Renovation helps neighborhood

They wanted to find the worst one.

And they did on North Geronimo Avenue, just north of Grant Road near North Stone Avenue.

The new owners - Eric and Jodi Lunsford and Gary and Jessie Menard - spent two years fixing up the rundown, crime-ridden property. Those living near Cinnamon Square have noticed the positive changes and they are cleaning up their own properties.

Crime has decreased as well in the immediate vicinity of Cinnamon Square Apartments - formerly Wayne Manor - at 2545 N. Geronimo Ave.

"There are properties that are controlling the destiny of particular neighborhoods," said Erik Lunsford.

The Keeling Neighborhood Association is an area in transition. Homegrown graffiti vies for wall space with modest public-art projects. Weed-choked yards and vacant lots are being replaced with flower and cactus gardens.

"We were looking for a challenge and we wanted to make a difference," said Gary Menard. "When we went through the neighborhood, this was the worst property."

Added his wife, Jessie: "We all wanted to give low-income families a nice place to live, be proud of where they live."

The couples have done most of the renovations - including painting, carpentry and landscaping - incorporating as many green elements and products as possible in the two-building, 24-unit complex. This summer they will pave the dirt parking lot using an eco-friendly process that is less expensive than asphalt.

When they first saw the blighted complex, "we were all appalled by the way people here were expected to live," Gary Menard said.

Units were strewn with trash and rotting food. They were crawling with roaches. Holes were punched in walls, and plumbing, heating and air conditioning barely functioned.

Crime was rampant, with the parking lot used for stripping stolen cars and drug deals conducted in the street and over the back fence. Prostitution was common and one resident used the community laundry room to stash stolen goods.

"The tenants were afraid to call police or call us for repairs for fear of getting thrown out," said Jessie Menard.

Jane Evans, spokeswoman for Keeling Neighborhood Association, said the area needs more proactive property owners.

"Our neighborhood has such a high rental-occupancy rate that we love it when we have active landlords. The better landlord you have, the better tenant you're going to have," she said.

Malissa Thum agrees. In 2000 she purchased Geronimo Properties - apartment units next to Cinnamon Square - in a foreclosure sale and made improvements.

In addition, Thum eliminated "problem" tenants.

"I think we have a pretty good complex now. We have a pretty good community of hardworking families."

It helps to have the refurbished Cinnamon Square next door. "I have noticed an improved quality of tenants that have come looking at apartments," she said.

Because the owners of Cinnamon Square are equally particular about who lives in their units, it prevents someone Thum evicts from moving in next door.

Reinvesting in run-down properties is the key to revitalizing a neighborhood, said Albert Elias, director of housing and community development for Tucson.

"The idea is, aging properties that are, perhaps, no longer competitive in the marketplace can be repositioned," he said. "It's this phenomenon: As residents in an area see a property being upgraded and maintained and pride being showed in the property, it rubs off. ... It's classic community building. It's a way of strengthening the fabric of a neighborhood."

The Lunsfords and Menards lend a hand to neighbors, helping others trim trees, paint over graffiti and pick up litter.

Ronnie Ruiz was born and raised in the neighborhood and was so impressed with the improvements at the complex, he moved in.

"It starts here. They finally built a good community here. It's clean. People respect the space," he said. "When I go to sleep at night I know nobody's coming in."

The landlords are quick to make repairs or fix any problems he's had.

"Having somebody who cares, it seems like they want me to live the way they want to live. When these people set a good example, you want to follow it."

Marina and Alfonso Arzac have lived in the complex for 15 years. It wasn't always poorly managed, Marina Arzac said through an interpreter. But with each successive sale of the property - it has had five owners since the Arzacs moved in - conditions deteriorated.

"It's 100 percent better now, safer, pretty outside," she said. "You work hard all day and it's nice after dinner. We can go outside and sit in the courtyard with plants and trees. Before it was dirt and dying trees. There was a lot that needed to be changed."

She feels safe now walking through the complex with her children because of new security lighting, fencing and watchful neighbors.

"Before we were all inside because we were afraid to go outside," she said.

There are still the occasional gunshots in the neighborhood but no longer in the complex. Arzac said tenants are neighborly and family-oriented.

"These kinds of investments really can be transformational, and that's how we maintain the vitality of the older parts of our community," Elias said. "This is a more sustainable approach than simply building new homes on the urban fringe where we need to build new roads and new parks."

Contact reporter Kimberly Matas at 573-4191 or kmatas@azstarnet.com