RESIDENTS TAKING BACK THEIR BLOCK.

Byline: Yvette Cabrera Daily News Staff Writer

A day before Ana Hernandez celebrated the one-year anniversary of the Mercer Street block club Friday, four gunshots blasted through her neighborhood.

The shooting signaled how much further residents must go to finish reclaiming their neighborhood from the clutches of gangs, drugs and blight. But the reaction along the street also signaled how far people there have come in their battle.

A year ago, residents would have ignored such an incident. But this time they refused to turn a blind eye to crime.

``I had just come home from work and my neighbor told me, `Get in your house because they're shooting,' '' said Hernandez, the neighborhood's block captain. ``For the first time, the neighbors called me and told me what had happened with the shooting.''

Mercer Street counts itself among a growing number of neighborhoods that are organizing against crime and blight in the San Fernando Valley.

A year ago, Hernandez knew only two residents on the street. Today she knows everybody along the two-block stretch between Borden and Dronfield avenues.

Mercer Street still falls prey to crime. The changes lie with the residents, who are ready and willing to fight back, Hernandez said.

``Other neighborhood groups dissolve, but we continue to move forward,'' she said. ``This is a united community, and we want to stay united.''

The turnaround comes as a result of Pacoima Beautiful, a nonprofit, grass-roots group that since 1995 has helped residents reclaim their neighborhoods. Mercer Street was its pilot program, but Pacoima Beautiful hopes to have 100 similar block clubs within three years.

And Mercer Street will be the model.

`They're really committed to it,'' said Liseth Romero, project coordinator for Pacoima Beautiful. ``The whole block is involved. They try to deal with issues within their own area, and if we can keep on doing this, we feel we can make a big difference in Pacoima.''

On Friday, the block club celebrated its anniversary with a potluck dinner, complete with a cake from Pacoima Beautiful and certificates of appreciation given by the Los Angeles Police Department's Foothill Division.

``They're very active, they have a genuine concern for their community, and they really try as hard as their name says to beautify Pacoima,'' said Officer Carlos Solano, the Foothill Division's senior lead officer in Pacoima.

On Mercer Street, graffiti is immediately reported and removed. An empty lot where drug deals went down daily now stands ready to be developed into a community garden. And on Mother's Day, residents went door to door delivering a single rose to each mom.

Resident Maria Garrett still doesn't let her daughter go to nearby Hubert Humphrey Park or hang out in front of their home for fear of drive-by shootings, but ironically, she feels safer.

``At least now the neighbors know each other and help each other out,'' Garrett said. ``We feel safer when we look out for each other and can call one another in times of need.''

The block club now plans to fight drug use and sales - which they suspect still are occurring in two neighborhood homes. They also hope to install automatic night lights for each home, speed humps to slow motorists, and grass along the sidewalks of every residence.

``There used to be a lot of trash here,'' said Carlos Mercado, the block club's treasurer, as he glanced over the site for the future garden. ``We've tried to have it in the best shape possible to benefit the community; we all reap the benefits.''

The willingness to clean up Mercer Street always existed, but the ability to do so did not, until Pacoima Beautiful decided to help organize the residents.

It was through Pacoima Beautiful that Hernandez learned how to plan agendas and type meeting minutes. With Romero's help, the group has also invited local elected leaders and police officers to their gatherings.

Pacoima Beautiful runs on a $50,000 grant from the BankAmerica Foundation, which the bank established just for this purpose - to help neighborhoods help themselves.

``If the residents have defined getting the neighborhood into better shape as something important to them, that's a good starting point for leadership development,'' said Caroline Boitano, foundation president and executive director.

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2 Photos

Photo: (1--Color) Ana Hernandez, front, and assistant Myriam McCleary are working to reclaim their Pacoima neighborhood.

(2) From left, Maria Garrett, Myriam McCleary and block captain Ana Hernandez walk down Mercer Street.

David Sprague/Daily News