Squalid Living Now Squeaky-Clean
There was no good reason Yolanda Reveles would have invited friends to her home.
Her two-bedroom Garden Grove apartment smelled from the bad plumbing. She kept the walls bare because the roof leaked and the paint peeled. The bathrooms were coated in mold. She was ashamed of the potholes that pocked her driveway and the algae that clung to the sides of the community’s swimming pool.
“It was so ugly,” she said. “I was embarrassed.”
This week, city officials, management and residents celebrated the rebirth of the complex, which has a new name, a new look and a new attitude.
On Haster Street, the former Haster Gardens, now named Arroyo Vista Apartments, has a tropical feel with its neutral tones, deep green lawns and arching palms, a far cry from the festering housing project that earned the nickname “Haster Disaster” and was ultimately condemned by the city.
Renovation of the 148-unit complex was a painstaking job, complicated by the fact that its former owners were convicted of fraud and that many of the units -- which the owners had sold off one by one -- ended up in foreclosure.
The former owners -- Dale D. Marks, 48, and Neko K. Defterios, 62, both of the Palos Verdes Peninsula -- were recently given jail terms for engineering mortgage schemes that allegedly netted them millions but left the complex essentially abandoned.
After years of neglect, the city determined that the apartment complex was putting a strain on city services -- code enforcement, health department visits and increased police patrols -- and asked the courts to consolidate the various foreclosure cases so that the property could be purchased and renovated.
With the help of the city, Irvine-based Vista Communities got a $620,000 federal loan and bought the aging property in 1999. The development firm also invested more than $2.5 million in new carpet, fresh paint, refurbished baths, new kitchens and appliances, and enclosed garages, among other improvements.
The remodeled swimming pool was once little more than a landing zone for dirt and leaves. The green grass, palm trees and brick-lined landscape had been plots of unleveled, dry dirt. A playground with blue swing sets, beige slides and a picnic area has been added, along with a community room.
“I’m so happy because I know how it used to look,” said Denia Huezo, 28, who now works as the assistant manager of the complex and was a tenant in the complex during its lesser days. “I’ve seen it grow and transform into a nice place to live.”
But not all have found it an easy adjustment. Some were upset that rent, formerly $500 to $800 a month, was raised to $825 for a one-bedroom to $1,395 for a three-bedroom. Some also were uneasy about the new rules.
“Before, there were no rules and everybody did what they wanted,” Huezo said. “Now they know that in order to have something good, they have to follow the rules.”
And so it is that residents now yell at children who play in the flower beds and dutifully pick up trash and debris.
Reveles said she is so proud of her remade residence that she spent thousands of dollars making it feel a little more like home. The apartment’s blue carpet is protected with another layer of rugs and she’s hung leopard-print photos. Friends visit weekly, vying to see who can make the hottest salsa or the best carne asada.
“I love my home now,” said Reveles. “There’s a lot of pride in where we live.”
