Thinking Its Presence conference at the University of Arizona Poetry Center
Thursday, October 19, 2017 - Saturday, October 21, 2017
Please read through this whole page for important information about visiting Tucson for this conference. It has lots of important info (for instance: did you know that the University of Arizona has almost no parking available? it will be important to plan on alternative ways of arriving at campus besides driving).
Click here for technology information for presenters.
Registering for the conference
Registration has closed.
Very limited on-site registrations will be available; please contact Becka Ranta at rdranta@email.arizona.edu to check availability and reserve your pass.
Schedule
Conference events will take place from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm each of the three days, with keynote evenings from 7:00 pm to 10:00 pm. The 9:00-5:00 sessions are only open to registered attendees, and the evening sessions will be open to the public. The daytime schedule is available at Sched, and for information on the evening events, see our calendar. With questions, contact Prageeta Sharma at tip2017proposals@gmail.com.
https://thinkingitspresence2017.sched.com/
Lodging in Tucson
We have reserved hotel blocks at discounted rates for hotel registrants at two hotels: the new AC Hotel Tucson by Marriott and the Aloft Hotel. To reserve a room, contact the hotel directly and ask for a room that has been reserved for the Poetry Center.
AC Hotel Tucson by Marriott
151 E. Broadway Blvd. / Tucson, AZ / 480-226-5551
The AC Hotel is just over 2 miles from the UA Poetry Center. It is a 40-minute walk, or a 20-minute ride on the SunTran streetcar. More information about the streetcar is below.
***Make reservation by September 14th to receive the discounted rate***
To make reservations, click here. You can also call at 520-860-0547.
Click here for directions from AC Hotel Tucson to Poetry Center via Streetcar.
Aloft Hotel
1900 E Speedway Blvd / Tucson, AZ / 520-908-6800
King or two-queen bed rooms, both $180 + tax nightly rate
***Make reservation by October 2nd to receive the discounted rate***
To make reservations, click here.
Click here for walking directions from Aloft Hotel to Poetry Center.
Other possible lodgings:
We have set up a room-sharing page to connect potential Tucson hosts with visitors: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1768660176757780/
Arizona Inn
2200 E Elm St / Tucson, AZ / 520-325-1541
Hotel Congress
311 Congress St / Tucson, AZ / 520-622-8848
Airbnb: Tucson options, 10/18-10/22
Tucson also has a number of Bed & Breakfasts. See TripAdvisor’s recommendations here.
Climate:
Tucson in October is quite warm – likely, the mid-80s for the duration of the conference, with the nights cooler. Please plan to bring a water bottle, sunglasses and/or hats, lightweight clothing and/or layers, and anything else you might need to be happy and healthy in the heat. It’s good to be mindful of how much time you plan to spend outside when getting from point A to point B. Please stay healthy in our desert city!
Transportation:
Sun Link Streetcar:
Tucson has a streetcar line that connects downtown to the university. You must buy fares in advance of boarding: either a $4 day pass (which you can purchase at every streetcar stop) or a SunGo card that will charge you $1.50 for each ride. Once you are aboard the streetcar, you tap your pass over a farebox to have your fare deducted from the card.
More info: SunLink homepage / Schedule & route / Boarding the streetcar
3-minute walk from the Helen/Warren St. Streetcar Stop to the UA Poetry Center:
Tucson also has a reliable and affordable bus system, and there are a number of stops near the UA Poetry Center. For route schedules, fares, and more information, see http://www.suntran.com/.
Biking:
Tucson is consistently listed as one of the top ten bicycling cities in the U.S. There are bike paths and bike-friendly roads around campus and downtown. For more information on biking in Tucson, click here, and when using Google Maps select "bicycle" for roads with bike paths.
Driving:
While you may choose to rent a car and/or to drive to Tucson—especially if you plan to get out to see the surrounds of Tucson—we do NOT recommend driving to campus for the conference. Parking near the Poetry Center is extremely limited, and when available, expensive. If you have any questions about this, please contact Becka Ranta, Events Coordinator, at rdranta@email.arizona.edu.
Driving:
As an alternative to driving, Tucson has plenty of cab services, as well as Lyft and Uber drivers. VIP Taxi has an app available and competitive rates with Lyft and Uber.
Food
We’ve arranged for food trucks to be on site to sell lunch each day of the conference from 11:00 am to 2:00 pm. The lunch break is from 1:00 pm to 2:00 pm. On Thursday, we will be visited by Nations Creations; on Friday, Kababeque Xpress; and on Saturday, DC Jumble Latin Caribbean. There are also a number of walkable lunch options (see below for a partial list).
There will be a complimentary morning coffee/tea/water station each of the three days starting at 8:30 am in the Poetry Center's meditation garden (come in through the library!).
Local dining/grocery options:
There are many dining and grocery options. For groceries, we recommend the Food Conspiracy Co-op, which is easily accessible via the streetcar route. Tucson also has Sprouts, Safeway, Fry's, Albertson's, and Whole Foods for grocery options by car and bus line. For dining options within walking distance of the Poetry Center, we recommend Bentley’s (a café with many good lunch options) and 1702 (where you can get large slices of pizza and any number of beers on tap). Also in walking distance are Miss Saigon (Campbell Location), Subway, Boston Market, Taco Bell, Wendy's, and the UA Student Union, whose offerings can be found here.
We encourage you to explore Tucson's best food offerings (beyond the UAPC 2-mile radius!) -- Tucson was declared a UNESCO City of Gastronomy in 2015, and we have some beginning recommendations (though this is just a start!) below.
Walkable from Poetry Center:
Bentley's House of Coffee & Tea / 1730 E. Speedway Blvd
Miss Saigon / 1072 N. Campbell Ave
1702 Pizza & Craft Beer / 1702 E. Speedway Blvd
Also walkable: Wendy's, Taco Bell, McDonald's, Boston Market, Subway, University of Arizona Student Union
Off 4th Ave (streetcar):
Exo Coffee Co / 403 N. 6th Ave
Tap & Bottle / 403 N. 6th Ave #135
University Ave. (streetcar or bike/walk):
Pasco Kitchen / 820 E. University Blvd
Kababeque Indian Grill / 845 E. University Blvd #185
The Dutch Eatery / 943 E. University Blvd
Fourth Avenue (streetcar):
Tall Boys / 600 N. 4th Ave
The Coronet / 402 E. 9th Street
La Indita / 611 N. Fourth Ave
Downtown (streetcar):
The Little One (cash only, breakfast and lunch) / 151 N. Stone Ave
Veg Box (vegan) / 75 E. Pennington St
Penca / 50 E. Broadway Blvd
La Cocina / 201 N. Court Ave
Independent Distillery / 30 S. Arizona Ave
Tough Luck Club / 101 E. Pennington St
Pueblo Vida Brewery / 115 E. Broadway Blvd
Barrio Viejo/Armory Park (car):
Café Desta / 758 S. Stone Ave
5 Points Market & Restaurant / 756 S. Stone Ave
West Side (southernmost streetcar stop):
Mercado San Augustin (several dining options and a farmer's market) / 100 S. Avenida del Convento suite 200
South Tucson (car):
Mi Nidito / 1813 S. 4th Ave
El Guero Canelo / 5201 S. 12th Ave
Aqui Con el Nene / 65 W. Valencia Rd
Taqueria Pico De Gallo / 2618 S. 6th Ave
Other (car):
Govinda's Natural Food (vegetarian/vegan buffet, offerings based on day of week) / 711 E. Blacklidge Dr
Lerua's Fine Mexican Foods / 2005 E. Broadway
Welcome Diner / 902 E. Broadway Blvd
We look forward to seeing you in Tucson soon!
Technology
- Each room has different tech setups. Please check on the Sched which room your presentation has been assigned to, and then compare with the below setups:
- Education North, Vine Annex: PC laptop, mac adapter, projector, speakers (you may bring your own laptop to project, but please note that our recommended way of connecting is by bringing your presentation on a USB drive)
- Classroom 205, Conference 207, Library: PC tower connected to large monitor, speaker/soundbar (you may not connect your own laptop; the setup is fixed. Please bring your presentation on a USB drive.)
- Poetry Center Theater: Mac or PC laptop, mac adapter, projector, native sound (you may bring your own laptop to project, but please note that our recommended way of connecting is by bringing your presentation on a USB drive)
- All rooms are equipped with WiFi: please connect to the UA Guest network. You’ll need to register any new device that uses this network once on-site; your registration on this network will last for five days. Instructions for registering can be found here: https://it.arizona.edu/service/uaguest-wifi Because this process can take longer than one might expect, we recommend that if your presentation requires the internet, you either register your device well in advance of your presentation, or you use one of our pre-connected PCs.
- Mac adapters are available for Education North, Vine Annex, and Poetry Center Theater. The Mac adapter that we have is a Mini DisplayPort to VGA adapter. If you are using certain newer (or quite a bit older) models of MacBook, you’ll need to supply your own adapter. Please confirm using Apple’s support website if Mini DisplayPort is adequate for your own laptop.
If you have further questions beyond the above, you can get in touch with Hannah Ensor, literary director (hensor@email.arizona.edu) or with Becka Ranta, events coordinator (rdranta@email.arizona.edu).
Directions from the two conference hotels (AC Hotel and aloft) to the ua Poetry Center:
From AC Hotel Tucson to Poetry Center via Streetcar:
- Purchase a pass (fares are not available on-board the streetcar). You can either buy a $4 day pass at the streetcar stop itself or you can purchase a pay-per-ride SunGo pass ($1.50 per ride) at any of the retail locations listed here.
- Note: there is only one streetcar route, so you can’t get on the wrong streetcar—only the wrong direction. The below directions will take you from the AC Hotel to the university.
- Board at stop 9E at Broadway Blvd & 6th Ave.
- Ride train until final destination, stop 19 at Helen St.
- Once you are off the train, walk west on Helen St, toward Warren Ave. (If you get to Campbell Ave., you’ve gone in the wrong direction. If you get to Vine Ave., you’ve gone too far in the right direction.)
- Cross Warren Ave., then N Cherry Ave., and the Poetry Center will be on your left.
For more information on the streetcar, scroll up to "Transportation Information" heading.
Walking directions from Aloft Tucson to Poetry Center:
- Walk west on Speedway Blvd., towards Campbell Ave.
- Cross Campbell Ave., and continue until N Cherry Ave.
- Turn right (north) on N Cherry Ave. and cross Speedway Blvd.
- Turn left on Helen St.
- The Poetry Center will be on your left.
