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"After three years of work, a new basketball court and park is open in the Acosta Plaza apartment complex.The area has been a hot spot for violence for years, and the community hopes the park will be a step in the right direction for them.\"The reputation has always been here forever, but what this project brings is a new message,\" park organizer Joel Hernandez said.Acosta Plaza is home to Joel Hernandez. He spent his childhood in Salinas.\"I grew up here, spending most of my time playing on the old basketball court,\" Hernandez said.Hernandez eventually moved out of the apartment complex, but he has continued to push to get the park completed.\"This is reclaiming this area for a safe spot and just an open space that is now being claimed by the community,\" Hernandez said.The first year of the project was focused on getting the input of neighbors. They surveyed the complex, asking what area was the most unsafe, and they picked a spot right next to Carr Lake.Because of the proximity to the lake, the second year included a lengthy permitting process. Construction began in the third year, adding a swing set, picnic tables and a basketball court.\"People are starting to gather up here, play basketball, small basketball tournaments on the weekends. There's people celebrating birthdays, barbecuing,\" Hernandez said.The goal is to build a sense of community where people feel safe enough to leave their homes and get to know their neighbors.\"For them to have their own park, own place to go and play, it's a lot, because then the parents can even feel safe letting the children going safe down below,\" Hernandez said.Second Chance Youth Program Executive Director Brian Contreras works with young people in the area and agreed this park will be a positive change for the neighborhood.\"They encounter them walking next time and say, 'Hey. Hello. How are you? This is where I live. I didn't know you were my neighbor from five house down,' so it builds a sense of community,\" Contreras said."^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.ksbw.com/article/acosta-plaza-basketball-court-park-opens/1296959>