The decision has saved the city millions, and won cheers nationwide from drug-law reformers. You have to do [legalization] right if youre going to do it, otherwise you create more problems, says Franklin of LEAP. The city has a higher rate of violent crime than the national average and other similarly sized metropolitan areas. Parents will walk their children to the bus stop, even if it can be seen from their front door, and wait there with them until the bus comes. Last year alone, Kensington Avenue was approved for over ten SIP grants to renovate commercial facades, which, when complete, will literally change the face of the corridor. A loan from a Community Development Financing Institution (CDFI) or a Storefront Improvement (SIP) or In-Store grant from the Department of Commerce carries the capacity to transform a block and breathe life into a business. Google Maps borders for Kensington show it including much of what is considered Fishtown and excludes West Kensington. From there, drug dens sprung up across the neighborhood and allowed for gangs to breed in the area. Harbisons' Dairies, 2041-55 Coral Street (1895). There is a common criticism that officials would never let this happen in whiter, more affluent parts of the city. Nobody rousts or arrests the line of addicts nodded out in full view in the gutter. Addictions a medical problem; cops dont want to deal with that. Public schools in Kensington include Kensington High School Complex, Jules E. Mastbaum Vocational Technical High School, Russell Conwell Middle Magnet School and John H. Webster Elementary School. Give your readers the whole story. Along with having a high rate of drug overdose deaths, 80% percent of Philadelphias overdose deaths involved opioids2 and Kensington is a big contributor to this number. Want a digest of WHYYs programs, events & stories? In the early 19th century, Kensington transitioned to iron and steel manufacturing[11] and became home to a variety of factories, potteries, and machine works. Johnson knowseven with a colorful awning and bright lightingher cafe might not get a lot of consumer street traffic. Re: Streets of Philadelphia, Kensington Ave. Building a Philadelphia that works for every neighborhood with a focus on equity, opportunity, efficiency, and inclusion. Many progressives endorse the idea of allowing addicts to get high in certain sections of cities without fear of arrest. [48], In 2011 the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Philadelphia announced the closures of three Kensington Catholic schools, as their student numbers had declined: Ascension of Our Lord, St. Anne, and St. Hugh of Cluny.[49]. Knowing Kensington Avenue like I do, I am distressed by its predominantly negative and fetishized depiction in the media. This is probably one of the most drug infested streets in Philadelphia. However, heroin and fentanyl is without a doubt the most popular drugs. Between the two encampments targeted on Wednesday, half a dozen other spots continue to grow. Between 2013 and 2015, the number of drug overdose deaths in the city increased by 50%, with more than twice as many deaths from overdoses as homicides. Port Richmond has a historically Polish population but is becoming more mixed, and Olde Richmond, an area just north of Fishtown, is experiencing similar gentrification. Look, he says, junkies got rights, too. But Meyer, a 35-year-old whos spent years bounding between rehab and the streets as he battles his addiction, said it felt like deja vu. Welcome Van Life Wanderer! The median yearly income of the neighborhood is $28,368, ranging from $18,516 to $77,979. It has always had the El train that runs straight through Kensington. [38] However, the decision to close the station "indefinitely" led hundreds of Kensington residents to march from Somerset Station to Allegheny Station in protest, recreating the longer trip many of them had to take to access the MFL since the closure. Officers will issue code violation notices and try to prevent new spots from forming. This Philadelphia neighborhood is said to have the largest open-air heroin market on the East Coast, with many neighbors migrating to the area for heroin and other opioids. On Wednesday, Steve, a 30-year-old fentanyl user who declined to give his last name, said he sympathized with the residents plight. Drug activity is not hidden here, especially not when heroin can go for as cheap as $5 a bag. Philadelphias District Attorney Seth Williams risked backlash from hardcore law-and-order types when he recently stopped criminally prosecuting minor marijuana offenses. Some residents of Kensington wont go out without driving, not wanting to walk through the neighborhood despite living there. Neighborhood in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Neighborhood of Philadelphia in Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania, United States, primarily white young urban professionals, H.W. While the moniker Killadelphia implies gangland warfare, Kensington is plagued by another culprit: the drug trade. The citys unrelenting heat wave has left them worse for wear, their exposed skin coated in a glaze of sweat, their tank tops and shorts smeared with street grime. Overnight, people are getting stabbed. WHYY is your source for fact-based, in-depth journalism and information. Kensington development team seeks middle ground between gentrification and stagnation. In recent years, Kensington has experienced increasing social issues primarily related to drug abuse. Two smiling beat cops dressed in crisp, pressed uniforms foot-patrolled the areas perimeter but steered clear of the crowds around Somerset Street. The panel was developed in part by Tony Heriza, a documentary filmmaker working on a film about the Storefront, an art and community services hub set up in Kensington by Mural Arts Philadelphia. The underpass is cleared of homeless during the regular Friday morning police enforced clean-up at the homeless encampment on Kensington Avenue north of E. Lehigh Ave. on the Kensington neighborhood of North Philadelphia on Friday, April 27, 2018. The problem is, no one seems to want to write about the good. kensington ave philadelphia - summer daytime compilation GDPGDP Those of us who work and have worked in this community are routinely disappointed by these narratives, and the merchants on Kensington Avenue have their livelihood betrayed by them. Impact Services and NKCDC collaborate with the shared goal to better the avenue that cuts through multiple neighborhoods. Fentanyl has devastating withdrawal effects, though. When resources are limited, you get to a point as a police officer where you ask yourself, Why am I doing something ineffective? says former Maryland State Police officer Neill Franklin, executive director of Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP), a group of criminal-justice professionals who favor drug-law reform. Most dangerous street in PhiladelphiaKensington Philadelphia Drug \u0026 Crime ProblemsViolent crime and drug abuse in Philadelphia as a whole is a major problem. Whos got works? she calls out to nobody in particular. What sort of reprieve Wednesdays action will offer neighbors and business owners remains unclear. The influx of immigrants and low-income households many of whom were unaware of the drug situation, or were forced to ignore it due to the stark affordability has made little difference in gentrifying the area. In 1903 Mother Jones organized a "Children's Crusade" of children from the local mills and mines to protest against child labor. 'Savage Sisters' care for those with addiction in Kensington, Philly firefighters rescue dog from house fire in Kensington, A group in recovery helps those battling the same addictions, Kensington teacher-turned-baker makes school sweeter, Man, woman in critical condition after being rescued from rowhome fire, Police searching for suspect after deadly Kensington hit-and-run, Man stabbed to death in Kensington, attacker seen running away, Police: Man dead after shooting in Kensington, 2 people shot in separate incidents in Philadelphia overnight, Police seek suspects who attacked, robbed mechanic inside repair shop, 3 shot outside Kensington elementary school; dozens of rounds fired, 2 men found shot in the head inside Kensington home, Police: Woman shot by boyfriend in Kensington, 2 men shot after confrontation turns violent in Kensington, Crime Fighters: Man gunned down while washing car; killer at large, Suspect in custody after baby wounded in shooting, Suspect identified in shooting that left baby wounded. initially postponed due to a lawsuit filed on behalf of residents. However, some sections of the neighborhood have been revitalized in recent years, especially those near Frankford Avenue, Kensington's neighbor south of Lehigh Avenue, and Fishtown, another traditionally working-class neighborhood which has seen rents increase. There was a major street gang located at K&A that started as a burglary ring but eventually moved into drug trafficking in the 80s. Looking to be close to Center City by both car and transit, young white collar workers have been moving to cheaper neighborhoods around downtown. Violent crime and drug abuse in Philadelphia as a whole is a major problem. It is craft fully omitted, in lieu of the salacious and the tragic. Upwards of 100 people camp out there every night and its not for stargazing. Looks not far from K&A, the intersection of Kensington and Alleghany Ave. Its a scene that will look familiar to viewers of HBOs The Wire, an episode of which, titled Hamsterdam, showed Baltimore police effectively legalizing drugs within an established zone of an infested neighborhood. Most encampment residents had moved out from the former site before Wednesday morning. These sites have proven to avoid overdoses and connect users to long-term help. It happened just after 12 p.m. Sunday on the 3300 block of Kensington. Personal items will be held in city storage for 30 days, officials said. Streets of Philadelphia, Kensington Avenue, What happened today, Aug, 2021. kimgary 267K subscribers Subscribe 5.3M views 1 year ago Show more 1.9M views New Orleans Tourist Traps and Things to. The dualities are stark; Kensington is still an avenue of pain and trauma, ground zero for the opioid crisis, prostitution, and poverty. A recent piece chronicles the authors adventures day drinking in forgotten Philadelphia. Estimates vary between 300 and 650 people living on the street. These territorial disputes happen in clear daylight, theres no concern for the repercussions. Since 2015, 295 people have been shot within a five minute walk of Kensington and Allegheny, a busy intersection at the heart of the neighborhood, according to a Philadelphia Inquirer analysis. Learn more about Social Responsibility at WHYY. [32], Kensington's high percentage of low income renters puts its residents at risk of displacement from gentrification. The opioid epidemic has played a significant role in this problem, as it has in much of the rest of the country. Addicts duck into vacant lots on the Avenue after returning from dope corners a couple of blocks away and, barely concealed by high weeds, casually cook and shoot speedballs. Most dangerous street in PhiladelphiaKensington Philadelphia Drug \u0026 Crime ProblemsViolent crime and drug abuse in Philadelphia as a whole is a major problem. City Managing Director Tumar Alexander, who oversees the police response in Kensington, said there will be a zero tolerance policy for new encampments on the two targeted blocks. Central Kensington, or "the Heart of Kensington" as it is called in a recent Impact Services neighborhood plan,[6] stretches along Kensington Avenue from Tusculum and Somerset Streets to Tioga Street (see Impact Services plan[6] for a more accurate map). This lack of message parity is harmful to the corridor. These self-described low-bottom dope fiends havent bathed recently, and many have been running and gunning around the clock for days, selling needles and prescription pills, or prostituting on the Avenue to hustle up enough money for another bag of heroin. I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Max Marin (he/him) was Billy Penn's investigative reporter from 2018 to 2021. [4] It was also the birthplace of the K&A Gang, currently known as the Northeast Philly Irish Mob, an Irish American organized crime network. Commissioner [Charles] Ramsey does not support it; no one in this department does. It happened shortly after 3 a.m. Thursday in the area of Fairhill Square Park at 4th Street and Lehigh Avenue.