On Google Maps the area we all know as Barrio Viejo has the words “colorful homes” written on it in red. It’s so true and since I last visited the Barrio Viejo area over two years ago, the colorful new homes and upgraded old adobes have expanded beyond Meyer Avenue. Block after block of what was once considered a slum is succumbing to gentrification. Even a once-vacant block now has brand new Southwest Style townhomes on it — really crammed together. (No photos of this. It’s in a construction phase and–who knows–maybe it will be attractive when it’s completed.)
Let’s start with a Before and After
The words painted on the 2023 version of this Mexican grocery store, “The 4 Corners”, on right, are copies of the faded words–almost invisible–on the image from 2020 on the left. It is not, I believe, actually a grocery store or convenience store yet. And maybe never will be. Also worth noting is that the three buildings to the right are now shades of industrial gray. I hope that is just a base coat and that the three will be given brighter colors to wear. All 4 seem to have been repaired.
At the corner of Meyer Avenue and 18th there is a large white building/house that I had previously ignored. Walking over from 8th, this time I saw the building from a different angle. It looked as if it could be an old religious building that had been updated. As I discovered from the owner, an artist named Catherine Eyde, the building was new, not ancient. It was constructed in 2019 with the intent of looking historic. On Saturday, when I was there, she was holding an Artist’s Open Studio. so I took a look around. Lovely architectural details!
The Eyde residence/art studio is one of only 3 homes that are two stories tall in this area. Another one, almost directly across the street wears eye-catching mustard yellow with terra cotta color trim!
Single story homes whether old or new are the standard here and throughout Tucson as you can see in this photo looking South on Meyer. Here, as elsewhere in the city, sidewalks are regarded as unnecessary.
A closer look at some details
The green prickly pear cactus tempers the vibrant purple on this home on the left. There is something vaguely hippy-ish about the dried wreath and dried peppers along with the rustic red chair sitting on the porch. And it works! The gate on the right suggests the appearance of dried ocotillo branches, but is actually a metal gate in front of a red door.
A block away, however, the “roof” above the red door on this turquoise painted home is, in fact, real dried ocotillo as are the shutters which were closed with a metal horse figure barring them. The porchlight lampshade — Stella Artois!
Exposed adobe and collapsing roof
There are still a few of the old 19th Century adobe buildings remaining, including this one over on 9th Avenue, below. The burlap panels for doors are, no doubt, temporary. The old adobe bricks are bare in places now and the roof appears to be collapsing. No doubt, within a year it will become as amazing as the other homes in Barrio Viejo. And with its upgrade, however, some of the history of this neighborhood will disappear forever behind colorful paint. I wonder what became of the people who lived there before this renovation began.
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