As newer homes are being built around the older homes in South Phoenix, there are considerable differences, from the exterior finishes to the depersonalization of individual touches.  My observational freeze-frame occurred on a quiet, older residential neighborhood street located between 5th Ave and St. Anne.  Two blocks west is a start of a new community being built by Cornerstone Homes located on 10^th Ave and St. Anne. I can see South Mountain in the background.

     The older neighborhood homes appear to be over 30 years old.  All of these tract homes on this street are single story, and the majority of these homes are built with bricks and some are made of stucco. There are various colors of exterior finishes, such as beige, pink, white as each home creates its own personality. The majority of the houses have single driveways with a carport attached to the house. The street is decorated with palm trees, and each individual house has grass in the front yard.   The roofs are made of plain shingles, with air conditioner units resting on top. The streets are continuous and can be assessed through any connecting street, and speed bumps embedded into the road slow down traffic.  One house was for sale at $99,000.  This neighborhood appears to be lower-middle class. 

     The older homes contained hard steel bars attached to the windows and hard steel security doors at the front entrance.   In his article “Bunkering the Poor: Our Fortified Ghettos,” Camilo Jose Vergara labels homes like these as “barred and barricaded houses.”  He writes, “Buildings grow claws, and spikes, their entrances acquire metal plates...and any additional openings are sealed (Vergara p. 20).  Vergara continues, “the most effective defense is social, as people watch after one another’s dwellings, questions strangers, and call the police” (Vergara p. 24).  Our observations confirm this. Upon our observation, two children were walking down the street with their mother. As one child looked at us, the mother took the child by the hand as she continued to walk by us in a protective manner.  Furthermore, upon returning to this neighborhood two weeks later we parked our car to eat our lunches and observe the scene around us.  A woman approached us and questioned our presence.  Satisfied with our explanation as ASU West students doing research, she informed us it is unsafe to park on streets with our windows and doors wide open.  We asked her about the newer subdivisions being built, and she commented that it is unsafe too because of the public housing across the street; otherwise, she thinks the new subdivisions along Baseline Street are a good idea.

     In the older neighborhood, several homes had steel fences going around their entire house from the backyard to the front yard.  James Rojas, in “The Latino Use of Urban Space in East Los Angeles,” explains that in Latino neighborhoods, “fences are catalysts that bring neighbors and pedestrians together for social interaction…creating an edge for residents to lean on and congregate” (p. 137).  One example is the house on the street to the left of us, which had an old style swing set standing in the front yard.  I thought that was rarely seen, because most homes with which I am familiar put play equipment in the backyard. Another home had a love-seat sized sofa covered with a black sheet sitting in front of the house, and another home had twin car seats resting against the wall of the house.  Other homes on this street have old rustic furniture, chairs, and old car seats resting against the wall of the house.   Rojas calls these outside furnishings “props that can be moved between inside and outside space, as well as allowing for permanent or temporary “personalization” in public space” (p. 132).  Furthermore, these older homes each have unique and personal touches that bring out individual personalities of each home.  Rojas explains that the front yards become a personal expression of individual homeowners (p. 136). 

     The new community offers new homeowners a choice of single or double story tract homes with two car garages.  These homes are made from stucco, and a choice of a few already selected muted exterior colors of southwestern theme.  The front yards contain professional landscaping of either grass or decorative rock designs.  Within the three weeks we have visited this new subdivision, the prices have increased from $99,000 to base priced of $113,900 for a 1,157 SF, and $165,900 for a 2665 SF house, as the builder is targeting the middle-class residents.  As the builder begins to sell out lots, it is taking advantage of price increases for the privileged few that can afford it.

     The newer subdivision is entirely surrounded by a 6-foot brick wall.  Edward J. Blakely and Mary Gail Snyder, in “Divided We Fall. Gated and Walled Communities in the United States,” comments, “The American middle class is forting up, and to secure appreciating housing values now must move to maintain their economic advantage” (p. 85).  Furthermore, these authors write, “city planning were designed in part to preserve the position of the privileged by subtle variances in building and density code. Gated communities create physical barriers to access, and they privatize community space, not merely individual space” (p. 85).  The newer communities are building homes that have fewer entrances from the major streets, with majority of streets having non-connecting streets to reduce unwanted traffic and limiting access only to residents (p. 93).  Each street has an island in the middle of the road decorated with a tree and bushes to slow down traffic.  Furthermore, as Blakely and Snyder explain, “This segregation by income and race has led groups within the community to secure their space against the poor. protect wealth. and protect property values” (p. 89).  Surprisingly enough, these newer homes have only a 10 X 10 inch anti-crime security sign resting against the front entrance wall warning strangers against trespassing. 

     In our estimation, the newer homes have no personal identity of their own.  The homes all look identical with no front yard art or decorations to allow each home to look unique.  There is no outside furniture for social interactions with neighbors or the rest of the community.  It seems like the new neighbors are turning inward into their own internal world, and slowly closing the doors to the outside world.  Will this be the future for South Phoenix?

References

Blakely, Edward J. and Snyder, Mary Gail.  1997.  Divided We Fall; Gated and Walled Communities in the United States.  Pages 85-99. 

Rojas, James. 1999.  The Latino Use of Urban Space in East Los Angeles. Pages 130-138.