PLANADA -- On Friday afternoon, Bryan Tassey explained to a group of men at the new Felix Torres Family Farmworker Housing complex in Planada the right way to plant a tree.
More than 200 trees were donated by the Tree Partners Foundation and the Merced Irrigation District.
"We feel ecstatic, because when the construction of the Felix Torres (complex) was delayed and construction cost went up one of the things that we needed to pull was the landscaping budget," said Rennise Ferrario, executive director of the Merced County Housing Authority, "and it wasn't enough as it was."
Officials from the housing authority, the foundation and Merced County met at the recently opened housing complex to honor members of the foundation for their donation, which saved the authority several thousand dollars.
Glenn Lyle Davis, chairman of the authority's board of commissioners, said the estimated value of the tree donation is about $10,000, good news for the cash-strapped agency. "The $10,000 mean a lot," he said.
Many of the trees and shrubs donated are native to California, such as California oaks, according to Ferrario.
Tassey, who's with the Tree Partners Foundation and is a landscape horticulture instructor at Merced College, said some of the trees will grow up to 80 feet tall. Medium-size trees will grow up to 50 feet and the smaller trees, up to 30 feet.
The trees will not only provide scenery, but also will help residents reduce their utility bills, Tassey said. "They will help save energy," he said.
The Felix Torres complex, now home to many migrant workers in Planada, was completed in the fall. The total cost was a little more than $15 million, Ferrario said. The housing authority had to apply for the money from the state Office of Migrant Services.
At more than 20 acres, the complex has 72 seasonal migrant housing units and 46 year-round units, Ferrario said. This new complex will replace the old Felix Torres complex and Planada Village.
A permanent day-care center being built should open in the spring.
About 40 migrant families have transferred to the new complex from Planada Village, located at Highway 140 and Plainsburg Road, Ferrario said. There are still a few families living at the old site because they didn't qualify to move into the new complex. "They are still in the process of relocating," she said.
The Planada Village complex will be closed by the end of next month, Ferrario said. "We haven't been real forceful, forcing the last few occupants to move out, knowing that they've had a difficult time," she said. "We are trying to assist them as much as possible."
Planning for the construction of the new complex began in 2003, Ferrario said. Construction didn't begin until May 2010.
Planada Village, a complex that's more than 30 years old, has served its purpose. "It's old and worn out," Ferrario said. "The state decided that it was time to shut it down and construct a new facility."
Reporter Yesenia Amaro can be reached at (209) 385-2482 or yamaro@mercedsunstar.com.
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