America the Messy Yard Police StateMessy Yard Cops Destroy Apartment ComplexPhoenix Messy Yard Cops Destroy Apartment Complex in Sunnyslope!SourcePhoenix Sunnyslope apartments demolished by Connie Cone Sexton - Oct. 22, 2010 03:10 PM The Arizona Republic The jaws of the bulldozer bit deep into the building, and the walls - with some tugging - came tumbling down. It was demolition day Friday for Sunset Manor, a boarded-up apartment complex in the core of Sunnyslope that Phoenix officials deemed as haven for blight and crime. "This is a huge leap forward in the revitalization of Sunnyslope," said Phoenix City Councilman Bill Gates, who represents the area. In 2001, Maricopa County added the 52-unit property to its "Dirty Dozen" slum property list. Code violations involved everything from electrical, plumbing and gas lines to damaged roof and siding, unsound fences, inoperable vehicles, graffiti and trash. In August, Phoenix acquired the property, on Puget Avenue near Fifth Street and Dunlap Avenue, with Neighborhood Stabilization Program funds at a foreclosure trustee sale. The city paid $301,000, about $33,000 below appraisal. Several members of the Sunnyslope Historical Society took photos of the destruction. "It's a happy event for the community," said Connie Kreamer, a co-founder of the group. Standing near the rubble, area resident Teri Carnicelli beamed. "It was a very scary place to live near," she told the crowd that gathered to watch the beginning of the end for complex. Carnicelli moved into the area about seven years ago, only to endure what she described as the constant sounds of gunfire. Of 1,867 police calls to the area between 2000 and 2009, 507 were for the property, with sometimes six calls a day, Phoenix officials said. The city hopes the 1.5-acre site can be developed for medium-density housing, which allows for two to 10 units per acre. City officials do not expect the site will be developed for single-family houses. Carnicelli said townhouses or condos would go a long way to helping the site "become the gem we all know it can be."
52-unit apartment slum demolished in Sunnyslope by Connie Cone Sexton - Oct. 23, 2010 12:00 AM The Arizona Republic The jaws of the bulldozer bit deep into the building, and the walls - with some tugging - came tumbling down. It was demolition day Friday for Sunset Manor, a boarded-up apartment complex in the core of Sunnyslope that Phoenix officials deemed as haven for blight and crime. "This is a huge leap forward in the revitalization of Sunnyslope," said City Councilman Bill Gates, who represents the area. In 2001, Maricopa County added the 52-unit property to its "Dirty Dozen" slum property list. Code violations involved everything from electrical, plumbing and gas lines to damaged roof and siding, unsound fences, inoperable vehicles, graffiti and trash. In August, Phoenix acquired the property on Puget Avenue near Fifth Street and Dunlap Avenue with Neighborhood Stabilization Program funds at a foreclosure trustee sale. The city paid $301,000, about $33,000 below appraisal. Several members of the Sunnyslope Historical Society took photos of the destruction. "It's a happy event for the community," said Connie Kreamer, a co-founder of the group. Standing near the rubble, area resident Teri Carnicelli beamed. "It was a very scary place to live near," she told the crowd that gathered to watch the beginning of the end for the complex. Carnicelli moved into the area about seven years ago, only to endure what she described as the constant sounds of gunfire. Of 1,867 police calls to the area between 2000 and 2009, 507 were for the property, with sometimes six calls a day, Phoenix officials said. The city hopes the 1.5-acre site can be developed for medium-density housing, which allows for two to 10 units per acre. City officials do not expect the site will be developed for single-family houses. Carnicelli said townhouses or condos would go a long way to helping the site "become the gem we all know it can be."
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