Former Sun Valley residents return for memories and a brick from neighborhood, home to hundreds of diverse families
On Saturday, the Sun Valley Youth Center held an event for former residents to stop by and pick up a piece of a place they used to call home. Organizers told CBS News Colorado, this was a way for former Sun Valley residents to remember and honor the community that once existed in the area.
Anne Olivas is one of the residents who stopped by to pick up an engraved brick.
"It was a community, family, tight-knit, one big family," said Olivas. "This is a piece of history, our history, closure."
A few years ago, the Denver Housing Authority began implementing a transformation plan for the area, knocking down the homes to instead construct new apartments and some affordable housing units. The area used to be home to hundreds of diverse families who lived in public housing units.
"We grew up here, so we were just coming to get a brick and remember our memories that we had here," said Rhonda Lucero. "We all knew each other, everybody knew each other."
When construction of the area started, the youth center began collecting pieces of what was left of the units to give a part of the building back to its former residents. The leftover bricks and address placards mark the end of a chapter for the neighborhood.
"When families move because of redevelopment it wasn't a choice. They didn't get to choose whether they were moving out of the community and for how long," said Kris Rollerson, the executive director of the Sun Valley Youth Center.
"This is something substantial that they can take forward into their new spaces, wherever that may be, and to honor their families. I think the bricks are sentimental because it actually is what was on the inside and the outside of the building, and the red bricks are just something that was very known for what the Sun Valley neighborhood was."
Lucero and Olivas said it was heartbreaking when they found out the city was choosing to demolish the units.
"It was weird, it was strange; it was like a part of us... they were getting rid of us," said Lucero.
While the "red bricks" are no more, the heart of the neighborhood is everlasting. Lucero and Olivas are now left with a piece of history they can keep forever.
"We're going to miss the place," Lucero said. "We're going to miss it, but like I said, you keep those memories, that's something they can't take away. They can knock them down and everything, but that's just stuff they can't take away."
In January, History Colorado is going to start its Sun Valley Neighborhood Memory project. The organization will start collecting the stories of those who used to live in the community. For more on the project, email lindsay.miller@state.co.us or maria.islaslopez@state.co.us.
