By Benjamin Ames, Staff Reporter
The lobbies of the Castle Hill housing project have long been used as shortcuts between buildings, bedrooms for the homeless and escape routes for drug dealers.
So when the city Housing Authority decided to install new security doors in all 14 buildings last November, it expected the project to be safer. But now, two months after the first doors were installed, residents are complaining that it isn't so.
Although the doors, which are locked by a magnetic system, are nearly all in place. But there's a catch: The Housing Authority won't lock the doors until all tenants have keys, and many residents won't pick up keys because of a rumor.
"I heard it costs $100 if you lose one," said Willie Cruz, 50, who lives at 635 Castle Hill Ave. He's mistaken: while a new key is more expensive than an old one, it costs only $11 to copy. Residents say they haven't heard about the keys from the housing authority.
"Usually they send us letters when they're going to do something," said Cruz, "but with this, nothing."
There have been delays in installing the doors from the beginning. The city hasn't finished laying the brick supports or building the frames. The back doors had to be reordered when the first set didn't fit.
So the lobbies continue to be public thoroughfares. In the meantime, people have pried magnets out of the doors and smashed windows.
Tenants agree that more security is needed. "There have been five holdups in here, in the elevators," said Cruz, referring to his building. "People were blaming the super, because he didn't lock the doors. We don't know who to blame."
The Housing Authority has made sure these doors are tough enough to last. Each $180 hinge is held to the frame with 20 screws. The Housing Authority has also upgraded the intercom system.
Some people don't think the new doors will help. Gladys Rosa, 42, of 635 Castle Hill Ave., was hopeful for about a minute. "They've put in new ones in the past, but these are stronger." Then she shrugged. "People break the windows. They find a way to break in."
Even some workers are skeptical. Mike Savage, a carpenter who's been assigned to Castle Hill for seven years, said the doors might not stand up to vandalism. "It's just spit and chewing gum holding this place together," he said.
Still, many Castle Hill residents say they like their neighborhood despite the crime and vandalism. Rosa Viera, 23, is raising her two sons at 2175 Castle Hill Ave. "It's nice to live here if you get everybody cooperating with everybody else."
The doors are scheduled to be locked on March 15, according to Gerry Lamb, Castle Hill Tenants Association president.