PHOENIX — There was a big step forward Saturday, as plans to cleanup a Valley neighborhood riddled with crime took place.
Phoenix Councilwoman Betty Guardado alongside a dedicated community came together to make good on a $5.7 million project promise.
The 27th Avenue corridor is what caught the eye of the community and the councilwoman overseeing District 5.
"If you want to have a safe community, then you need to get involved and for me that's why today is important," Guardado explained.
The stretch from Indian School Road to Northern Avenue is the focus for this phase. People like Priscilla Robertson, a block watch leader, came out Saturday to push brooms through the streets and pickup trash, hopeful for change.
"We're backed by people who care and there's power in that. You know just trying to reclaim an area that's been overstricken and overtaken by crime and substance abuse, and so there was a huge need that was recognized to transform the area," she said.
$5.7 million was approved by Phoenix City Council in February 2022 with a plan to positively impact the neighborhood.
"The city just recently purchased this facility here and we're excited to see all the different thing we're able to do here, were going to have a 'Project Haven' for seniors that are experiencing homelessness," Guardado said.
They especially want to help house, educate and ensure the safety of those living here and she said this isn't a one and done deal.
"We'll continue to do these cleanups and we will continue to be out here and we're doing it throughout the whole districts we're going area by area, this is an area where people were very engaged and we wanted to take advantage of that."
Cleanup is just part of the plan, along with adding technology in lights, gunshot detectors and license plate readers and those who live here are in it for the long haul.
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