OCEANSIDE – José Jimenez works hard in the construction industry doing home repairs, but he still finds time to serve as president of La Liga Azteca soccer league and as a member of the Crown Heights neighborhood association.
CRISSY PASCUAL / Union-Tribune
Street vendors such as the Corona Produce truck pictured here provide the only commercial activity in Oceanside's Crown Heights neighborhood.
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“I'm trying to keep my kids out of trouble, and it's the only way to do it,” Jimenez said of his community involvement.
Jimenez, 40, has lived in the Crown Heights neighborhood of Oceanside for 15 years.
In that time, Jimenez said, he has seen a downward trend in gang violence and has hopes for the neighborhood – especially now that city officials seem to be interested in addressing some of the problems there.
The 10-block area near downtown Oceanside lies just west of Interstate 5 and is generally bounded by freeway, Center Avenue, Horne Place and Missouri Avenue.
One of the poorest neighborhoods in the city, the mostly Latino Crown Heights is filled with modest apartment buildings and a scattering of single-family homes. Many have security bars on the windows.
Vendor trucks provide the only commercial activity. Amenities are few – a city-owned community garden and a tiny park the size of a basketball court.
The area's old name – Center Division – reflects two of its major streets and is a moniker still used by the local gang that marks walls with graffiti.
City officials have targeted Crown Heights, plus two dozen blocks across I-5 in the Eastside neighborhood, for revitalization.
The Eastside portion takes in Ron Ortega Recreation Park on Brooks Street and Joe Balderrama Park on San Diego Street. It includes a commercial strip along Brooks and San Diego streets.
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Crown Heights versus citywide statistics
Population: About 5,000 – 161,000 citywide
Hispanic: 81 percent – 30 percent citywide
Renters: 85 percent – 38 percent citywide
Family size: 4.5 people per household – 3.3 people citywide
Median household income: less than half of the city's $46,301
Source: 2000 U.S. census, city of Oceanside
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Tonight, the City Council will consider paying nonprofit Community HousingWorks $50,000 to craft a revitalization plan for the area in the next year, with a possible three-year extension at $25,000 annually to help implement the plan. The council meets at 5 p.m. in chambers at 300 N. Coast Highway.
The agency is expected to develop its plan by conducting community meetings and interviewing neighborhood leaders and social services organizations.
“It's obvious that Crown Heights is one of those areas that needs revitalization,” Councilman Jerry Kern said yesterday. “It is one of the poorest neighborhoods in the city, and it needs to be dressed up.”
Councilman Jack Feller agreed, and said he was interested in combining recreation opportunities in Crown Heights and Eastside.
“There are things we can do today to help the community, and things we can do in the future,” Councilman Rocky Chavez said. “I think it's great that we are doing things for safe communities.”
John Lundblad, an analyst with the city Neighborhood Services Department, said he hopes Crown Heights and Eastside can achieve the same successes the city has seen in Libby Lake, a neighborhood in northeastern Oceanside.
Four years ago, the city built a community center there and provided space for medical and youth services.
Joe Diaz, president of the Libby Lake neighborhood association, said yesterday that he believes gang activity in the area is down substantially. What has made the difference, Diaz said, was that residents took hope when the city took some action. City crews trimmed trees, fixed sidewalks and installed new lighting.
In Crown Heights, some of the complaints are similar. Residents have listed better lighting and more police patrols among their top priorities, along with a larger park where teens can play sports.
There already are some youth programs in the historic, city-owned Americanization School, now the Crown Heights Resource Center, at Division Street and Center Avenue.
Barbara Moreno runs a program for North County Lifeline Inc. there. As many as 50 youngsters ages 10 to 14 come each weekday for cooking, crafts, field trips and other activities.
“Every single one of these kids who attend the program is at-risk (for dropping out of school or joining gangs),” Moreno said.
Mallory Leeper, hired by the San Diego County Office of Education, provides a program at the school for about 10 children ages 6 to 9.
Julia Arellano, 32, has enrolled two of her three children and says it enables the youngsters to experience a world – even the nearby beach – they otherwise might not know.
Arellano likes that the children are taught to pick up litter. Garbage on Crown Heights streets is one of Arellano's pet peeves.
Celestino Chavez, 58, relaxing in tiny Cesar Chavez Park after work one day last week, also cited the trash problem. The first thing the city needs to do is increase the frequency of rubbish pickup, Chavez said.
A group of teenagers lounging around one of the nearby picnic tables said improvements definitely are needed.
“I don't like to see my neighborhood like this,” said Carlos Cental, 18. “Tell the city to come fix the water fountain that's not working. They don't care about the neighborhood.”
The park measures a scant 90 feet by 60 feet and holds one set of children's play equipment, two basketball backboards and two concrete picnic tables.
Residents have suggested opening up the athletic fields at adjacent Oceanside High School, although the fields are not under city control.
Now, Jimenez said, he and other coaches often must transport the 360 young players in his soccer league to Martin Luther King Jr. Park four miles away.
In Eastside, there is a potential for economic development along Brooks and San Diego streets, Lundblad said.
The San Diego Chargers are in negotiations with the city to turn the Center City Golf Course south of Eastside into a stadium. If that were to happen, the stadium would bring businesses and jobs, he said.
“We're not going to raise (the Chargers issue),” Lundblad said.
But if the council were to ask, Lundblad said, he would say that Crown Heights and Eastside need attention now and cannot wait for the Chargers question to be resolved.
Lola Sherman: (760) 476-8241; lola.sherman@uniontrib.com
