A group of residents fed up with the look of their South Garland neighborhood are taking its makeover into their own hands.
Tammy Riser started up a beautification project in Windsor Park Two with another resident.
"The area before wasn't very safe for the children in the neighborhood," she said.
"Safety was an issue," Riser said. "There's no sidewalks in the area with an elementary school across the way. ... The area was unsightly and being used to dump trash."
The group has been paving sidewalks, ripping down run down fences and planting trees and bushes, trying to give the area a better look.
"The Waterhouse Drive is a busy thoroughfare, and it's the entryway to two neighborhoods," said Felisa Conner, city neighborhood vitality manager. "This is the type of project that we want to see neighbors engage in."
The group started with about $4,000 in cash and donations and have put in thousands of volunteer hours. All of those factors gave them access to a city neighborhood vitality matching grant for $30,000.
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The city has submitted the project for recognition with the national neighborhood organization Neighbors USA.
Volunteers meet the first Saturday of every month to continue fixing the area. They say the work is far from over and hope to start working on another area.
"My goal is just to make it beautiful and feel good about where I live," Riser said. " I want to get the money I put into my home, out of my home."
