Syracuse, N.Y. — Gesine Hodges feels blessed that her house in one of Syracuse’s poorest areas has had good neighbors on each side who care about maintaining their properties.
She and her husband bought their newly built home on the 200 block of Merriman Avenue on the Near West Side from Habitat for Humanity 15 years ago. Her husband died soon after they moved in, leaving Hodges by herself to raise six children.
An abandoned house on one side of her home and a poorly maintained multi-family rental on the other side eventually came down and the homeowners on each side bought the lots to expand their yards. The setup with three owner-occupied homeowners next to each other has made their portion of the city street feel safe and stable…