AMY SZPARA

PHOTO 1: Gregory Brown and Eddie Johnson barbecue for a gathered crowd Monday night in celebration of Diamond Community, an African American historical neighborhood. Though it was a festive atmosphere, the tone turned serious when talk turned to relocating half of their neighborhood as part of a project to move residents out of industrial areas. The neighborhood may soon be divided. (Staff Photo by Amy Szpara) NORCO – The aroma of barbecue filled the air, as children ran around the park, stopping at a spacewalk for a few bounces and then the basketball court to watch a game in progress. A group of gray-haired women sat around a table wearing party hats, telling stories of the neighborhood. It was somewhat of a block party, a celebration of sorts, but behind the festive atmosphere was a deep issue that has been weighing on the people of the community for a while. To sell or stay. That is what the people living on Washington and Cathey streets in Norco are faced with. The two streets are part of the Diamond Community, a small African American community, which sits on what was once Trepagnier Plantation and then Diamond Plantation. Two other roads, located behind Cathey, Diamond and East roads, are also part of the community, but residents living on those two will not have to make the decision to move. PHOTO 2: Clara Smith, 96, celebrated her birthday Monday at a party thrown at Washington Memorial Park. Shell Chemical, which moved into Norco in the 1950s, purchased much of the old Diamond area for industrial purposes and now residents who live on the two streets closest to the plant have the option to sell their property to them. Monday night the Concerned Citizens of Norco held a party at Washington Memorial Park located in the backyard of Shell in Norco to celebrate the birthday of one of the oldest members of the Diamond Community, Clara Smith, who turned 96 years old. Three cakes and party favors sat on the table before her, and friends and family surrounded the cherished woman. Though the discussions started with nostalgic tales of days gone by, it quickly turned to the current situation residents are facing. Smith, who lives on Washington Street, is not sure what to do. “I been here all my days,” she said. “I used to live on Diamond Plantation 40 or 50 years ago, where the plant is now. I worked in the fields and did housework.” Though her home has been appraised, she has not been told the value yet. “I don’t know what to do, what to think,” she added. “They don’t want to give you anything for your property,” added Smith’s daughter Mary Alice Baker, who lives on Cathey Street. “You can’t buy another house for what they want to give you.” Shell has offered to purchase the lots of residents living on the two streets in order to make it a greenbelt area. For 12 years, residents have been battling with the company to be relocated, but now that Shell has agreed to buy out those living on Washington and Cathey, the neighborhood members are upset because about half of the residents will be left behind. Those who live on Diamond and East roads were not given the option of relocation, since they are not as close to the plant. Devon Washington, who lives on Diamond Road, is not happy that the neighborhood may soon be divided. “I think they should offer it to everyone in the community. It’s kind of hard to separate us. My main concern is splitting up the neighborhood. They should at least offer everyone an opportunity to move,” he said. The people celebrating Smith’s birthday and discussing their options at the park Monday night told stories of decades of living in the neighborhood. Standing where the slave revolt of 1811 took place, they spoke of history and the tight-knit families that dwell in the community. The problem that many of them have with the separation is that families will be divided. If a mother lives on East Road and her daughter lives on Cathey, they will be separated. “They are going to draw a line in the sand,” said Denny Larson, Bucket Brigade Coordinator. His Oakland, Calif.-based organization founded the Louisiana Bucket Brigade, which tests the air in industrial neighborhoods for toxins. “Some are relocated and some aren’t,” said Larson. “Residents have to ask themselves, Should I leave Mama since I can get out?’ That’s a cruel choice,” he said. “The key, too, is can people really get another house? These homes are being appraised very low.” After some fellowship, the crowd settled in to listen to a national group that came via bus to visit with them. Coming Clean, a coalition that targets chemical industries, was in New Orleans for a conference and stopped in Norco. “When people who aren’t from here come and see this, they cannot believe it,” said Anne Rolfes of the Louisiana Bucket Brigade. “They wanted to come to Norco specifically to see what is going on.”