Afghan evacuees continue to arrive in Arizona as more families leave military bases to resettle in cities around the U.S. About a fifth of some 3,000 Afghans expected to resettle in Arizona will come to Tucson.
City Council member Steve Kozachik says his office is awash with donated bedding, clothes and kids toys for when they arrive. But the process has been slow, only around 150 people are here so far.
"The challenge that we have now is that the pace at which the federal government is metering out the families, is much slower than the donation process," he said.
As a result, Kozachik says his office has extra supplies that will be donated to homeless shelters and organizations helping migrants and asylum seekers.
Still, he says more challenges are ahead for Afghans. Most are staying at a local hotel right now, and in past years, aid organizations worked with a roster of landlords to get refugees into permanent housing at fixed costs.
But after nearly two years of economic strain brought on by the pandemic and a growing housing demand in Tucson, Kozachik says many are less inclined to volunteer. His office is meeting with them to find solutions.