Pico Aliso Housing Projects

The Housing Authority awarded university scholarships Friday to 10 high school seniors from the Pico-Aliso projects in East Los Angeles. The six young men and four young women were selected for scholastic achievement and personal character as demonstrated through academic transcripts, letters of recommendation from teachers and community leaders and an original essay on their personal hero.

The Housing Authority awarded university scholarships Friday to 10 high school seniors from the Pico-Aliso projects in East Los Angeles. The six young men and four young women were selected for scholastic achievement and personal character as demonstrated through academic transcripts, letters of recommendation from teachers and community leaders and an original essay on their personal hero.

The long-awaited demolition of the Pico-Aliso housing project began Thursday as a wrecking ball crashed into 16 of the 577 units that will be leveled in the first phase of a $50-million renovation. In January a brief ceremonial demolition was held, but Thursday's work marked the beginning of what authorities expect to be a five-month dismantling of the project. Last month, more than 40 residents protested what they view as forced displacement from their homes.

The long-awaited demolition of the Pico-Aliso housing project began Thursday as a wrecking ball crashed into 16 of the 577 units that will be leveled in the first phase of a $50-million renovation. In January a brief ceremonial demolition was held, but Thursday's work marked the beginning of what authorities expect to be a five-month dismantling of the project. Last month, more than 40 residents protested what they view as forced displacement from their homes.

Looking to help make the holidays brighter for the children of the Pico Aliso housing projects, a community group is asking for gifts or monetary donations for its Christmas toy drive. Erica Parra, the assistant program director of Impacto, a community group that works with Pico Aliso children through after-school tutoring programs, said the goal is to gather enough toys for 600 youngsters from the projects. "Any kind of donation is appreciated," Parra said.

Three days after two youths were killed by gunfire in the Pico Aliso housing projects, dozens of Boyle Heights residents marched Friday along neighborhood streets, calling upon local gangs to make peace. Gang gunfire took the life of 12-year-old Roberto Villalpando and Andres Wilson Chavez, 22. Police said there are no suspects yet in Tuesday's shooting, which they said appeared to be gang-related. Chavez was believed to have been the intended target.

The City Council has offered a $25,000 reward for information leading to the identification and arrest of the remaining suspect in the April 2 slaying of Jesus (Chuy) Rodriguez. Rafael Tapia, 20, and a juvenile have been arrested in the case, said police Detective Luis Corona. Both have been charged with murder, he said. A third suspect is being sought. Rodriguez, 30, was shot by robbers while standing at 4th and Clarence streets, according to the Los Angeles Police Department.

They got soaked during a rainy ribbon cutting ceremony, but residents of the Pico Aliso housing projects who attended the event celebrated when they had their first glimpse Tuesday at the 31 new apartment units that some are going to call home. Esperanza Vazquez, 78, who has been living in the Pico Aliso projects for the last 29 years, praised the reconstruction, saying the neat rows of new apartments will bring pride to the community. "Young children can be taught to respect them" Vazquez said.

Rosa M. Martinez, a former citywide liaison to the Latino community under Mayor Tom Bradley, has been named executive director of the community-based Proyecto Pastoral at Dolores Mission in Boyle Heights. In her new post, which she took over last week, Martinez oversees the eight programs that make up Proyecto Pastoral, which provides training, education and social services to about 5,000 people, most of them Latino, in the Pico-Aliso housing projects.

Low-income and homeless parents from Skid Row in downtown Los Angeles are having a free shopping spree for their children at the Union Rescue Mission Christmas Store this week. As the children are entertained by Santa Claus and volunteers, parents choose two gifts for each child from toys, books, clothes and sports equipment. The gifts are then wrapped so parents can keep them a secret until Christmas.

"Mister Rogers . . . puts on a green cardigan sweater. He sits down on a bench and changes his shoes. He takes off brown leather shoes and puts on blue canvas sneakers." That's the kind of descriptive, detailed narration that blind and visually-impaired children will be able hear for the first time when they tune into "Mister Rogers' Neighborhood" this week through Friday, courtesy of Descriptive Video Service.

I've been in this community all my life. I grew up in the Ramona Gardens and Pico-Aliso housing projects and I had this dream all my life of doing something for the young people. I used to work with gang members in jail and I worked with the families of hard-core drug addicts, but I got burned out. I wanted to work with young people. Here, we have workshops for the mentors and training the youth as youth ministers. I don't like to say counselors because that's a heavy burden.