Altadena leaders are seeking help from state officials to keep the community intact by fighting real estate speculation after the Eaton Fire.
"Please stand with us. Please fight with us. Please show up, because this is a long journey," resident Zaire Calvin said. "Our families are hurting right now."
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Calvin is one of the many people who gathered at Fair Oaks Burger to urge California officials to commit $200 million to disaster recovery that prioritizes the community. The money would fund nonprofit organizations so they can purchase and redevelop fire-damaged homes and commercial properties.
"I'm really angry," resident Julie Esnard said. "I'm infuriated because they talk a lot, they promise a lot, but they don't deliver."
Esnard has lived in Altadena for 60 years and said elected officials have not done enough to help the community after the fire. According to a new report cited by community organizers, nearly half of the 94 properties sold in the area since the Eaton Fire have been bought by corporate investors. During the same period last year, there were five corporate purchases.
Residents aren't worried that the unchecked real estate speculation could permanently displace longtime residents.
"Altadena is the community, not just houses but people," Esnard said.
Community advocates said the state must step in or risk the erosion of generational wealth, culture and the unique character that makes Altadena special.
"The needs of his community are incredibly huge and this is an unprecedented historical loss," said Palin Ngaotheppitak, executive director of Beacon Housing.
Their plea comes just as Gov. Gavin Newsom announced a $12 deficit in the state's budget.
"I understand that there's a budget shortfall, but we need to be sending a message," Ngaotheppitak said. "I think that this community matters too."
Local leaders said they'll continue to press the state until firm commitments are made.
"I could not bear to see Altadena become something modern. That would kill me," Esnard said. "I have to hope, and I have to believe that we will win."
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