philadelphia, kensington avenue what happened

Upwards of 100 people camp out there every night and its not for stargazing. And public homelessness ranks high on the list of concerns. gdpGdp However, the drug market remained decentralized, running through small groups of dealers that were harder to prosecute than, say, a crime syndicate. Close to the Delaware River where factories have since closed it is called the Walmart of Drugs and it is the world leader in heroin sales and usage. The city has a higher rate of violent crime than the national average and other similarly sized metropolitan areas. But since Januarywhen 22-year-old Antonio Rodriguez, a PCP-smoking petty drug dealer from the notorious adjoining Badlands neighborhood, was arrested and charged with the murdersaddicts say that police have retreated, leaving them to do their drugs in relative peace. 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. 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. During my three years managing commercial corridors for theThe New Kensington Community Development Corporation (NKCDC), on Kensington Avenue and several other business thoroughfares, I got to know the small business owners, civic associations, and other stakeholders working every day to revitalize the local economy. 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. He also sold to recent German fishermen immigrants. Kensington, colloquially known locally as Kenzo, is a neighborhood in Philadelphia that belongs to or divides Lower Northeast and North Philadelphia. Kensington belongs to or divides Lower Northeast and North Philadelphia. Addicts can be found in the woods along the Tracks openly cooking and shooting drugs in broad daylight, a daily occurrence that indicates this is territory clearly forsaken by the law. It doesnt work the first or the second or the third or the fourth time for everybody, so we keep engaging for those that we can.. It is part of the River Wards section of the city, a group of neighborhoods close to the Delaware River in North Philadelphia. Officers will issue code violation notices and try to prevent new spots from forming. This number is shockingly low compared to the overall Philadelphia average of $122,113 but is still better compared to previous years. Streets of Philadelphia, Kensington Ave Documentary, June 23-24, 2022. Most dangerous street in PhiladelphiaKensington Philadelphia Drug \u0026 Crime ProblemsViolent crime and drug abuse in Philadelphia as a whole is a major problem. At 4 p.m. on January 15, police found Jevon Gillette, 47, with multiple gunshot wounds to the torso and thigh. Dozens upon dozens of people lived there. [59] [60]. From there, drug dens sprung up across the neighborhood and allowed for gangs to breed in the area. Just a few blocks away, the Kensington Storefront, a collaboration between Impact Services, NKCDC, Mural Arts, Prevention Point Philadelphia and The Department of Behavioral Health and Intellectual Disability Services (DBHIDS), transformed an abandoned Cricket Wireless Store into a hub for arts-based community events, trainings, and meetings. City housing officials say 300; police estimated over 650 people this summer. Neighborhood residents have raged against City Hall for years over the litany of woes from drug dealing to missed trash collection. Every day Jorge Rosario, 52, a resident of the Kensington section Philadelphia cleans the sidewalk along the 2700 block of Kensington Ave., Philadelphia. Kensington was founded by Anthony Palmer in the early 1730s. 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). Many now-users originally sought out street drugs due to injuries or post-surgery pains and couldnt afford the legal medicines to soothe their pain. Along with its teeming trade in illicit materials, Kensington is also a highly dangerous neighborhood. As a nonprofit organization, we rely on financial support from readers like you. civic associations and business alliances, which instills hope that development will be inclusive. Why is there so many trash on the streets of Kensington Avenue - Quora 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. McKinney says the city could use regional support in creating a long-term solution for Kensington. 0:00 / 25:40 Streets of Philadelphia, Kensington Ave, Here's What Happened Today, Saturday, Sept 11, 2021. You can do that in Amsterdam, Will Sims says, comparing hard-ass Kensington with what he perceives to be the touchy-feely Netherlands, but this is Philly, and Philly aint Amsterdam.. Most encampment residents had moved out from the former site before Wednesday morning. [Meta] Sticky Comment. But about 15 people remained around 8 a.m., many shielding their faces from news cameras as outreach workers helped them fill plastic bins with their belongings. But users who buy in the Badlands come to Kensington to shoot up. The Tracks, a mile-long wooded stretch of shipping railway cutting across the Badlands, is a section of Philadelphia long ago ceded by law enforcement to drug users. [15][16][17], Listed on the National Register of Historic Places:[18], Kensington has a population of approximately 42,000 people according to data from ASC 2020 survey. Kensington and Cambria. Its so well known that a simple Google search for really bad drug areas brings it up. [7] Police, after a year and a half, removed these encampments causing its residents to spread up Kensington Avenue. Commissioner [Charles] Ramsey does not support it; no one in this department does. Even more concerning are the fetishizations of the corridor, which go something like this: Yes its bad, but it can be fun to visit because its bad. Johnson knowseven with a colorful awning and bright lightingher cafe might not get a lot of consumer street traffic. Local news should be free and accessible, which is why we ask readers like you to support our work rather than charging a fee to see it. The drug is even cheaper to produce and procure than fentanyl and is more dangerous in the sense that Narcan is not effective against overdoses. When the coronavirus pandemic hit in late December 2019, heroin abuse in Kensington worsened. Addicts say the police came down hard on indoor drug establishments. Words such "hopeless" and "dystopian" punctuate an endless scrawl of depressing articles. PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- Philadelphia police are searching for two suspects who are wanted in connection with a violent carjacking earlier this week. Thats anywhere from three to six times the mere 100 emergency shelter beds that were available in June, WHYY News reported. Almost half of the neighborhoods residents live below the poverty line. Juniata, the neighborhood to the north, and Kensington are similar demographically, yet the former is slightly wealthier and has more green space. No one denies this. Anything else is tantamount to poverty porn and disrespectful to the people who dedicate their lives to making Kensington Avenue a better place. The neighborhood also recently has seen a large influx of primarily white young urban professionals and gentrification, particularly in Fishtown[3] which is no longer considered to be Kensington and in Olde Kensington, Norris Square, and East Kensington. Construction has started on Penns Landing park over I-95 highway trench. Parts of it were once called the 'Badlands' and it is hell on earth. 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. Streets of Philadelphia, Kensington Ave Documentary, June 23 - YouTube What happened to Kensington, Philadelphia? Are most of the - Quora The drug overdose rate in Philadelphia is also concerning. 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. Knowing Kensington Avenue like I do, I am distressed by its predominantly negative and fetishized depiction in the media. Official estimates vary as to how many people are living on Kensingtons streets. That camp was cleared, and another formed. Mattresses lie in the mud along the railway where prostitutes trick, and rapes and assaults are common. Kensington was featured in Nat Geos 2013 docu-series, Drugs Inc. in the episode about Philadelphia. Everything You Wanted To Know About Los Angeles Skid Row, Everything You Wanted To Know About Los Angeles' Skid Row, Is Philadelphia Safe To Visit? Welcome Van Life Wanderer! McPherson Square is the heart of Kensington. Give your readers the whole story. [34], Kensington is home to a large population homeless individuals, many of whom suffer from addiction. Different tactics are required for each site, depending on whether its public or private property, he said. Xany bars are 2mg Xanax pills, the strongest dosage, often used with Suboxone to give users a heroin-like half-consciousness. Despite research on the positive effects of these sites, the Trump administration blocked them from being established. But despite its joys, a neighborhood called Kensington made a name for itself as home to the nation's highest rates of heroin overdoses. Progress, even the slightest measures, can have enormous impact. McKinney, of the New Kensington CDC, said the successful rehousing services touted by officials during these clearouts 10 people here, 20 people there are modest in the scope of the crisis. It happened shortly after 3 a.m. Thursday in the area of Fairhill Square Park at 4th Street and Lehigh Avenue. More recently fentanyl is being replaced with an animal tranquilizer called Xylazine or Tranq. [8] People suffering from addiction and/or homelessness concentrate around the Somerset and Allegheny train stations, in nearby parks, and on residential streets, angering long-term residents. Many of these residents dont have homes. 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. 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. "Streets of Philadelphia, Kensington Avenue, What happened today, Aug, 2021. https://t.co/6BCbZ2KEZv via @YouTube these people are not crazy this how just living . Its the hottest night of the summer, and on Philadelphias Kensington Avenue, underneath the elevated train tracks at Somerset Street, mills a crowd of addicts nearly 100 strong, the biggest ever to flock to this well-known drug corner. Video captures violent Philadelphia carjacking on Kensington Avenue; 2 Learn more about Social Responsibility at WHYY. The problem is that Kensington Avenue is largely unseen by Philadelphians. [57] Rodriguez confessed to the murders and was sentenced to life in prison in 2012. [51] After Philadelphia Police forcibly removed a large encampment of these people from an abandoned railroad track by Lehigh Avenue, several smaller encampments formed under the tracks. 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. It has always had the El train that runs straight through Kensington. [56], In 2010, three women (Elaine Goldberg, 21; Nicole Piacentini, 35; and Casey Mahoney, 27) were strangled to death in the neighborhood. The right to shop locally in your community is enjoyed by most Philadelphia residents, and Kensingtonians are taking their corridor back. 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 median yearly income of the neighborhood is $28,368, ranging from $18,516 to $77,979. Each program mixes interviews with guest travel experts, your call-ins with questions and comments, and music. Some merchants, like Widdy Darts, a 108-year-old dartboard manufacturer, have been that way for a long time. The white residents fled to the suburbs and people of color and limited means moved in. [40] In Kensington, most residents have opposed the plans and organized against the site being located in Kensington, including leaders of five civic organizations in the area. As with all neighborhoods in the city, the lack of any official designation means the boundaries of the area vary between sources over time. Kensington Philadelphia News - 6abc Philadelphia You have to bring services to addicts, offer them treatment. Personal items will be held in city storage for 30 days, officials said. Mark Squilla is the Councilmember for District 1 and Maria D. Quiones Snchez is the Councilmember for District 7. Addictions a medical problem; cops dont want to deal with that. Gladstein acknowledged the problem is too vast to contain with just targeted actions like the one Wednesday morning. The opioid epidemic has played a significant role in this problem, as it has in much of the rest of the country. Kensington: Past, Present and Future Probably for. [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. Streets of Philadelphia, Kensington Ave Story, Here's What Happened Today, Tuesday, Sept 7, 20 . The problem is, no one seems to want to write about the good. This energy is not relegated to existing businesses. 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 blocks [where drug dealing takes place] never closed," said Christine Russo, 38, who's been using heroin for seven years. 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. Fentanyl has devastating withdrawal effects, though. Because of the high number of drugs in Kensington, the neighborhood has a drug crime rate of 3.57, the third-highest rate by neighborhood in Philadelphia.3 Like a lot of the country, a big part of this issue is a result of the opioid epidemic. Not everyone who takes advantage of the trade on Kensington Ave lives nearby, though. "Violent crime and drug abuse in Philadelphia as a . He once lived in the infamous Emerald Street encampment in Kensington, and saw how its closure in 2019 just shuffled people to other areas. SEPTA's MarketFrankford Line runs to Center City from Kensington, offering short commute times. 'There still is no answer': Philly cracks down on Kensington Harrowgate is the furthest north, bordering Juniata and named for Harrowgate Park. The majority of the neighborhood is renter occupied, 55.6% overall, and up to 66.3% in one tract. Afterward, the city repaired a single section of iron fencing in a feeble attempt to seal the area, but enclosing structures at multiple other access points had collapsed. This is a regional problem that Kensington is very graciously dealing with., Nice to see you. 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. Yet the city has promised zero tolerance for encampments before, and the crackdowns have not yielded a long term solution. Also alarming is Philadelphia's drug overdose rate. Multiple people injured after crash in Kensington. On March 21, 2021, SEPTA indefinitely closed the Somerset Station of the Market-Frankford Line (MFL). 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. Impact Services and NKCDC collaborate with the shared goal to better the avenue that cuts through multiple neighborhoods. It is not safe . 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. As it is just north of Fishtown, higher income residents have been moving further up, increasing property values and rents. Drug dealers at the corners. Kensington's river ward identity puts it in contrast with the neighborhoods to its west. Is Philadelphia's Kensington section safe? - Quora Driven by a resident engagement process, this is a best practices model for how to equitably manage what could be a tidal wave of gentrification as Philadelphians continue to discover the under-the-radar appeal of the area. Most dangerous street in PhiladelphiaKensington Philadelphia Drug \u0026 Crime ProblemsViolent crime and drug abuse in Philadelphia as a whole is a major problem. The case was dropped in July. WHYY offers a voice to those not heard, a platform to share everyones stories, a foundation to empower early and lifelong learners and a trusted space for unbiased news. Kensington, Philadelphia - Wikipedia Nobody rousts or arrests the line of addicts nodded out in full view in the gutter. History set Kensington up for a steady decline. The original area of Kensington is now more commonly called "Fishtown," mainly because of the shad fishing that was one of the dominant businesses in Kensington in the 18th and 19th centuries. [5] The current greater Kensington area roughly coincides with the former Kensington District, Richmond District, Aramingo Borough, and Northern Liberties Township. Kensington Independent Civic Association), This page was last edited on 20 February 2023, at 14:40. All About Max Winkler. The killer is referred to by the media as "The Kensington Strangler". Nine years later and were still talking about it. Clifton Mills, 1833 N. Howard Street, Kensington (185263). 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. Opioid abuse has skyrocketed in the United States over the last two decades, and Philadelphia is no exception. The city's violent crime rate is higher than the national average and other similarly sized metropolitan areas.1 Also alarming is Philadelphia's drug overdose rate. Tony Rogers, a recovered heroin addict and reformed career criminal who warmly calls the motley crowds on Kensington Avenue my old tribe, says, In 20 years of using back here, I never once saw a cop come on the Tracks unless they chased somebody in here.. Between the two encampments targeted on Wednesday, half a dozen other spots continue to grow. Close to the I-95, and a stones throw away from the scenic Delaware river, Kensington is a neighborhood in northern Philly with quite the reputation.