Gilroy
– Six years ago a group of neighbors in Summerhill built homes
for each other with their bare hands. Now, under the leadership of
one of those residents, they are joining people in the Los Arroyos
Park area to bridge cultural and economic differences among
hundreds of families.
Gilroy – Six years ago a group of neighbors in Summerhill built homes for each other with their bare hands. Now, under the leadership of one of those residents, they are joining people in the Los Arroyos Park area to bridge cultural and economic differences among hundreds of families.
Los Arroyos Park, currently under construction, lies at the heart of the community and ties the area together, according to Judy Hess, one of the founders of the Los Arroyos Neighborhood Alliance. The group is holding Neighbor Day this afternoon for residents who live in the area of Los Arroyos Park. Proceeds will benefit projects designed to bring the community together and increase affordable housing.
Hess sees the park as the core of a diverse community made up of five neighborhoods in north Gilroy – Glenbrook, Los Arroyos, Summerhill and Ventana that provide housing for various income levels – and the Monticelli Apartments, which offers affordable homes to elderly residents and low-income families.
In her own community of Summerhill, houses valued at half a million dollars lie adjacent to Hess’s sweat equity home – one of 10 such houses built six years ago with the assistance of South County Housing, the nonprofit housing group responsible for the five area developments. Hess’s neighbors include natives of El Salvador, Mexico, and Peru.
“We have different cultures, but we share the same values,” Hess said. “We value our families and want to take pride in our neighborhood and park.”
Neighbor Day is the first of many events the alliance will hold, according to Hess, who traveled to Los Angeles in September with seven other local residents for a conference on neighborhoods and community leadership.
The group came back with several ideas, including a Christmas event in the park and free English classes for native Spanish speakers. Those classes will take place either at Go Kids Inc., a daycare center, or the community room at Monticelli Apartments.
The group has other ideas, but they will hold off until hearing from their neighbors about what programs they would like to see.
As part of Neighbor Day, organizers will ask area residents to fill out a survey with ideas for community programs.
Dozens of companies have offered items to support the event.
There are more than 600 families of widely different backgrounds around Los Arroyos Park, but Neighbor Day has one simple theme, according to Hess.
“We want to unite our neighborhood,” she said
