Reclaiming the Crescent: Stories From Tyshaun's Neighborhood

Major funding for reclaiming the crescent is provided in part by the daisy Marquis Jones foundation with additional support from the Rochester area community foundation and driving into Rochester on route 490. The Kodak tower stands tall above the northwest section of downtown. The tower is a symbol of Rochester's heritage and its economic history of success and wealth. It's also a landmark in the High Falls entertainment district. But both the Kodak tower and High Falls are actually part of another neighborhood. The Jay Whitney orchard neighborhood that a few blocks away in the shadow of this building neighbors struggle with poverty drugs and crime. This is the Jay Whitney Orchard Street area. You've seen it often enough on the evening news almost always a part of a crime scene. There's a reason for that. At one time the neighborhood was the most violent section of the city. Police and even some residents called it the fatal Crescent.

Came over here and found myself my profile. In fact they said it lightly. This part of the so called Crescent has been given another name a name for the neighborhood group that succeeding in making change here. It's now known simply as Joe Santa AJ Orchard Street area neighborhood association. Tonight we'll meet the police we've been working here. One of the things we had with a street area Livingston's area or three. Was quite fine on the side and that I needed to stop the neighbors who have been living here. But imagine if they would if you could your neighbors. Your neighbors next door neighbor. But they were shot down by somebody right next to your house. The crime victims and I was on the phone just telling the. Operator I said Well. He's just laying there my son has gotten killed. Those who run businesses you can buy a gun on the street and then.

You know take you six months to get a gun permit legally. But before we finish this interview if you want I can get a gun for. The clergy. We thank you that we are going into the enemy's camp and taking back what he stole from us go up since the Bible tells us that we're not battling against flesh and blood but the battles against spiritual. It's a spiritual and a school principal. I welcome the playground. And. I looked at the swings and there's the rubber seat of the swing and there with all these playgrounds. These bite marks on the rubber seat and I was standing there with a neighbor. And I said What is that I mean. What is that. And he said. It's just me and you know it's not all or nothing. He says at night on the side of truth with the parking lot they bring their pit bull dogs out and they clamp the meat the dog bite the rubber sheet. In the ball pit release the grip. So then they swing the dog by the jaws which strengthens the jaws when they fight.

That might seem like an unbelievable picture. The image of a dog being taught to kill here on a school playground. Well they say every picture tells a story. And tonight you'll see some individual snapshots of people like Ralph speed and the Joe Sana neighbors pictures and stories of people who tried individually for years to change things in this part of the city. It took the death of a 10 year old boy Sean Caldwell to focus the strength of all of these people to combat the problems. It took desire a strong desire by some business owners and neighbors to call Northwest Rochester home. It took a commitment from the local police and city government. And it took guts. Now the people who are reclaiming this part of the so-called failed Crescent are finding out. It works. Here are some of their stories. Here are some people out here and probably open their heels on drugs sales and things that we continue to watch read on here the

other day we made three arrests on the street. Rochester Police Captain Joe Davis heads up what's known as the maple section or as he calls it the land of paradox. Within the sections borders are Kodak High Falls frontier field and this neighborhood once notorious for unrelenting violent crime. This now is the new neighborhood group called Joe's right here. It starts at child street it goes over the Lisle haven't you. It basically goes down the West Broad Street and it goes over to. In and around by the expressway in the interval. Just a few years ago this area led the city in murders its streets peppered with boarded up buildings drug houses and vacant lots. This is where the man was beaten to death. And he was then dragged and stuffed in the back lot back in here. Police say many crimes here are drug related. Now these two were seen these two over here if you want to take a look at them they're up to no good. What they're

doing is. They're probably involved in a hand-to-hand situation. They saw their job being a little nervous they may have been lighting up and they're going to go in the smoke shop. All right now they're moving if you notice one of the things he's doing is going just to the phone he's probably doing that as a joke. This is a troubled area here this is J and West Broad Street right down to Romayne. You'll notice groups hanging out walking back and forth a lot of this is were heroin dealing is taking place. See the guy on the bike down there. He may be a scout. Scouts find clients ready to buy drugs or act as a lookout for police. Here cops are faced with some serious and violent crimes but they just don't fight crime. They study it thoroughly. It's an old counseling idea unless you're thoroughly aware of the problem you can't solve it the problem will stay with you forever. Things are changing. Last year the number of murders went down by 50 percent.

Rapes are down by more than 25 percent or robberies felony assaults are down by 40 percent arsons 50 percent. Dealers are being kicked out of drug houses. Surveillance cameras have been put up in specific areas to spot crime. And although this neighborhood has been a law enforcement's radar screen for years it took the death of a 10 year old boy one year ago to finally get this neighborhood to act. Yeah. His time afraid to ride it out in any noise I'm told he was going home movie didn't know for sure all of hill photographs from an amusement park bring back happy memories of her son Ty Shawn Caldwell. But her smile quickly fades with another memory. Our 10 year old Shawn was shot and killed last year while he was on his bicycle and I guess Tyson heard my voice outside.

So he came outside with the sneakers and I teased him about his sneakers I grabbed the round his neck to summon the top of his foot. In the set there for a couple minutes. And I went in the house to use the bathroom when I came out. Tyson I was gone he had took off on the bike he rolled an E.R.. And I say go home. It's not a place for you to be Shawn Sr. Sturgis who was five months pregnant at the time says Just then a fight broke out right after that you know and then asked my partner ask remember you do not you see my brother right here. So then as I did that turned back to at the same way what I mean when I come outside and I talked to him and I said Mom get up and go home. I've told everybody. And I'm taking the bike with but between his life I put the bike in that's like get up and go home. Women. Ask But he's not moving. That's my daughter's girlfriend was running down the street and she was standing there. He got shot he got shot and I was like who got shot and she said Ty Sana he's not breathing.

So and I just ran up and trying to call my mother and I was on the phone just telling the. Operator I said Well. He's just laying there my son has got until my name is Charlotte all of it 11 convolved. But he's at 185 with me in the driveway he's been shot by Shon was hit by a bullet intended for someone else. DRUG DEALER Joseph Wright who pulled the trigger was convicted of second degree murder and is currently serving 25 years to life in prison who not only to celebrate Christmas anymore not really. I don't put a tree up or anything. Hill says she keeps busy to keep herself sane. Another way she stay sane is by staying put. Hill and her family including Tiaras baby daughter Ty Shawnee have no plans to move on and I could never move. I want to be where I was wrong I killed. All the memories are in that house because we would have been 11 and we've been in the house 11 years. Oh I could never move.

And so I said I'm a little just moved the drill bit was out at the end of one young life has sparked a neighborhood movement. It's the same. Thing. That I have. People have come out. THAT HELP I'M. Going to think about it even for myself and I was certain we heard this about 11:30 we heard this very shop very distinguishable. Bullet rang out. And I said to my son I said I was not a firecracker. I was not a firecracker. Price Sean Caldwell was killed just feet from Walker's home. This is my home right here. With the 80 sign in the window. My daughter who is approximately Tyson's 8 sleeps and I better. OK. Now. For it not been for the grace of God. Instead of having a monument to Tyson on here. It could be a monument to my daughter. I mean just if you could move his hand just a little bit he was in direct line

from from that white door there in the garage straight in the back. Direct line from there right through he could of went right in the start and I caught that bullet it could be mobilized by Don and that that struck me in a unique kind of special way to get involved here. So was that the straw that broke the camel's back that is like I just I broke the camel's back when. I had said at that point look this is enough is enough. We had a little political. Group. Just about to get started. And we said Let's say is the focus of what we're trying to do to clean up the community about a green light for. Where we are. Walker and his neighbors formed Joe sun up the Jay Orchard Street area neighborhood association. Walker had lived in the neighborhood for four years at that point. Between. This one city block here. There was at all times there used to be 40 to 50 people

in the area and it was like a three ring circus. It was dealing drugs. All manner of illegal things going on. Shootings on a regular bases and loud cars boom boxes. And it just was a kind of. Circus or chaos. What about. Children. When children. Did it becoming normal for them to deal with this every day or to see or hear the bullets whizzing by. Yes a big can to expect that a circus you know it would happen and it's just a fact of life and they will crowd around and look at the people who have been shot it when just being broken as we speak here. Look at the house just behind. And me his entire 184 Whitney which is next door to my home. If you look three inches above the door bell as we speak. That little hole is a meter but I mean a bullet hole that was shot there and approximately two and a

half feet above that is another lot like home. Those are nine millimeter bullet holes that were shot from across the street here and they shot and broke my neighbor's car when they're right here. They've broken another my neighbors down there they shot. Broke his automobile window and this is a normal kind of a correct occurrence. Almost every night gunshots gunfire as Walker says since the 1950s is home ownership in this neighborhood dropped from 90 percent to 10 percent. Crime escalated beyond control. We're going to keep it going. Don't play with your IQ. You take a strong. And put him in hot water. And turn the temperature up one degree at a time. He will sit there because the degrees are so gradual he will sit there until the skin Limbaugh's off his body because it's such a slow progression and you will accept that. But if you take him and turn it up a long pass water will pass Harden just drop him in the middle he was spraying out of that and never get back in it.

I think the people in neighborhood many ways that is a lot of time farce. It was one lady who was a prostitute along the street they say you know. Then there was two and they said right and they my business. And then I was three and they said we're not going to worry about that. Let it go. And then came the drug dealers. It all happened gradually and before we know it we found myself in the midst of chaos with a degree of tolerance. But after Ty Shawn was shot it got really personal. This behind us here is a city lot which we have converted to a shrine in memory of Tyson because he is really the you know. Already he is really what we consider the Rosa Parks the poster child as you wheel of this movement and that he made the ultimate sacrifice that to leave us a memory that says if we have adults and want to work for the children

then we've got to do something about that enough is enough let's take back our streets. One way they're trying to do that is by working together. It takes an entire village all of us to do it. It takes the city officials It takes a community it takes the police department but most of all the backbone of all of that is the citizens who live here from day to day and trying to encourage homeownership in home repair. We will get all the names of all the landlords in our sector and we're going to send them a letter says Look property taxes and repair and we will use this as an example for them to say bring it up to the code and if they don't do that at the first warning then we're going to do something that we used to do and all the days we're going to build a house small one house and we go into the house. They live in Pittsburgh gate when these big mansions and we're going to go have set in with signs that

says Mr. Jones slumlord all of these you know have the house that he owns and the picture of those houses and will pass them out to everybody and we will stay out there and we'll let him feel like that will go from house to house house house. And they they decided to get rid of the property come to some of us wonder admits the process is slow. For the moment Walker likes what he sees and hears. If you just listen for a moment now on the street now you can hear. I can hear the birds sing. I hear people talking on the street if I look at the way they're on the street I don't see 40 or 50 people standing alone in a horde on in a corner shooting dice or selling drugs in a thing like that. This is quiet. Is quiet this our community see the little sparrow flying around. And at night you can hear the crickets going trip trip which is unusual. It doesn't sound like much of a copper's but rabid and its community is superb for us. And turning around the housing stock is taking both a public and a private effort.

Drive around this neighborhood and you're bound to find many homes boarded up others are rental properties and a few belong to homeowners. Neighborhood groups are trying to attract more homeowners or at the very least respectable landlords who won't branch of drug dealers. Catherine Mayer and her husband Brian purchased homes in the area renovate them and rent them out to trustworthy tenants. We always like looking at houses but then we started buying and we have and there is nothing. That feels as good as walking out of this house and handed it over somebody that just absolutely loves it as much as we do. The mayor's latest purchase is on Whitney street. My husband and I had never rehab to this extent. There was dog feces on the floor all the carpeting. All the cupboard doors were gone the bathroom was completely.

Gutted. There was no copper no plumbing no sink no toilet. We spent the first three weeks here going down to the corner to use a bath where working neighbors are convinced landlords like Mayor can help the area grow. I preach to landlords all the time every chance I get. Do the right thing make it look how you'd want it to be. I tell them to fix your place up because I really honest to god don't believe that if a landlord. Takes care of his place. A tenant. Will destroy it. These tenants that I've had have been through so many bad times. With so many landlords that that animals come into their homes. I had one tenant. That was going to move anywhere she was blind. And she lived in a place where. The rats. Came in. And she's blind and she can't even tell. How close the animal I mean it's horrendous I can't even begin to tell you how it sickens me. This apartment is just about finished and ready to go. The mayor's will continue their

quest. I really believe that one house at a time Brian and I are going to change this city. And that's our passion. We're excited about it. You know people that live in this area say the city is listening city crews came out to fix this sidewalk when neighbors called recently. Neighbors say it's a sign that the city is noticing their efforts. Probably the biggest contribution to this effort is the police force that's assigned to these streets. Now let's meet three crime fighters a unit cop and activist bar owner and a prayer group that searches for trouble. Many police officers come to the job with a background in criminal justice or the signs myself I didn't and I valued that because it gave me a chance to look at the world other set of eyes. And they have always to question what was going on what was going on in the maple Section

Three years ago was making headlines violent crime day in day out at the time Captain Davis was in charge of the city's Lakes section. When he learned the chief was sending him over to what was known as the notorious maple didn't know what to expect came over here and found myself quite perplexed in fact they said oh my god they sent me and what I meant by that is I drove down the streets. Would. You mount a board ops desperateness in history. I said I really have a lot of work to do. Not just police work either. I graduated with a man in mathematics to be from sinkin Fisher College and did attend some graduate school at the University of Rochester. I was also privileged to attend the Senior Management Institute for the Police Executive Research Forum in Harvard and stuff like that. Stuff like that has given Davis a unique approach to reducing crime and winning street wars. He started with his own street.

When I drove into my section office were late S.. Very very sage drove in here and I had mice on the floor of cockroaches and walls. And I had pigeons living in the building nesting in the second floor in sinks. Papers in many different places toilets overflowing. And I said I really have a lot of work to do. It was the conditions in the building were not suited for police officers. Davis decided there was no way police could be dedicated to fighting crime if their own work environment was falling apart. His first order of business was to change that. We went basically through the whole building and did a lot of very very adequate. Today we have officers for all of our investigators and they slacker. We have a fitness center. I found that when they were going out of the building smile. That was my little review. I heard them talking more about crime rather than complaining. In fact today people when you're out in the hall you're hear them discussing cases and where are we

going. What's happened. To you guys if you're saying you were superior. What did you think you did that you know one of the things we had was the J Street area Witten Street area Orchard Street area was quite violent. We were having homicides and shootings and that I needed to stop that. So Davis decided to go to the neighbors and make them an intricate piece in the crime fighting puzzle. Police asked for their help and in turn helped make their lives more peaceful. What we did is we went out and did a proactive zero tolerance patrols walking beats. And basically I felt that one way to stop crime is to reduce anonymity. I did not want anybody in my section that was here. We felt that we were coming into the section outside setting up drug houses doing drug House robberies do street robberies and there was no guilt we just done in somebody's swim and that is what may surprise you.

When Captain Davis looks at the numbers he doesn't look at homicides first. He looks at criminal mischief. His mathematics background tells him when the smaller crimes collectively decrease the violent crimes follow suit. We can tell you that our criminal mistress went down which is a real quality of life issue. Park your car and somebody breaks the window. That's not happening as much as it did. We're showing our Larsen as you're going down a burglaries or going down or robberies or. We still struggle with still seems to. But by trying the same rules. We gave some statistics to their Zinah it was him it was very important to see those numbers for us and for the reorganisation and we publish those numbers in Chronicle. But Davis is quick to point out that there is more work that needs to be done. I can tell you that Chief RAS July 1 of 2001 to September 30 of 2001 spent about a quarter million dollars on themselves.

I tell you what my goal is and I've preached this hour. You know we've been successful. When two things happen when the property values and maple section replicate its property values and two you're laughing too is when people want to come to Maple section Addison or school 17 because those are the preferred schools you know I think we're community building here. We are part of the community and they are part of us. And together we're setting a tone of what is a good community look like. And it makes me feel good when we're all on the same page so to speak. When I first came in here you didn't know there was a prostitute at the bar or a customer. Joe Paisano is the owner of smokin Joe's a neighborhood bar and business since the mid 90s. It's a people business. One that Joe enjoys. But there are other

businesses that he comes into contact with while tending his bar on the corner of Whitley street on Lyall Avenue. There's prostitution on the corner. After a while you see him on the street you know who's who when you're out there every day all day and all night and it's like they don't sleep or eat. They just buy drugs and walk on the street. With the most and one of the most appalling things I've seen in all the time I've been here was this maybe six year old kid on his mother's shoulders and she's working the streets and that a waiter in a store and throws the kid in the back seat of the car doesn't business in the front seat pull the kid out after she's done put them back on her shoulder to keep walking straight so the only time they can. Good sleep is when he was in the back seat of a car. And she did that for months until they finally took it away. He's seen the johns who come from beyond the city borders the majority of the johns that are busted on the street come from the suburbs so the crime that happens on Lyall Avenue is brought here from the suburbs.

That's what most people don't understand. He's seen the drug deals the sellers protecting their turf. Your opinion of what most people are killed over would be cocaine it's marijuana. I thought you'd looked at the shock to me when I found out. I thought you know why would anybody get killed over marijuana. Well if a pound of pot cost I'm just a figure a thousand dollars and they can sell it for $10 a gram and a gram is four hundred forty eight grams. To make. A lot of money. OK they can make $4000 off a thousand dollar investment they're not going to give up that corner store for the cocaine sold in houses or pops along the corner. So not going to give up their corner. They will kill somebody to keep that corner or perhaps another person and spot would have given up. But he had his own corner to worry about. But you have to make a stand. This is my walk.

Instead he decided to address the problem directly. I want to talk to the johns. I want to talk to the pimps. I talk to them and tell them that this is where the police hang out and it would be a wise thing for them to have prostitutes out in front of the bar because they have to. The police and I'm arrested so they said thank you and they moved down the street. But the next businesses do the same thing. They have to go outside so you can't stand in front of my business and work. And that's the only thing you got to do is keep pushing them down the street until they're off the street. It's got to be done. The only way it's going to do the police have other things to worry about in the neighborhood than just chasing prostitutes away. And so these are decided to show them. The police can't be everywhere and they're doing a great job but they can't do it all. They don't know that that there's a crack house five doors down unless somebody goes and tells them he organized a festival. The first lie lavender Music Festival one that would reintroduce neighbor to neighbor and business to business.

I'm standing in the middle of the right age parking lot and these older people are coming and they're seeing their friends going. How are you. You came to the hospital how did you know to go we heard the music. You're still in the neighborhood. Yeah I was in the same house. Me too. The festival brought all these people out. They had a whole community attitude all of a sudden. We still have a community. They had no idea. They thought they were in strife that it wasn't safe to walk out on the street. He's always since become president of the lilac Avenue business association something that has taken him beyond his corner bar. I saw more businesses opening up on a monthly basis. Less empty building more filled build good build good businesses not. Not the stores that open and they're selling drugs on the stores up front. Legitimate businesses and there's a lot more and they're nice and they're staying open. So I see that as a real positive thing. He believes the problems of prostitution and drug dealing are diminishing. But he knows that the

community has to remain vigilant. A lesson is learned you can change a community by truly understanding it with all the bad things that I told you about the neighborhood. You can still walk from State Street to Gates and you're not going to have a problem. You might have somebody going you have a quarter you have a cigarette. But you're not going to get warm. You know it's the only way the neighborhood is going to get that if everybody realizes they all have to do their part. I've heard that all my life and I never understood it till I got here. And. We just asked this morning father that your spirit. Your Holy Spirit would go before us in a hover over in this area they call themselves black ministries block standing for bringing the law of Christ's kingdom. This well this war will stay in the streets or several times during the year you'll find them in neighborhoods like just asking for help from a power greater than ourselves.

When the Spirit Moves You just can't you guys just begin to pray OK. Cross over here we don't know any of this intersection right here so we don't. Like what it takes. Traditionally they anoint streets with holy oil in hopes of warding off evil. Bill dogmeat who leads block Ministries says he felt led to do this. After Ty Shawn called wells down I know it works. I know it works because we've seen proof. And sometimes a proof and sometimes it it takes a while for the proof to unfold. Sometimes it's instantly just like you want to tell your stories like you know what you recall the guys and where crime has fallen off father got a homicide have gone nonexistent Lord one we just proclaimed right now in this area father that you would do the same work in this one. The public out on the street remarked that there's positive signs going on right now that there's a turnaround in the area. After we anointed the streets on September 15th of 2000 for a period of nine or 10 months there was not a single homicide in an area that the police themselves have called the Council along with the spiritual blessings block Ministries is compelled to supplement their actions

with material goods. We've seen children who now because we were good because we're out in the neighborhood now have beds to sleep on her sleep Christmas looking forward to now having nutritious meals who weren't eating much of anything to have clothes for the winter. We bring every week approximately 3000 pounds of food groceries into the street and we have a huge supply of food and different different items that we can also give away to those who are in need. Some of those most in need according to daub are drug dealers. BLOCK ministries regularly targets drug houses illegal activity would no longer occur in this building for either. Praise right now in the name of justice. Experts say there's another way to bring hope to the future and that is to look to its young people. Other experts say education is the key. And that is where School Number 17 comes in. Nestled right in the heart of the Jo Sana neighborhood. This elementary school is also a community center but its kids are facing a

lot of problems. Among them one that is chronic hidden and tough to talk about. That problem is head lice and its solution has just run out of money. Now a look at that issue and we'll meet a man who came back to his own neighborhood to try and make it better. We've had parents so frantic they've shaved their child's head. The girl comes to school with a shaved head. What does that do for self-esteem. I mean it's just awful. According to a recent report seven schools in Rochester's northwest quadrant were targeted with chronic head lice problems at one time school number 17 had nearly 100 chronic cases over a span of six months. And some of those children who are chronically ill both admitted not only the day that we send them home but maybe the next day on the day after the day after. Their parents can't afford to run right out and buy the products they need to treat them.

So it is a lot of absenteeism that affects the children wouldn't. Yes the Monroe County nurse. Can you tell me. Any head lice how many absences were generated simply by head lice alone not asthma not stomach aches not. The flu or child children illnesses just head lice. Nine hundred fifty four out of how many students 750 750. Care like says the root of the problem can often be found at home. It's hard to get rid of head lice because they breed easily and they survive with minimal contact. When I brought a child to the nurse I said Would you please read some of this trial because I don't see any nuts in that and the child's hair. The nurse said Let me show you. The couple hairs in position with a finger holding it like this piece of scotch tape the sticky side up and she will at this and I know my God.

Can See The Speakeasy Oh it's a public health official say another root cause of head lice is poverty. Families who are often in transition children being raised by people other than their parents. We have many grandparents raising their grandchildren. They come to me crying. I can't see the nuts. Another factor is the time struggles of families trying to keep an eye on their kids health problems. It's just easier I'm working two or three. Jobs minimum wage jobs around the clock. I start work at 7:00 in the morning to home at 9 o'clock at night. I. Know what to do. Two years ago Kathleen Cara Locke and her colleagues at the Health Department tried to help us. They formed the lice project. They studied several city elementary schools and started outreach programs that provided vacuums or laundry cleaning services to needy families fighting chronic head lice. We found over the project in a year's time

saying roughly I think it was about 16 years. 17 days for all of these kids in the seven schools not just at 17. Unfortunately funding has run dry so the lice project no longer exists. We need to get help. And this is not easy for me to say when the county and the city are going through such financial straits but this is a a probably head lice is a problem that is not going to go away. It's only going to get worse. I. Don't remember applying for and receiving that the principal ship and some of. My new colleagues at that time asked me what school I was assigned to and I told them school 17. They saw. That's the end of your career. And that too in that there was not too much encouraging

words at that time but I as I remember. But I wanted to be here. This is the school one of my family's from this neighborhood. Years ago I was a boy in this neighborhood. School Number 17 sits in the heart of what is now known as just sign up around speed came to school number 17 11 years ago. Since then he has battled the effects of poverty on young minds every time. I think I've seen it all. Something comes along that humbles me again because I just know that it's somewhat mind boggling to know the bone crunching poverty the children have to go through these are very brave children very resilient. You know as an adult. I don't know if I could. Go about. The business of learning and concentrate. I have seen some of the things or experience some of the things that our children. What some

children and families take for granted. In the suburbs is not. Taken for granted. Here. We have the scenes that all children can learn and I agree with that of course. How how do you learn when your primary needs aren't taken care of and someone said to me well that's not the job of the school. But we know that if we don't do it who will. During his time in school number 17 speed zero has seen things he never imagined he would. Within the first year of the of my principal ship a kindergarten teacher came to me and she was almost in tears and she said you have been and will you come with me please. And I did and I saw this little boy through the door of the kindergarten he was holding his face in his rocking back and forth almost rhythmically. And then he'd stop and go forward and backwards and she said she whispered to me look inside his mouth and I did. I got down on one knee

and talked to him very discreetly away from the other children. After talking to him for a couple minutes I asked him to open his mouth. And I almost fell flat on my back. When I looked into his mouth all of his primary teeth were black and some abscessed. Some receding into the gum gum from the past. I was just incredulous. We got him the help he needed. But this is in often cases not not of the oddity this is often some children only need only two for three. How can you concentrate and learn. What if the Fae had the tooth ache I think I'm dying. I call my dentist and I am there in a flash to get that filling I repaired or the the pain to stop. Many times a mother will take break open a cigarette and take the tobacco and rub it on the tooth to dull the pain so the child can come to school. People should have to live like that.

That incident inspired speech to raise 2.2 million dollars along with Unity help to open a health center on campus then speak in strong health raised another million dollars to open a dental center there. We have four dentists. An operating room full lab for dentures and the State of the art X-ray machine and hopefully very soon they will have eye care. This is no one's turned away. This is all done on a sliding scale. You see it so often poor and working poor people people who are working two and three jobs minimum wage jobs around the clock Don't have done the insurance or benefits. And I don't know what I would do if I didn't have dental insurance for myself and my family. What do you do. But health issues aren't the only problems confronting students as principals be Zio started partnerships with other agencies like the Housing Council to help parents facing quality of life issues.

I said So what's happening in the house the apartment the room you're in though it's almost three species. You said the rats. I said rats he says Rats. He says you can set your clock by them and I say when you mean he says Well every morning at six o'clock in the morning they come out. I said they really he said yes he said. The neighbor downstairs will come up and found a dead rat next to his pillow in the morning and then he said you know two days ago Mr. speciosa my wife was giving my daughter a bath and she was running the bath water into the bath tub and the child was in the bath tub and there is a hole under the spigot about this big as the water was running into the bath tub and the mother was preparing her child to bathe or before school. A rat stuck his head out drank from the water going into the bath tub went back into the wall. He says I can't take it anymore. The hair on the back of my neck stood up.

To be zero plans to make this the center of an urban village. So far it appears he is succeeding. I don't have any damage to my graffiti here. Want to go it stopped or this building was covered with murals of graffiti of the most rudest and and and words and and sayings when I first came here and stayed there teachers names are up on the side of the brick wall windows are broken constantly break ins constantly. And all the has stopped. Well. The community. Feels ownership here. They have a sense of pride of the store. This is this is an island of safety for. Children. And. I have given my pager number to all the. Area. Neighbors. And sometimes. If. They have so I hot summer there are some kids drinking beer in the playground but its a big playground. They may be afraid to call the police because of neighborhood retribution.

I told him Give me a call. I'll take care of you I'll make the calls necessary to get the kids right back on the right track. P.S. overtired this summer but teachers carry on his academic Quest. Our goal is to go toe to toe academically with Brighton and if you don't believe that if you don't believe that you shouldn't be here. We just need to level the playing field. We need to help kids to come to school without these burdens that they have on them so that they can really concentrate on learning and by doing that we also break the cycle of poverty. I remember even with a child's memory. What a vibrant neighborhood this was. And I believe that it can be vibrant again. I believe we're on the way to do that. Believe is the key word SPEEs E.O. is now working for Project believe the University of Rochester outreach program. The goal is to make Rochester of the healthiest community in America by 2020.

It's just a matter of having the skill and the will. We have the will. Well we're developing the skill to do that. Ralph speakeasy Joe Piscopo Marion Walker Charlotte Hill Catherine Mayer and Bill Dogg need examples of individuals who pooled their time and determination to make change in a community. Other organizations and government entities have been involved. The city's net program and the Lyle Avenue Revitalization Committee to name a few that the LA Avenue committee even got federal grant money to expand pastures on paying for foot patrols at night. But that federal money has run out. It's going to homeland security efforts. In a recent sweep aimed at prostitution local police arrested 22 alleged prostitutes in a four hour span. The city says that number is striking. More work needs to be done. But as we've pointed out there have been positive changes rapes and assault numbers are down. So are robberies and neighborhoods continue to think of creative

ways to improve their homes and streets. And Tai Shan's mother Charlotte Hill says these days she is a very busy woman. I'm Norma Holland. Thank you for joining us. Michael Caputo and thank you for joining us and also we're joined in studio by Mayor William Johnson Jr. the mayor of the city of Rochester. And you just had to chance to view this documentary and we're going to get to the role of city government in strengthening neighborhoods but first I'd like your impressions of the people that you saw in this documentary how determined they've been obviously in the case of Ms. Hill and Marion Walker they've been motivated by real tragedy but you have people like Joe Pease Oh you've got people like Ralph speed zero. You've got Tom as mayor as an as the as the landlord you've got people who have other reasons for really trying to work hard to prove that city neighborhoods can be

livable they can be tamed and that they can really come together to work on sustainable efforts I think this is a is an excellent documentation of things that are going on not just enjoy in the sun neighborhood but to really going out of neighborhoods all across the city. Mr. Mayor I was going to ask you that the question of whether community outrage can sustain itself you are viscerally upset after the parson was shot and clearly these folks were upset and motivated to some degree by Sean's death. How do you how can a community take that. Harness it and use it to improve a neighborhood. Why we get beyond rage and really really focus on doing those things that last. When Mary Walker said the bullet that took a tire Sean was the straw that broke the camel's back. I remember being at many meetings following in a memorial services and marches and

people said no more. When I had a rather sad sense of deja vu because in my nine years in office. Unfortunately there have been several other young people around I didn't tie Shawn say who died and every time. We said no more. And I guess when the teacher was taken in almost identical circumstances innocent kids dying from a bullet that was not intended for her. I think you know I thought it was time really to say no more and do it on our graphic then and even off some people would say a profane way but I think what had to be made dramatically because we can't keep offering up our children as human sacrifice and we can't just go out and while the memory is still fresh go out and do things this neighborhood is really one that I use as an example because they are still going strong. The passion for change is just as strong today as it was the night the tash

on diet. Mrs. Hill as a victim has not just wept worked and sucked. This lady has mobilized her family she has mobilized her neighbors. As she continues and I think that's the thing that we have to see. What is it is the individuals that we're talking about there in that neighborhood or is there something some way that that other people can learn from these individuals and learn a way to harness the rage and do something about it. I could take you all across the city as a state. We have many heroes. Many people working throughout the city. And they had laboring under a different set of circumstances. I can I can assure you people who say activism was triggered. By the tragic death of the last one I assure you people whose activism was triggered because they were fed up with the the circumstances they had to live with every day. People unsettling them disturbing their peace. Lauren their property guys and the sad and why should they move there like where they met and they were going to

turn over the neighborhood to thugs and hoodlums. I mean I think it is and I think it is the circumstances as well as the individual attributes of people who really rise to leadership. Those two working together. But what we have to really understand is that there are conditions way beyond their control. I mean the fact of the matter is that what that documentary showed was a neighborhood in decline a number of houses that have been abandoned. And certainly I want to applaud landlords like Catherine mayor out we need a lot more of them. But let's hope she's not fighting an uphill battle because for every house that she's trying to bring back you know we need people to live at home and we've got houses being built all over this region that we don't need in suburbs on farmland that what it does is make it harder and harder to reoccupied neighborhoods like just sun there would as we just don't have enough people to go around. We've got to really understand some of the huge external forces that are at work here that make that efforts tougher and tougher every day.

I want to ask you about the role of city government and city government is certainly trying to target neighborhoods that need the help. My question to you is when you concentrate city efforts on one area. Can it push the problems to another troubled area how do you avoid something like that happening. Well you make such a good point and one of the things that I have you know we try to do as part of our strategic approach to this is that we do try to concentrate our efforts to try to spread them around. And you can go throughout the city the northeast and northwest Southeast you will see the neighborhoods that we have worked in and we've change those neighborhoods you'll see streets like Cuba Street on the north the Cuban place in the north of the Fulton Avenue and that. In the near Northwest you will see stucco place near Kodak Park. You'll go into Fremont and troop streets in the southwest. I mean these are areas where we're really invested

capital in order to make a difference but the point is that these things keep cropping up. We and we run out of money. But not out of patience I think what I think by being equitable we're demonstrating to people that we're not bestowing favors on just one part of the city. Back in 1994 when I became mayor of the northeast part of the city the northeast quadrant was really the most crime ridden the most poverty struck the most devastated part of our community. And we went in there. We put in the upper fall supermarket we did a lot of things. We worked streets all throughout the Northeast because we could demonstrate that the that it was really about me. But people rightfully complaint people who lived on Thurston road and people who lived on the way Avenue began to question why focus all of the energy there. And it really forced us to re-examine our approach so the notion of equity we can show that we're not favoring any part of the city. But there are still pockets that are being omitted because we just don't have the money to get to them

right now and talking and speaking about the lack of money. It's a tough time for a city government county government also a state government. I think we're going to see a very tough budget coming out of them in 2003. How are you going to sustain what you do for neighborhoods when you're going to feel the crunch again. It's going to happen. It's it's going to be painful. I just sat with my budget director this morning and talking about what we face for the next year. And the problem is that. We can't really reconcile you've got this is this is across the board the federal government because of all of the new homeland security issues and because President Bush is pushing a just a huge tax cut have deprived us of revenues that we can use for more police officers to build more affordable housing. To to to do the kind of things that you know even put in things like community health centers like you find out time at School Number 17. The state government is going to be strapped.

But you know we can't get a sense of urgency about this I've been out there speaking almost as a lonely voice saying we've got to reorganize government we've got to find ways to better organize we're paying for it for too much access and too much duplications. And the analogy was use is you've got a pain in your leg and a doctor you know you've got you had a diabetic foot. Rather than taking a leg off he takes off a toe and said Well why don't we just monitor the situation to make it better and make sure it takes off a second time. I know you still got pain but hopefully is going to get a little better. Maybe you know we can find there's going be a cure for this and eventually through neglect and over time you end up taking off the leg. You could have spared less pain and less damage if you had done it in the first place. But people don't want to give up that leg and people don't want to give up their government they don't want to give up the luxury they have all these 18 school districts. All of these towns and villages all of these duplications I'm telling you you know long after you and I don't. People can still be to town to take off toes and I just think that we have to really

galvanize the public to understand. It takes money to provide it and the money needs to go where the needs are the greatest. And we don't do that that's not a priority and I system of government. I just have about 30 seconds with me I want to ask you the quality of life approach that the way to go. We need residents and they need to feel good about where they live and they don't all have to move out of the suburbs in order to feel good. I think I was focusing on quality of life over these last nine years has made a tremendous positive change in our community and it's got these people motivated and involved. That's the final analysis that can be apathetic and hope that things are going to get better without them. We want to thank Mayor William Johnsons for being here and for taking the time to help us out and we want to thank you for tuning in to this program tonight. Good night. It's.

A. Major funding for reclaiming the cross and it's provided in part by the daisy Marquis Jones foundation with additional support from the Rochester area community foundation.