Jumping into the pool at Stone Curves are, from left, Willa Gorman, 10, Sequoia Chuinard-Craig, 9, and Amber Heldreth-Miller, 10. Our Family Services helped the community reach an agreement on plans for the pool.

David Kemper / Arizona Daily Star

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Sometimes it's just a matter of really listening.

That's what helped the West Side neighborhood Barrio Kroeger Lane earlier this year when residents couldn't decide how to spend $150,000 for community improvements.

Prior meetings had been unproductive, and residents were divided. Some wanted the money to be used for a new horse arena, while others hoped for things like park and street improvements.

But when the residents met with two mediators from Our Family Services' Community Mediation Program, they realized it can be easy to compromise.

"We spent the first 45 minutes listening, and we got to really listen and Victor and I agreed that's what they really needed," said Shawn Mulligan, one of the volunteer mediators, referring to the work she did with the program manager, Victor Quiros.

"There was really a lot of wisdom in that group and a willingness to work it out."

Carlos Ochoa said Our Family's guidance was critical in getting his neighborhood to reconcile differences.

As chairman of the neighborhood association, he turned to Ward 1 Councilwoman Regina Romero and Pima County Supervisor Richard Elías for guidance.

That's when Our Family was brought in.

"They just made people feel good," said Ochoa, 50. "I'm really happy that they came and did that for us, and now we're moving forward."

He said the pair from Our Family used a green, furry ball that residents had to be holding in order to speak.

"They can speak as a group, yet every person gets to have their say and have their opinion heard," said Quiros, who has managed Our Family's mediation program for three years.

Quiros said that while the organization originally focused on mediation between individuals, the organization started branching out to help whole communities in the last couple of years.

Ochoa said his community has now decided to divide the money three ways, with a portion for street improvements, a portion for park improvements and the last $50,000 for water harvesting.

"It made us realize we've got to hear each other," he said. "These mediation programs teach you how to come to a consensus."

Quiros, 40, said differences of opinion in neighborhoods often arise over how to use resources, for example, or how to approach a new business that's coming into a neighborhood.

"It might be a landlord renovating a house for student rentals, and the neighbors want to make sure it doesn't become a mini-dorm," he said.

Our Family has about 40 mediators of various ages and backgrounds volunteering their time to help communities like Barrio Kroeger Lane. All volunteers have undergone Our Family's 40-hour training program.

Another session will be held in the fall, said Angela Hagen, a spokeswoman with Our Family.

Community mediation is paid for in part by the city of Tucson, as well as Pima County, Pima County Animal Care and the town of Oro Valley. Fees are also collected based on what communities can afford.

Mac Hudson, an aide to Romero, said the mediation for Barrio Kroeger Lane was paid for by Romero's office.

"Our Family did an amazing job. The neighborhood was really open and receptive to it," he said. During previous meetings, Hudson said, he could see the neighbors were "all kind of talking about the same thing."

"But they couldn't see it," he said.

Mulligan, one of the Barrio Kroeger Lane mediators, first became familiar with Our Family's program when her own community deadlocked on plans for a new pool about two years ago.

Mulligan, 45, lives in Stone Curves, an environmentally sensitive planned community at 4133 N. Stone Ave.

"We were really struggling and trying to come to common ground on the swimming-pool decision," she said. "We finally surrendered and said, 'We need some help.' "

This community of about 150 people is committed to making decisions through consensus, she said, but became stumped over how to meet the needs of all the residents.

Some wanted lap lanes; others wanted a family swimming pool. Then there were questions about the kind of filter to use, and how much money should go to that.

There were nearly a dozen community meetings with no consensus. Then, with Our Family's guidance, they reached an agreement within about six hours.

"That process is so valuable because it allows everyone to feel heard and have their own views," said Mulligan, who then completed the 40-hour training to become a mediator herself.

"People are then much more willing to surrender their positions, are more willing to say, 'I'm OK with that.' "