Drove by the site of my trailer park project, Bless This House, last week and was surprised to see redevelopment underway. Streets, curbs, light posts, walls, gates and more already built out, just waiting for buildings.

The three trailer parks (directly across the street from Nike’s world headquarters) were demolished in 2008, completed just in time for the economic collapse. I thought it would sit vacant for many years while the market recovered.

When they displaced 247 very poor families the developers promised affordable housing. Now it is 45 Central, “a modern community of premium homes and shops for those who place a high value on sustainable living and the latest in high-tech design and convenience” according to the developers web site. My friend Nicole Bowmer and I spent nearly three years interviewing the residents of the trailer parks while they were being diplaced. Their stories still haunt my dreams. You can learn more about this project and read the poem I wrote in honor of our friends who lost their homes here.

Onward and upward….