European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - April 30, 2007, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 12 stars and stripes monday april 302007 new woes follow Las riot recovery by Andrew Glazer and Peter Prengaman the associated press los rows of afrocentric boutiques cafes and soul food restaurants shaded by tall old Trees Leimert Park has be come a Serene enclave in the 15 years since a race riot Tore apart its neighbourhood in sout Central los Angeles under the surface things Arent so Calm but today escalating neighbourhood tension has nothing to do with the outrage that boiled into ripping when Sev eral White police officers were acquitted on april 29 1992 in the bearing of Black Motorist Rodney King this time if s a fight Over the area it should be de fined and who should live and work there merchants who revived Leimert Park pronounced Lamert As a Black cultural Hub Are battling government officials developers and other shop own ers who have a vision for bringing in new shoppers and residents Leimert Park Village is a Black Bohemia where shoppers browse through stacks of books by Black authors artisans peddle Ghana Ian Kente cloths and african Wood carvings and residents debate local politics at a quiet Coffee House Over slices of fresh baked Sweet potato pie and listen to live jazz at a nightclub Mary Kimbrough 65 opened Zambezi Bazaar in Leimert with her sister Jackie Ryan 70 in 1991 Selling such things As old copies of negro digest a predecessor to Ebony Magazine and earrings and statues from Africa what other place has 90 Afri can american business owners within a Bockan Dahal Radi us Kimbrough said but the Sisters believe the City is trying to replace Blac oriented businesses with businesses Cater ing to wealthier White customers As a Means of boosting Revenue the whole timing is to remove Black people Ryan said councilman Bernard Parks is concerned that the specialized shops suffer by appealing to a limited clientele so Leimert Park Doest die on the Vine it needs to attract the Type of business that drives them there every night said Parks who is Black and a former los an Geles police chief normally people will not go every night to Leimert Park to buy this unique afrocentric trin Ket a preliminary study by the City redevelopment Agency suggested construction of new housing above existing shops possible up scale condos and attracting National Chain stores merchants have fought Back by drafting their own proposal that includes an Africa american museum and Library Moman pop restaurants and a few National chains but no con Dos they also Are seeking a City designation As a historical preservation zone which would limit construction they argue that preserving Leimert Park is vital because historically Black South Central already has undergone big demographic shifts in the last decade with mid dle class Black families moving to suburbs and being replaced by hispanic immigrants when you look at the City you have Olvera Street for the hispanic Community and Little Tokyo for the japanese Community you have Chinatown for the chinese Community and Fairfax for the jewish said Aadil Asadullah owner of the Craft shop Africa by the Yard you dont see a lot of Effort in redevelopment of these hubs so Why Are we targeted similar gentrification has changed Black cultural centers across the country including new Yorks 125th Street where Chain stores and fast food restau rants now crowd Black cultural relics like the Apollo theater Leimert Park is already Chang ing developers have bought up Sev eral buildings boosting property values and rents when Kimbrough and Ryan opened their 1200squarefoot store they paid a month but the building was sold four years ago for million and they now pay a month any More hikes and they say they May have to move Kevork a save Leimert sign sits in a store window in Leimert Park in South Central los Angeles to if youve got passion for the game then play to win a season pass to the military Goff course of your choke in Europe enter our tee off with Volvo military sales and stars and stripes77 Golf contest april 1230 two Lucky winners will each receive a season pass to the Mili tary Golf course of their Choice a value of More than to win find the stars and stripes Ball hidden within the pages of your Hometown newspaper submit your entry by logging onto  and clicking on the link one entry per id card now even equipped with the Best financing find your Volvo cars military sales agent at m1l1taryvolvocarscom Volvo cars military sales its a great Deal