Welcome to the Santa Cruz Valley

The Santa Cruz Valley Heritage Alliance's Accomplishments and Community Services

• Co-hosted the Santa Cruz Harvest Dinner in celebration of Food Day, which fed 200 people local and heritage foods and was sponsored by 30 local businesses. (2011).
• Co-sponsored the 2nd Annual Santa Cruz Valley Organic Farm and Garden Tour, including a new Patagonia loop. (2011).
• Developed the Discover Green Valley-Sahuarita’s Heritage tourism guide to support heritage-based businesses in the Green Valley – Sahuarita region. The guide highlights 20 local businesses. (2011 in progress)
• Developed the Discover Tucson’s Heritage tourism guide to support local heritage-based businesses in the greater Tucson region.  The guide highlights more than 200 local businesses. (2011)
• Co-sponsored A Community Conversation: Building a Thriving Downtown, a free community presentation and discussion about heritage-based economic development. Attended by 150 community leaders, business owners, elected officials, and interested residents. (2011)
• Formed a private-public partnership to create the Uniquely Tucson walking map, a guide to the locally-owned businesses, historic buildings, and heritage destinations along Tucson’s future modern streetcar route. Partners include City of Tucson, Desert Archaeology, Inc., Downtown Tucson Partnership, Local First Arizona, Santa Cruz Valley Heritage Alliance, and WestWordVision, Inc.  The map highlights 215 local businesses. (2011)
• Launched a program to develop a regional food brand to increase community awareness of southern Arizona’s locally grown and heritage food products. (2010) 
• Co-sponsored the Santa Cruz Valley Organic Farm and Garden Tour, where more than 500 people attended a self-guided tour of seven farms, learning about desert farming techniques, composting, use of greenhouses, and more. (2010 and 2011)
• Sponsored the first Heritage Food Marketplace at the annual Tucson Meet Yourself Festival to make healthy, local foods available to the estimated 100,000 festival attendees. (2009 and 2010)
• Published the region’s first Local & Heritage Foods Directory to help guide consumers to local producers, restaurants, grocers, farmers markets, food histories, and agricultural heritage of the Santa Cruz Valley.  The directory highlights 80 local businesses. (2009)
• Successfully coordinated with the U.S. House of Representatives to approve federal designation of the Santa Cruz Valley National Heritage Area.  (2007 and 2009)
• Developed and launched the first-ever online, interactive regional heritage tourism map, Heritage Experiences of the Santa Cruz Valley, which was a finalist for the Governor’s Tourism Award in 2009. The map highlights nearly 100 local businesses, public parks, or other heritage destinations. (2008)
• Initiated the regional heritage foods program and conducted a sold-out heritage foods workshop and exposition. (2008)
• Co-sponsored the Sabores Sin Fronteras/Flavors Without Borders symposium and heritage food festival to document, celebrate and conserve farming and food folkways that span the U.S./Mexico borderlands from Texas and Tamaulipas on the east to Ambos Californias on the west. (2008)
• Developed, printed and distributed 10,000 copies of the regional heritage tourism map Heritage Experiences of the Santa Cruz Valley.  The map highlights nearly 100 local businesses, public parks, or other heritage destinations. (2007)
• Developed and launched an award-winning regional heritage website that promotes heritage business members, heritage events, heritage tourism, heritage foods, historical accounts, and more. (2007)
• Invested in the first-ever comprehensive inventory and feasibility study of the region’s heritage assets. (2005)
• Received funding and resolutions of support from every jurisdiction in the region. (2003-2005)