Fetu Kolio says a nightly crowd of raucous teenagers and 20-somethings party in the parking lots and commons near his townhouse at Mayor Wright Homes.

A few doors away, tenant association president Hana Eliapo keeps a baseball bat by her front door for security. Sometimes, often in early-morning hours, her husband uses the bat to chase off belligerent youths loitering on front lawns, vandalizing neighborhood cars and apartments or harassing tenants.

"They think this is their territory," Eliapo said. "We've got to do something about it. We care about the community."

In the late 1990s, Mayor Wright became the state's first Weed and Seed site because of its high crime rate. The program, which attempts to "weed" out criminal elements and "seed" community involvement and pride, got good reviews from residents. Police officers stationed at the housing project initiated drug stings and worked on community service projects with residents.

The crime rate dropped, residents felt safe and Mayor Wright's reputation as a haven for drugs and delinquency gradually subsided.

But in 2003, Weed and Seed officers shifted focus to Kalihi Valley. And about a year ago, residents say, troublemakers began returning.

Police statistics show crime around Mayor Wright has increased slightly over the past few years. Police officers say they are responding to more gang-related disturbances at the housing complex and adjacent Pua Lane. In 2005, police were called to Mayor Wright and its surrounding two blocks 158 times for "nuisance" calls, which include public drinking, arguing and loitering.

MORE ENFORCEMENT

Sgt. John Kauwenaole, of the Kalihi Weed and Seed office, said his officers will be paying more attention to Mayor Wright in coming months because of increased problems related to illegal drugs and fighting. He declined to discuss specific operations, saying they would likely involve stings.

Maile Kanemaru, executive director of Weed and Seed in the Islands, said recent problems at Mayor Wright does not signal a failure for Weed and Seed but means tenants need to rally together.

"When it was nice and smooth, people got complacent," Kanemaru said. "At this point, they've got to continue, maybe they've got to look at ... their strategy" for addressing safety concerns.

The community-watch patrol started under Weed and Seed continues today, said Eliapo, who leads a group of about 20 tenants through the community on Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights. But Eliapo said the patrols don't make a significant dent in crime because residents don't want to get too close to crowds: Sometimes those assembled carry two-by-fours or sticks.

GUARDS ARE UNARMED

There are two security guards on duty at Mayor Wright round the clock.

One mans a guard shack on Kukui Street, while the other makes rounds of the complex at least once an hour. Under a $175,000 annual contract with the state, the guards also are responsible for enforcing a "no drinking" policy in common areas and parking lots, along with rules related to loitering and loud noises that take effect after 10 p.m.

Contending that security is too light, Mayor Wright residents have volunteered to act as guards. State housing agency officials turned down their offer, however, citing liability concerns.

Pam Dodson, executive assistant to the director of the state Housing and Community Development Corporation of Hawaii, said security guards try to diffuse unruly scenes, but are "concerned with their own safety. All they have is a cell phone to call police." Adding guards is a "cost issue" for the agency, she said.

Warren Kahapea, director of security for Freeman Guards, said, "We control the front gate. We have our rovers walk around the property to make sure there's no loitering in the parking lot," he said. "Anything involving drugs, we call 911."

FEW FELONS EVICTED

Under federal law, the state housing agency is required to kick out any tenant arrested for a felony. But there have been few such evictions, Dodson said, partly because the housing agency doesn't have enough staff to track criminal records. In 2005, five families were evicted from housing complexes in Hawai'i for drugs or criminal activity. Nonpayment of rent is a much more common cause for eviction, with 136 cases the same year.

Lynn Vasquez, who has lived in Mayor Wright for a decade, successfully raised her three children there. But she says she now worries about the next generation of Mayor Wright kids.

Life was good, Vasquez said, when Weed and Seed officers were stationed at the housing complex. Criminals stayed away and residents were proud of their community. "I've seen it go from bad to good — and now it's escalating again," she said.

Vasquez and others said youths in the complex as young as 11 appear to be joining up with gangs or mimicking their bad behaviors — vandalizing cars and apartments with graffiti. Recently, a building was tagged with: "Future Mayor Wright hoods."

Residents also say many of those connected to the problems at Mayor Wright live elsewhere but have friends or relatives at the housing complex.

NOWHERE TO PLAY

Marleen Lafaele, 24, who was raised at Mayor Wright, is a youth leader at the complex. On many weekends, she can be seen cleaning up trash with other youth or painting over graffiti. Lafaele said she has encouraged the complex's management to increase activities for young people in hopes of keeping them away from gangs. There are no playgrounds at the housing complex, and few open spaces for play.

"It's sad," she said. "A lot of the kids in the neighborhood hang around vacant apartments."

On a recent afternoon, youths could be seen sitting on the lanai of a vacant unit, throwing balls against the wall. The unit is covered with graffiti and its windows are boarded up.

Tasi Malepeai, a 23-year-old who also grew up at Mayor Wright, said tenants need to work together and find strength in numbers.

"Some of these people are scared," said Malepeai, a history major at the University of Hawai'i. "We need some kokua."

Reach Mary Vorsino at mvorsino@honoluluadvertiser.com.