A New Lease on Life - CBS4 - WHBF Quad Cities, IL-IA News Weather Sports

A New Lease on Life

By Natalie Zarowny
nzarowny@cbs4q.com

About ten years ago, the Schricker apartment building was the place you avoided while walking down the street.

Stabbing's and drug deals were just some of the crimes that surrounded the apartments.

"Previously the Schricker had been numerous calls for service for our department where anything that you could think of was going on down at the Schricker," said Sergeant Dennis Colclasure of the Davenport Police Department.

But today, things are different.

"It's better than what the old landlord had," said Rosie Holmes, who lives in the Schricker building.

That's thanks to Gene DelPreore, who bought the building last February.

Within a week of buying the property, there were thirteen evictions, mostly of folks with criminal records.

"We're trying to get a better clientele of people, more compliant with laws," said DelPreore.

The building itself was another problem completely.

Things were falling apart, and there was garbage everywhere.

"Some of the apartments had, roaches were like wallpaper," said DelPreore.

Now, the pests are under control and one by one each individual apartment is being renovated.

But tenants say you can see that things are different, just by looking at the outside.

"And this is the first time, I gotta say, that Halloween decorations in this building?  Nobody's robbed them?  So we must be doing really great," said Salvatore Scanapico, who lives in the Schricker building.

Today there are just eighteen original tenants left in Schricker.