ceremony will include the debut performance of “Among the Saguaros” composed by Katy Webster and performed by the Southwest String Quartet.
“This project would not have been possible without the support from our donors, notably; TEP, Diamond Ventures, Southwest Gas, Richard Schoen, Virginia Van Der Veer, The Spears Family, Friends of Volunteer Al Solomon and Western National Parks Association (WNPA)” said Fred Stula, executive director of the friends group.
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