Santa Ana’s Sullivan neighborhood is calling on local students, artists, residents and city officials to join a dialogue about their latest neighborhood project, a new mural.
The conversation is scheduled for 6 p.m. at the Country Club Mobile Home Park and hosted by the resident-led organization Sullivan en Accion, a coalition of local leaders who have developed a history of strong community organizing.
Redistricting, renters rights, pedestrian safety…
The newest venture is fundraising and creating a community mural covering more than 100 ft.
A key civic leader behind the effort is Rosa Pizano, a Santa Ana community activist who has been recognized for decades of advocating for quality of life issues.
Pizano, who is part of the Sullivan en Accion and MHAction, has lived along Sullivan St. for decades, and knows the pulse of the area.
“I want to revitalize and empower the street of Sullivan. We deal with a lot of crime and violence,” she said.
Pizano and Cesar Medina, another member of Sullivan en Accion, are working to formally brand the area, which locals already endearingly refer to as the Sullivan neighborhood.
According to the city map, S. Sullivan St. has yet to have an official neighborhood designation, which Pizano and others want to change.
The new mural is part of that journey, and she hopes will tell the stories of the working immigrant residents that call the neighborhood home.
Santa Ana is a mural rich city, whether they are being preserved or installed, and neighborhoods continue to ask and care for them.
“La Raza” is one part of the five part mural located in the Artesia Pilar neighborhood. March, 5, 2021. Credit: JULIE LEOPO, Voice of OC 
Gil Vazques visits the site of the Civic Center St. murals and inspects the top portion of the blocks where he observes openings which was just one way water damage occurred. “These openings absorbed water through the rainfall throughout the years,” said Vazques. Credit: JULIE LEOPO, Voice of OC 
Marina Aguilera, 63, stands in front of her newly unveiled mural on Aug. 27, 2023. Credit: JULIE LEOPO, Voice of OC 
A mural painted against La Chiquita Restaurant in Santa Ana, Calif. honors Mexican-American war veterans on Nov. 9, 2022. 
Detail of “The Legacy of Cesar Chavez” mural by Emigdio Vasquez Sr.. It can be seen on the campus of Santa Ana College, in the Cesar Chavez Business and Computer Center, Credit: Image courtesy of Santa Ana College 
Chicano Gothic by Emigdio Vasquez, 1987. Credit: JULIE LEOPO, Voice of OC 
Viva Santa Ana by Santa Ana Community Artists Coalition, 2016. Credit: JULIE LEOPO, Voice of OC
One of the latest murals was just installed a couple of weeks ago in the same ward.
[Read here: Willard Neighborhood Wants to Be Seen]
Pizano said she is knocking on every door and person she has met through her long activism career to bolster the mural project.
“I am calling everyone,” she stressed, highlighting she has visited schools and city leaders in the past week.
Because of her determination, Pizano has already secured one grant of $2,500 dollars through Community Engagement, a non-profit that gives funds yearly to artists in Orange County.
“She is the exact person Community Engagement grants are all about—someone who creates with the community,” said Madeline Spencer, a board member at Community Engagement.
Pizano hopes this Wednesday’s workshop will also help bolster donations.
Councilman Jonathan Hernandez, who represents the neighborhood area on the city council says the group’s mobilizing has resulted in several accomplishments, such as new bike paths and speed bumps, adding that he looks forward to learning more about their latest project.
Pizano hopes to have a mural representing exotic animals from various Latin American countries to highlight the diversity that is Sullivan St.
But her idea is just one, she notes, as the mural is to be discussed and made as a community.
“I’m very interested in learning about what residents envision for this mural because we’re seeing it in neighborhoods all across the city,” said Hernandez.
“Residents are coming together, telling their own stories, and doing it the way we have historically done for generations– and that’s in the form of murals.”
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