According to Justice O’Connor, members of the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community blessed the house site in Tempe Papago Park prior to the reconstruction. We have often heard Mayor Hallman speak about how this building has come home because the abode was originally made from sand and clay soils from the bed of the Salt River in Tempe. The home was reconstructed so that it is situated with the same directional orientation as it was when first constructed. The site selected for the relocation overlooks Tempe and the Salt River to the south. To this end she offers us her vision for repurposing the O’Connor House as a place – “where civil talk leads to civic action.” The adaptive reuse of this property also helps make historic designation after relocation possible. Justice O'Connor remains committed to promoting civil discussions which translate into effective action plans to improve our community. It is a gift to Tempe and to the community at large to let the house serve, once again, as a gathering place where people find the level of compromise and consensus needed to move society forward. In the process, friendships were created that helped make Arizona a better place to live. People got to know one another in this house as they had fun and reached compromises across party lines.
This stunning adobe house has witnessed more than Justice O’Connor’s remarkable life journey for 25 years the home also saw much of the state’s history being made.
The opportunity to relocate both the home and the spirit of Sandra Day O’Connor to a spectacular setting in Tempe Papago Park resulted from a broad-based community effort. Although the Tempe Historic Preservation Plan recognizes preservation "in place" as the preferred strategy for the long-term management of historic properties, when this is not possible, relocation is a recommended alternative to preserve the historic characteristics of the property. The landmark Sandra Day O’Connor House was relocated from its original 1959 site on Denton Lane in Paradise Valley to an area in Tempe Papago Park dedicated to the development of the Center for Civic Discourse. Today it is difficult to imagine a better personification of the spirit of Arizona than the so-called “Daughter of Arizona”, United States Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor. The landmark Sandra Day O’Connor House is significant primarily as the surviving property most importantly associated with a life of distinguished public service spent building consensus with a style rich in Western pragmatism that has incrementally shaped the law, unified a divided Court, and helped a polarized nation coalesce. The property is considered eligible for this action by the Historic Preservation Office. The property located at 1230 North College Avenue in Tempe Papago Park has been nominated for landmark designation and listing in the Tempe Historic Property Register. The landmark home of retired United States Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor and the new Center for Civic Discourse at the Carl Hayden Campus for Sustainability was relocated to Tempe Papago Park in 2009 through the efforts of a grassroots group of civic-minded citizens who enthusiastically endorsed Justice O'Connor's wish to re-purpose the house as the "Camp David" of the Southwest.
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