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BACK New Park Helps Neglected Neighborhood by Bruce Gerstman, Contra Costa Times (10-30-03) CONCORD - Jose Montano leaned against his truck and looked around the apartments that face each other in Camara Circle. Montano said he has lived in the complex for about four years and remembers when drug dealers and vandalism filled his cul-de-sac. He described the sounds of breaking bottles and car windows. Trash, he said, was ignored in the gutters. Much of that has changed. And the most recent change is a new park in the center of the cul-de-sac. Backhoes are grading the earth across from his apartment. Soon, it will become an area shaded by trees. " There are a lot of kids here," Montano said. "They're going to enjoy it. " This is part of the renovation project that Resources for Community Development, a Berkeley-based nonprofit housing developer, has undertaken. Four years ago, the organization acquired 11 of the 15 apartment buildings huddled around the park at the end of Camara Circle, off Detroit Avenue in Concord's Monu! ment Boulevard corridor. The interiors became safer and the exteriors more attractive as the organization poured money and labor into them. Then managers of the four other buildings around the circle followed the trend. They gave their buildings a face-lift with paint and other facade improvements. The changes to neighborhoods come slowly, and demand patience of those willing to live here. Montano pointed to the tires on his truck - all four of which were slashed and flat. He pointed to the black rubber marks on the street from teens and young adults racing their cars. He pointed to a slab of concrete where people from other neighborhoods come to drink and listen to music at night. At the same time, he said, he's looking forward to the project's latest addition. Resources for Community Development is turning the center island field into a space for families to congregate and play soccer. Six years ago, when the buildings were individually owned, ! the city funded irrigation, landscaping and streetlights. But time, ne glect and spontaneous games of football wore away at the park. The current plans include park enhancements unseen in the complex since Montano and most residents can remember: grills, picnic tables and benches, swings and trees. Those who walk through will stroll above inscriptions in the concrete, with words and phrases, like "respect" and "community" written in English, Spanish and Chinese. " I put myself into the residents' shoes, and this is what I came up with," said Jeannie Horak, the landscape architect. "The girls like to play tetherball, so that went in, too. " Horak said she designed the park so residents would feel a sense of privacy from other neighborhoods. A 3-foot concrete wall will enclose the side of the park facing Detroit Avenue, about 200 yards away. Horak said she designed the wall to serve as a structure to sit on, as well as a shelter from cars passing by. " We didn't want everyone to come in there. We wanted the community to c! ome in, " she said. The fact that Horak is designing this is a coincidence, she said. She can remember when a mound of dirt was once a swimming pool. That was more than 40 years ago _ when she lived here. " When I was asked to come in, I thought, 'This sounds really familiar,'" Horak said. Though Horak said she moved out when she was 3 years old, she recalled the area as safe, with attractive apartment buildings at the time. " It was exciting for me to come back and do something positive for the community living here," she said. It's difficult to say exactly how many people live around the edges of the park. Resources for Community Development rents 52 apartments, and officials in the management office estimate that each unit houses about five people. Another 100 people may live in the buildings owned by other landlords. Judy Sparks, a program specialist with the organization, said the park is costing about $74,500 to build, which come! s mostly from Concord's Community Development Block Grants and some pr ivate donations. It originally cost $7.8 million to buy the apartments, and the city provided $2.65 million at the time. " We're hoping that it will be a common ground for people to meet," Sparks said. "Hopefully, it will be a cornerstone of the community."
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