Winning Team in the Inner City : Innovative complex joins affordable housing with learning in South L.A.
The way to a better life for many inner-city residents trapped in poverty may lie in combined remedies. The beauty of one such pioneering project--put together in South Los Angeles by two Orange County developers and officials of USC and local public schools--is that it coordinates affordable housing with improved education.
And what a sturdy signpost is this first of several planned projects of EXXCEL (Educational Excellence for Children with Environmental Limitations). The new apartment complex, at 120th Street and Vermont Avenue, was nearly finished when the riots broke out. It was left unscathed in its looted neighborhood, an auspicious focal point for the hard rebuilding ahead.
Though some business people have been tempted to repeat the pattern of flight that followed the Watts riots, developers Kent Salveson and Dan Hunter remain as firmly committed to their mission as they were several years ago. It was then, after hearing the story of a woman trying to improve the lot of her children against daunting odds, that they came to believe that builders can play a role in creating a positive environment.
In discussions that followed, the help of USC and some neighborhood public schools was enlisted. Construction was financed through tax breaks and low-interest financing. The complex will have a study room with textbooks, computers and reference materials, and USC graduate students will live on the premises to help out with school and personal problems. Parents among the tenants will be expected to participate in educational programs. There will be incentives for youngsters to succeed at school.
Making developers and educators partners in the success of a building seems simple enough. But the sad fact is is that absentee landlords too often have aggravated the nation’s urban problems.
Fortunately, here is a case where a builder’s willingness to work with educators brought them eagerly to the team in a neighborhood project. This important project is hopeful for tenants and hopeful for the inner city.
