Brendan Nelson is president of the Hilltop Action Coalition Credit: KUOW Photo/Joshua McNichols Tacomaâs Hilltop has hope for an equitable recovery Apr 05, 2021 But how does recovery happen in a way that doesnât push out existing residents and businesses? Crystal T.J. works at The T-shirt Men, a silkscreening shop on MLK Way in Hilltop. âGrowing up, my mom would not really bring us over here, she said. And now, itâs really transitioned itself into a much more welcoming and safer environment.â The gang violence that sheâs talking about declined dramatically over the years â residents worked hard to make that happen. That created the stable conditions where businesses, including many Black-owned businesses, could thrive. But it also set the table for new investors to come in.