Neighbors Reclaiming Park From Gang

Three years ago, it was almost impossible to find children at the Central Recreational Center, about eight miles south of downtown.

Instead, gang members rode the swings and hung around at the center.

Residents were afraid to send their children and never talked to police about their fear.

Then police took action in an operation known as the Hooper Block Project. They brought in extra personnel and kicked out most hard-core gang members from the South-Central neighborhood.

Residents then followed up, reclaiming the area’s center from gang members.

“There was not a lot of involvement before this,” said Linda Spicer, a civilian LAPD employee in charge of tracking community involvement for the Newton Division. “Now, it has become an inspiration to others. People realized they don’t have to live afraid anymore.”

Some area residents agree.

“We cannot be afraid of gang members anymore,” said 43-year old community activist Hilda Samayoa. “We have to fight, by reporting crimes and keeping our area safe.”

These residents are an example of courage and determination in a 21-square-block area of homes and small businesses near the center, at Naomi Avenue and 22nd Street.

“We thank the community members who have gotten involved and taken risks in being vocal,” said Sophia Cortez, supervisor at the Central Recreation Center. “They care about their kids, and their neighborhoods.”

A few years ago it was almost unheard of that residents would finger area criminals, but that attitude has been changing recently in the neighborhood once largely populated by African Americans and now by Latinos.

That change did not begin until Los Angeles police realized that there was a major crime problem in the area and applied for federal funding.

Once the project was funded, police and other agencies, including the Los Angeles city attorney’s office and the Los Angeles City Department of Building and Safety, began working together.

In 1996, police went in and, with Samayoa’s help, they knocked on doors, convinced neighbors to talk to them and began arresting troublemakers over a period of several months, police said.

At the same time, neighbors reported eyesores and the area began looking better, Samayoa said.

Crime went down 37% in the 21-square block area a year later when the Hooper Block Project was implemented. Police say crime rates have remained low ever since.

People are encouraged to call police or send them anonymous letters telling them where they have seen drug, gang or prostitution activity.

But getting to this point was not easy.

When LAPD officers introduced the idea of a multi-agency task force to take back the neighborhood, residents simply did not trust them, officers said.

Five women showed up at the first meeting in 1995. Crime and blight had taken over the neighborhood. The large swimming pool, gym and grassy area at the center were practically off limits for area families.

The only places where children could play were broken sidewalks and small front yards.

“There was no way we could even walk outside during the day,” said Maria Hernandez, a resident of six years.

Residents said vacant lots and houses attracted drug dealers and addicts during daylight hours.

Gang members beat lifeguards and charged children who dared enter the center. The gang even rearranged the bedding plants at the park to form the acronym LP (Loco Park), the gang’s logo.

“We had to do something,” said LAPD Officer Rick Madrigal, who supervises the center’s neighborhood. “The gang members were taking control of the area.”

Samayoa became involved with police when she was robbed at gunpoint at a coin laundry. Just remembering the cold gun barrel in her stomach and letting go of her jewelry and money makes her blood boil, she said.

“Somebody had to stand up to them,” she said.

Police say the neighborhood change is dramatic.

“Most gang members are in jail now,” Madrigal said, referring to Loco Park gang members. “That’s why the neighborhood is so quiet. People feel much safer now. I can see it.”

Once the gang presence decreased, residents began visiting the center again. But the threat remains.

“They ([gang members] are trying to reestablish themselves at the park,” Madrigal said of the new and younger gang members. “We are willing to patrol the area more often. It will not happen again.”

Center employees say new gang members are not as aggressive as their predecessors, but they still create problems.

“We paint the wall one day and the next day you see graffiti all over again,” said Duran Kennedy, a park recreational assistant. “It’s a never-ending thing.”

Jesus Hernandez and his 38-year old mother were all smiles after a recent visit to the center.

The 9-year-old boy had just finished his homework at the center and played with his friends. Mother and son stopped outside the gate to chat.

But then Jesus, a skinny boy with spiky black hair, froze as if he had seen a ghost. A young man wearing a dark blue stocking on his head took out a spray can from under his shirt and painted “13 LOCOS PARK EVIL” on the clean wall.

The youth wearing baggy khakis and a tight white T-shirt smiled at the mom and son and then sped away in his bike.

Jesus, his eyes and mouth wide open, was speechless.

“Not again,” said Maria Hernandez.

The next day, center employees called painters who covered up the graffiti.

“See, we don’t want to go back to those days again,” said Hernandez. “We just can’t. I don’t want my children to be afraid again.”