A textile factory will feature apartments and commercial space. They gotta do something about it, and this is coming from someone whos homeless living on the street., Out on the Kensington Avenue this morning, where just north of K&A homeless outreach workers and police begin to clear out yet another encampment. link to Whatever Happened To Natalie Raitano. It happened Monday around 10:40 p.m. on the. Opioid abuse has skyrocketed in the United States over the last two decades, and Philadelphia is no exception. These are bakeries, daycares, artist spaces, and coffee roasters; businesses selected to draw foot traffic and fill much-needed service gaps. This is not a one and done, and well keep doing the work.. But Gladstein said many people remain shelter resistant for various reasons and the number of emergency beds near Kensington where people actively use drugs is limited. These boundaries have since shifted so that a large area north of Lehigh Avenue is now considered part of Kensington, while Fishtown is no longer considered part of the neighborhood. [57] Rodriguez confessed to the murders and was sentenced to life in prison in 2012. Then they, like Kensginton, began to decline further. Kensington has several medium and small sized parks and playgrounds which offer a variety of uses for visitors. Palmer was an English merchant who came to Philadelphia by 1704 from Barbados. 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 problem is, no one seems to want to write about the good. In-depth, original reporting on housing, transportation, and development. Once it hit rock bottom, the need for an outlet brought more people in. 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. This train starts at Bridge st. From Frankford , Juanita, Kensington and Fishtown. Some residents of Kensington wont go out without driving, not wanting to walk through the neighborhood despite living there. Gladstein acknowledged the problem is too vast to contain with just targeted actions like the one Wednesday morning. August 18, 2021 / 5:22 PM / CBS Philadelphia PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- City officials broke up a homeless encampment in Kensington Wednesday afternoon, with outreach teams tearing down the. According to Philadelphia Police, the accident happened at 3300 Kensington Avenue in the Kensington section of Philly. Crack houses and shooting galleries were raided because women could easily get raped and killed there. But a day later, and not far away, on the 1700 block of West Atlantic Street in North Philly, there was bloodshed and death. "The blocks [where drug dealing takes place] never closed," said Christine Russo, 38, who's been using heroin for seven years. These territorial disputes happen in clear daylight, theres no concern for the repercussions. On the night we visited, police cars cruised past, their lights flashing, but never stopped. Housing justice advocates have criticized the citys treatment of encampment residents in both Kensington and Center City, alleging that officials fail to provide adequate long-term housing options after shutting down their living sites. Thats anywhere from three to six times the mere 100 emergency shelter beds that were available in June, WHYY News reported. The problem is that Kensington Avenue is largely unseen by Philadelphians. Most dangerous street in PhiladelphiaKensington Philadelphia Drug \u0026 Crime ProblemsViolent crime and drug abuse in Philadelphia as a whole is a major problem. 2 Kensington's high crime rate and drug abuse contribute significantly to Philadelphia's problems.Because of the high number of drugs in the neighborhood, Kensington has the third-highest drug crime rate by neighborhood in Philadelphia, at 3.57. Or theyre just going to go to the back streets.. Parks in and adjacent to the neighborhood include Harrowgate Park, McPherson Square, Hope Park, Fairhill Square Park, Norris Square Park, Mascher Park, Frankford Avenue Garden, Arcadia Commons, Trenton and Auburn Park, Letterly Green, Emerald Park, Konrad Square, and Palmer Park. Upwards of 100 people camp out there every night and its not for stargazing. We talk about our favorite travels in Europe, as well as travel anywhere in the U.S. and the rest of the world. The U.S. The increase in violent crime, homelessness, and out-of-control drug use in Kensington are far greater threats to residents of Philadelphia. Since then, drug activity and homelessness has intensified in the shadow of the El between the Somerset and Allegheny stops on the Market-Frankford Line. Palmer laid out his town and sold parcels to many of the shipwrights and shipbuilders who were outgrowing their riverfront lots in present-day Old City, Southwark, and Society Hill areas. Commissioner [Charles] Ramsey does not support it; no one in this department does. During my career I concluded we werent making a dent in drug addiction or related crime. Though Kensington addicts seem to think so, the police department pushed back forcefully against this notion. Using proceeds from the sale of the Hope Farm estate (present day Port Richmond), which included three enslaved people named Abraham, Hannibal, and Phillis, Palmer purchased what was called the Fairman Estate, located along the Delaware River in the Northern Liberties Township (area just north of the City of Philadelphia on the . It happened shortly after 3 a.m. Thursday in the area of Fairhill Square Park at 4th Street and Lehigh Avenue. Kensington Ave - Everything You Want To Know About Philadelphia's Skid Row Written by Mariska Lee in Pennsylvania Close to the I-95, and a stone's throw away from the scenic Delaware river, Kensington is a neighborhood in northern Philly with quite the reputation. At 3525 Kensington Avenue, right in the middle of the block, Sherimane Johnson will open Naturally Sweet Desserts, a vegan cafe and bakery that will deliver all over the city and be open all day for local residents. Kensington Avenue in North Philadelphia is infamous for drug abuse and prostitution. During the hunt for the strangler, the area was flooded with cops. Police said the victim is a 43-year-old man, who was stabbed multiple times. Like many corridors, there are destination spots for Philly foodies. Youre out there talking to junkies with a couple ounces of drugs in them who cant be trusted to make a lucid statement.. More recently fentanyl is being replaced with an animal tranquilizer called Xylazine or Tranq. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. [10] Initially, employment focused around the nearby waterfront and the activities of fishermen and ship- and boatbuilders. Get your daily rundown of Philly happenings in less than 10 minutes, Philadelphia local news: Neighborhoods, politics, food, and fun, Get Philly smart with BPs free daily newsletter. neighborhood street scenes in kensington, philadelphia, pa - kensington philadelphia stock pictures, royalty-free photos & images Discarded needles are seen at a heroin encampment in the Kensington neighborhood of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on April 7, 2017. Wednesdays encampment closure was initially postponed due to a lawsuit filed on behalf of residents. 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. Drawing from community informed strategic plans, they build relationships and provide support business by business. [35][citation needed]. As it is just north of Fishtown, higher income residents have been moving further up, increasing property values and rents. The citys violent crime rate is higher than the national average and other similarly sized metropolitan areas.1 Also alarming is Philadelphias drug overdose rate. The number of drug overdose deaths in the city increased by 50% from 2013 to 2015, with more than twice as many deaths from drug overdoses as deaths from homicides in 2015.2 A big part of Philadelphias problems stem from the crime rate and drug abuse in Kensington. Kensington has become a welter of crisscrossing needs and opinions, a civic puzzle no one's been able to solve. We have four outreach teams out in Kensington every day. Different tactics are required for each site, depending on whether its public or private property, he said. But users who buy in the Badlands come to Kensington to shoot up. The Free Library of Philadelphia operates the McPherson Square Branch at 601 East Indiana Avenue,[50] and the Kensington Branch at 104 W Dauphin Street. McPherson Square, the park at the heart of the neighborhood, is home to at least 80 to 100 people every night, said Bill McKinney, executive director of the New Kensington Community Development Corporation who lives nearby. Days before the start of the New Year, the 16-year-old girl from the Philadelphia suburbs disappears for the third time in four months as she battles a heroin addiction that . Despite research on the positive effects of these sites, the Trump administration blocked them from being established. The super brief history is Kensington was a thriving industrial area of factory workers until deindustrialization happened which left the neighborhood impoverished and jobless. In addition to having a high rate of drug overdose deaths, 80% of Philadelphia's overdose deaths involved opioids, and Kensington is a significant contributor to this figure. [56], In 2010, three women (Elaine Goldberg, 21; Nicole Piacentini, 35; and Casey Mahoney, 27) were strangled to death in the neighborhood. Sign up for the free Billy Penn newsletter and stay in the know. Kensington was previously known for its large working class Irish Catholic community and was the site of the Philadelphia Nativist Riots in the 19th century. It was a scene that rivaled the aftermath of a storm, its victims caught up in forces that leave many hungry, homeless and hopeless. Addicts say the police came down hard on indoor drug establishments. They declared a statewide disaster over the drug epidemic in 2017. The right to shop locally in your community is enjoyed by most Philadelphia residents, and Kensingtonians are taking their corridor back. [55] It is also known as an area of prostitution. From there, drug dens sprung up across the neighborhood and allowed for gangs to breed in the area. [41] However, some residents and many harm reduction advocates in the area are supportive.[35][42]. Not everyone who takes advantage of the trade on Kensington Ave lives nearby, though. Emerald Street, Tulip Street, Kensington Avenue, Frankford Avenue the city shut them down one by one, vowing improvement at every step of the way. At A and Indiana, an anxious crowd gathered, their eyes filled with the weary desperation that is so emblematic of addiction. "[12][13][14], Deindustrialization eventually took hold in the neighborhood in the 1950s, leading to a significant population loss, high unemployment, economic decline, and abandoned homes. City personnel help to clear an encampment on the 3200 block of Kensington Avenue, raze a large-scale encampment known as El Campamento, after SEPTA briefly closed the Somerset El stop. Addictions a medical problem; cops dont want to deal with that. civic associations and business alliances, which instills hope that development will be inclusive. Kensington Avenue's ghoulish world of addiction and prostitution exists outside the law. Longtime neighborhood residents, business owners, and some elected officials have been pushing Mayor Kenneys administration to fix the untenable living conditions especially those brought by widespread homelessness. Philadelphia is known for its rich history, cheesesteak, and love for the Eagles. Its a place where many admit they dont want to be, but cant get away from. ', "Trapped by the 'Walmart of Heroin' Housing Alliance of PA.org", "Philadelphia's Kensington Avenue: Heroin, Prostitution, and No Police", Police arrest 'Kensington Strangler' person of interest, "9 people shot outside bar in Philadelphia: report", "9 shot outside bar in Kensington: Philadelphia police", New Kensington Community Development Corporation, Graduate Hospital / Southwest Center City, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Kensington,_Philadelphia&oldid=1140536041, Articles using NRISref without a reference number, Short description is different from Wikidata, All Wikipedia articles written in American English, Pages using infobox settlement with possible area code list, Pages using infobox settlement with no coordinates, Articles with unsourced statements from June 2022, Articles with failed verification from June 2022, Articles with unsourced statements from August 2022, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0. At first fentanyl was used as a cutting agent to lets dealers water down their heroin with a cheaper alternative to make more money. With such a high concentration of drugs in Kensington, many state and local officials have focused on the neighborhood in an attempt to address Philadelphia's problem.#SBCNews The entire estate consisted of 191.5 acres of land, much smaller than the present-day Kensington area. Between the two encampments targeted on Wednesday, half a dozen other spots continue to grow. On Wednesday, Steve, a 30-year-old fentanyl user who declined to give his last name, said he sympathized with the residents plight. It is not safe . You have to do [legalization] right if youre going to do it, otherwise you create more problems, says Franklin of LEAP. Some people cleared from the street sought out permanent housing or treatment, he said but most of the population wouldnt leave an area where they had easy access to drugs. 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. Last month, the city announced plans to clear out two of the larger encampments: one just north of K&A, the other about a mile south on Lehigh Avenue. During our visit, addicts casually moved in and out, bringing and injecting their Badlands-bought heroin. Xany bars are 2mg Xanax pills, the strongest dosage, often used with Suboxone to give users a heroin-like half-consciousness. 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. [Meta] Sticky Comment. The New Kensington Community Development Corporation, Department of Behavioral Health and Intellectual Disability Services, WHYY thanks our sponsors become a WHYY sponsor. A rail-thin woman with hollowed-out cheeks rushed from beneath the El tracks. Representatives from these organizations economic development teams work hand in hand with business owners, residents, developers, and other stakeholders to strengthen the business community. They have attempted to clean up the neighborhoods, planting trees and replacing broken street lights. He adds that the department does the best it can to guarantee public safety and stop drug use with the resources it has, but that it cant lock up people without good reason. [52], The neighborhood has gained nationwide attention and great notoriety because of extensive press coverage of its thriving narcotics drug scene, often described as the largest on the east coast. However, the drug market remained decentralized, running through small groups of dealers that were harder to prosecute than, say, a crime syndicate. City workers arrived in the early hours to clear out two homeless encampments the latest dustup in a years-long saga in Kensington and try to get the roughly 50 people living there into housing or recovery services. Who is Henry Winklers Son? Fishtown, formerly a small subsection of Kensington, has transformed with a new population of more college educated white people as well as increased investment from real estate developers. Community garden spaces in and around the neighborhood include Kensington Corridor Trust Community Garden, NKCDC Garden, Las Parcelas - Norris Square, El Batey - Norris Square, Collins Smith Barrick Play Garden, Emerald Street Community Farm, Rainbow Park, House of Grace Community Garden, Port Kensington, Hart Lane Farm, Circle of Hope / Frankford Ave Garden. The eyes of one woman in her 20s filled as she sobbed in the arms of a familiar woman, Marti Hottenstein, who pledged to get her off . As of right now, I dont think anyone is confident that theres any sort of larger plan that can account for each person.. The part of Kensington below Lehigh Street, or as it has been rebranded[citation needed] "Lower Kensington" or "East Kensington", is the part of Kensington most clearly experiencing gentrification. Philadelphia Kensington Avenue, What happened.. 14 19 . 4 2023 , ! But arresting heroin addicts? Fentanyl has devastating withdrawal effects, though. Kensington Avenue also benefits from the non-profit organizations operating there. Despite what you may read, Kensington Avenue is open for business, and there are plenty of reasons to visit the Avenue. Many of these residents dont have homes. [37] The station was reopened on April 5 with increased police presence. This section of Philadelphia is considered the center of opioid drug use and the city and community are working to bring the crisis under control.Read more ANTHONY PEZZOTTI / Staff Photographer would never let this happen in whiter, more affluent parts, New Kensington Community Development Corporation (NKCDC), Phillys hot podcast studio: How two longtime producers are growing the citys audio scene, Tax cuts, a new forensic lab, library service, hotspot help: Takeaways from Mayor Kenneys final city budget proposal, Meet the 10 entrepreneurs vying set up shop inside Philly rec centers, A real art project at Quinta Brunsons former school in West Philly mirrors the Abbott Elementary Mural Arts episode, Former Councilmember Bobby Henon sentenced to 3.5 years in prison for taking bribes, Proudly powered by Newspack by Automattic. Violent crime and drug abuse in Philadelphia as a whole is a major problem. Its mid-century decline due to deindustrialization paralyzed Kensington. As momentum grows, more and more entrepreneurs are looking at Kensington Avenue as a viable corridor for their businesses. The Daily Beast spent a night at this open-air market for pills and needles, talking to users and prostitutes about whats come to pass for normalcy in Kensington: hard-core drug use without police interference. Looks not far from K&A, the intersection of Kensington and Alleghany Ave. A quick search brings up a plethora of articles outlining the ongoing issues Kensington faces, the overdose rates and weekly deaths. Two men nodded in a drug-addled stupor on a sidewalk on Kensington Avenue. Officers will issue code violation notices and try to prevent new spots from forming. WHYY provides trustworthy, fact-based, local news and information and world-class entertainment to everyone in our community.

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