Ballard Park community’s victory over crime: one year later

Children play freely and residents gather nightly to socialize with one another, but it wasn’t always that way at the Parkside Apartments in the 1500 block of Ninth Avenue West in the Ballard Park neighborhood.

A year ago, a group of low-income residents, many with various disabilities, bonded together and decided it was time to rid their lives of a prevalent criminal element occupying the small apartment complex. Drug users, drug dealers, thieves and prostitutes made up a large percentage of the complex, where residents lived in fear, locking themselves up at night to avoid gun shots and parking lot drug deals.

Some of the faces from a year ago have changed, but the successful effort to make Parkside a home rather than just a place to live has continued.

Steven Hatter moved in about eight months ago as a full-time maintenance employee at Parkside. He remembers the stories of the neighborhood’s plight and read about their success before moving into the complex.

“The first day I got here, I was still pretty nervous just from the place’s previous reputation,” Hatter said. “But that went away pretty quick. I know there used to be a lot of crime and drug deals here, but there isn’t anymore. This is still a really tight community where everybody looks out and takes care of everyone.”

Church communities and others who got involved to help the neighborhood win their battle are still active with the residents. Hatter said residents still share what they have with one another and pitch in when help is needed. Residents greet new tenants by helping to move furniture and put them at ease by letting them know that they have become part of a family.

As long as they don’t do anything illegal.

“We don’t bother to call the cops on them,” Hatter said. “We simply evict them. I know some people still do certain things, but as long as they do it behind closed doors, then that’s their business. What isn’t allowed is to bring any illegal activity into the neighborhood.”

That was the policy initially started by the complex’s superintendent, Junior Baker, who has given up that official title, but still lives at Parkside. The landlord has picked up where Baker left off, and Hatter said there is absolutely no tolerance for anyone conducting illegal activities.

“The first few nights I moved in I was wondering what we got ourselves into,” said resident Steven Leed, who moved in before the transition. “On the first night there was a big bust in unit 1, and on the second night there was a big bust in unit 2. People used to smoke crack right outside and one guy got his door kicked in and we could hear him screaming as he was getting beat up for robbing a drug dealer. Kids used to walk around with guns, but it’s not like that anymore.”

Leed said people now move in from surrounding neighborhoods to get away from their previous crime issues.

“They think they’ve found the land of milk and honey,” Leed said with a laugh. “But they know it’s safe here.”

Another key resident in the original battle to rid the community of crime was Kristina Gomez, a mother of four who is affectionately called “Mama” by most of the community. It was Gomez who took the first action by starting potluck dinners and engaging her fellow residents.

That initial action brought people together with a common goal and the understanding that most of the residents were good people who were down on their luck. The monthly dinners aren’t as commonplace anymore, but they aren’t necessary. Every evening is a social gathering of friends, neighbors and, ultimately, family.

Gomez said one year ago, “We are going to take back our neighborhood.” And they did.

This story was originally published February 26, 2017 at 12:10 PM with the headline "Ballard Park community’s victory over crime: one year later."