Contact Information Robert MacArthur 520-621-2489 rmacarth@u.arizona.edu Related Web site: http://ag.arizona.edu/agnet/tcten

A group of local teens has given downtown Scott Street a virtual facelift. The youngsters, students age 11 to 13, enrolled in a computer mapping and spatial reasoning course this summer, and are using their new-found skills to redesign Scott Street as a downtown pedestrian parkway. They will present their designs and recommendations to professional planners, landscapers and members of the Tucson City Council on Wednesday, July 3, 11:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. at the Tucson Pima Arts Council, located at Stone Avenue and Council.

The group has used GPS (global positioning satellite), GIS (geographic information systems), digital photography and other technologies to build their plans for improving Scott Street. They have mapped and analyzed buildings, vegetation and other attributes of Scott Street. They also have gathered background information on the area between Pennington and 14th Street through audio and video interviews with Scott Street occupants about the buildings and the local cultural life.

Their recommendations, presented in writing and through computer "virtual walkways," will include plans for benches, trees, lighting and water fountains. The course is offered through the Tucson Community Technology Education Network (TCTEN), which uses local, real-world GIS data in learning applications. The course is held at the Tucson Pima Arts Council. The primary target audiences are neighborhoods, after-school youth and small businesses.

TCTEN grew out a collaboration between Pima County, the City of Tucson, the University of Arizona and several Tucson area community organizations, to share GIS-related technology and data. One of the goals of this collaboration has been to extend technology education to the community, and TCTEN was formed to fulfill that role.