Sacramento's Oak Park Neighborhood Turning Eyesores Into Works Of Art
SACRAMENTO (CBS13) — Sacramento's Oak Park neighborhood is trying a new crime-fighting tool: turning eyesores into works of art.
The nonprofit organization that's sponsoring the program believes it won't just reduce blight, but also crime.
The Decorative Board-up project in Oak Park is putting a new face on an old abandoned eyesore.
The Sacramento chapter of Neighbor Works is placing the decorative boards on more than 20 vacant and abandoned homes and buildings in Oak Park. Some of the buildings have been neglected for decades.
Community leaders like Sharon Eghigian believe if you don't cover it up, it's inviting trouble.
"Like people breaking in, crime happening in the house, arson, people dumping so it just leads to a lot of other problems as well," she said.
Patris Miller's art studio and gallery is in Oak Park and she's helping with the project.
"There's something when I see it there I say, 'I have to go and paint that,'" she said. "My art and my community are pretty much tied together."
The decorative work is free of charge and paid for with donations.
The neighborhood still has its challenges with crime and urban decay, but residents like Kenneth Newman appreciate the facelift.
"This is an opportunity to show people we're doing things in the community, for the community," he said.
Similar projects are also in the works possibly for South Sacramento and Del Paso Heights.