By D.A. WILKINSON

By D.A. WILKINSON
VINDICATOR RELIGION EDITOR
YOUNGSTOWN -- Bob Barko Jr. and Katie Bolan laugh and hold hands -- they're in love.
The couple talk about getting married next Sweetest Day and about the rainbow that appeared over Katie's house after a recent storm.
Like other couples, they talk about fixing up the house that will be their home and the future of their neighborhood.
But in their case, they and Katie's family plan to continue renovations to seven homes they own on Emerald Street in Smoky Hollow.
The row or mill houses are the last remaining such structures in Smoky Hollow, says Barko, an artist who finds his inspiration in the Mahoning Valley.
The Wick Neighbors, a nonprofit group, plans to spend an estimated $250 million to build new homes and shops in Smoky Hollow to revitalize the city. The Wick Neighbors are working with Youngstown State University, which in August opened the $22 million University Courtyard apartments for 408 students, the biggest residential development in the city in a decade. The students in some of the apartments have a view of Emerald Street.
Renovation
But Katie moved into her home five years ago, long before the plans to redevelop Smoky Hollow.
She wasn't interested in urban renewal, only a place to live.
"I really like living in the Hollow," Katie said. "It's quiet. No one lived here."
Her mother, Ruth, had spotted the house that was for sale.
Years ago, Ruth and her husband, Robert, had moved their family of 11 children from Youngstown to a 60-acre farm in New Waterford in Columbiana County.
But Ruth says she loves Youngstown. She's a Toledo resident who married a native of Youngstown's East Side.
"I came here, and I loved it," Ruth said.
Ruth was looking for a home to renovate. The house was for sale, and she could afford it.
She and Katie seemed to think the Holy Spirit guided Ruth to Emerald Street.
Katie became the occupant of the house. She said she was in Youngstown all the time because Mike, one of her brothers, lived in Smoky Hollow.
She liked being close to everything: the library; the Butler Museum of American Art; and Youngstown State University, where she is now majoring in biology.
Building a neighborhood
The following year, her family bought a second house on Emerald. Now five of the homes are occupied, three by family. Another of Katie's brothers, Salvador, joined his siblings there.
For the Bolan family, buying the homes made sense. It saved on gasoline and commuting time, and owning made more sense financially than renting.
Of course, people are mostly building new homes in the suburbs, not renovating older homes in Smoky Hollow.
"We're very much aware it's not the trend," Salvador said.
Added Katie, "I had no intention of cleaning up Youngstown."
But their efforts became more than bucking the housing trends.
Katie said, "It was so much fun. It was like a domino effect."
The lawns were mowed, and she put plants in the front lawns.
"It looked like somebody lived here," Katie said. "It looked like a home again."
Salvador, who studied psychology at YSU, works as a youth counselor at the McGuffey Center. He studied sociology under Dr. Mark Shutes, the late YSU professor.
Shutes asked his students to indicate if they planned to stay in Youngstown after they graduated, Salvador said.
"No one raised his hand," he said. "If the best and brightest don't stay in the city, that's what ruins the culture. The culture dies."
Cultural vision
The Emerald Street properties reflect the culture. Barko said that in the past, there were gardens behind each house. Almost every bit of ground was used to grow fruits and vegetables. Behind each house now are wild grape vines and fruit trees. Wine presses were found in almost every house.
Work on the houses progresses as time and money permits. This past summer, Katie put in a garden for the first time, which resulted in a harvest of tomatoes and peppers. Bob said many summer dinners were eaten in the cool and comfort of the garden, just like the earlier residents of Smoky Hollow.
Bob and Katie, as well as Salvador, see themselves as building a neighborhood, not an area or town.
Bob said he envisions the kind of neighborhood where people know one another's families -- the kind of neighborhood where children fear to do wrong because the neighbors will tell their parents.
"There's only one law," Ruth said. "You've got to live God's law."
Bob and Katie attend nearby Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church.
"Family values come from faith," Katie said.
Her brothers and other family members have put in a great deal of work on the houses. Without that strong faith, there would be no family values, and nothing would get done, Katie said.
"If you don't have a strong family or community, that's when things start to fall apart," she said.
Bob said, "Youngstown can be a reflection of what was, but better, bigger and stronger."
wilkinson@vindy.com