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. WHYY provides trustworthy, fact-based, local news and information and world-class entertainment to everyone in our community. "You can't buy, use, and recover in the same neighborhood," Bingham said. It is craft fully omitted, in lieu of the salacious and the tragic. City housing officials say 300; police estimated over 650 people this summer. 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. 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. 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. Mayor Jim Kenney is possibly one of the worse mayor in the Philadelphia history and does nothing to stop it. The situation toward Allegheny Avenue grew even more intense after SEPTA briefly closed the Somerset El stop in January. The decision has saved the city millions, and won cheers nationwide from drug-law reformers. Ever since the strangler, addict Will Sims says, we do everything out in the open and the cops are cool with it. Several other addicts out here concur: The reason for all the bustle is that Kensington Avenue has become a drug-bust-free zone. 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. Kensington is home to a large population of Hispanic Americans, mainly Puerto Ricans and Dominicans, and African Americans. It has always had the El train that runs straight through Kensington. 0:00 / 25:40 Streets of Philadelphia, Kensington Ave, Here's What Happened Today, Saturday, Sept 11, 2021. Jackie is missing. The stranglers final victim, a prostitute named Casey Mahoney, was murdered here. Using proceeds from the sale of the Hope Farm estate (present day Port Richmond), which included three enslaved people named Abraham, Hannibal, and Phillis,[9] 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 Delaware River). All About Max Winkler. 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. Today, the neighborhood is full of decrepit two-story rowhouses and many abandoned commercial spaces: defunct factories and vacant lots. Not everyone who takes advantage of the trade on Kensington Ave lives nearby, though. Ironically, even some addicts on Kensington Avenue dont believe in legalization. They tried to institute safe-injection sites, where users can shoot up without fear of prosecution. 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. Learn more about Social Responsibility at WHYY. NKCDC is working on the redevelopment of the Orinoka Civic House. It was a scene that rivaled the aftermath of a storm, its victims caught up in forces that leave many hungry, homeless and hopeless. As with all neighborhoods in the city, the lack of any official designation means the boundaries of the area vary between sources over time and are disputed among locals. SBC News 188K subscribers Subscribe 10K 1.4M views 1 year ago #SBCNews. According to NeighborhhoodLink, an online source for demographics, geography and economic statistics, the average house value in the 19125 zip code of Kensington is now at $43,500. 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. At 4 p.m. on January 15, police found Jevon Gillette, 47, with multiple gunshot wounds to the torso and thigh. It is not safe . It happened shortly after 3 a.m. Thursday in the area of Fairhill Square Park at 4th Street and Lehigh Avenue. Kensington was founded by Anthony Palmer in the early 1730s. Philadelphias District Attorney Seth Williams risked backlash from hardcore law-and-order types when he recently stopped criminally prosecuting minor marijuana offenses. 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. Kensington and Somerset. The city sees hope in this kind of intervention. Then enter opiates. Compared to the infamous Skid Row in Los Angeles, Kensingtons homeless problem doesnt seem as bad. 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. There is a common criticism that officials would never let this happen in whiter, more affluent parts of the city. Though Kensington addicts seem to think so, the police department pushed back forcefully against this notion. Multiple people were injured after a messy crash in the Kensington section of the city. However, sensationalizing poverty, fetishizing small businesses, and minimizing the collective efforts of a community on the rise are the cheap tactics of bad journalists. [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. pic.twitter.com/yXU3zfzpGp. Neighborhood residents have raged against City Hall for years over the litany of woes from drug dealing to missed trash collection. 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. On January 4, 2016, Jim Kenney was sworn in as the 99th Mayor of Philadelphia. It happened just after 12 p.m. Sunday on the 3300 block of Kensington. Addicts say. 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 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. The neighborhood has long been a catchment for people from the suburbs, Delaware and New Jersey who suffer from addiction, and yet the city has been left on its own to clean up the mess. Yellowstone vs Zion: Which National Park Should I Visit? Neighbors raised alarms about addicts bringing violent sex crimes to the blocks where families live. '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. It is this sort of activism, buoyed by engaged (and zoning savvy!) The problem is, no one seems to want to write about the good. They have attempted to clean up the neighborhoods, planting trees and replacing broken street lights. Look, he says, junkies got rights, too. Wednesdays encampment closure was initially postponed due to a lawsuit filed on behalf of residents. There have been many petitions by residents to take care of Kensington. 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. Many progressives endorse the idea of allowing addicts to get high in certain sections of cities without fear of arrest. Philadelphia's most dangerous street.Problems with Drugs and Crime in Kensington Ave, PhiladelphiaIn Philadelphia as a whole, violent crime and drug abuse are major issues. More by Max Marin. Kensington Independent Civic Association), This page was last edited on 20 February 2023, at 14:40. Dozens upon dozens of people lived there. Kensington belongs to or divides Lower Northeast and North Philadelphia. Kensington Avenue is infamously regarded as 'the largest open-air drug market on East Coast' In 2019, the city removed four encampments in the area that was known to be frequented by drug. The City of Philadelphia, Police and social services are along Kensington Avenue near Willard Street on Wednesday morning August 18, 2021, clearing the streets of homeless in the center of the opioid epidemic in the city. 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. 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. [36] The closure, which happened without consulting with residents and lacked advanced notice,[37] was ostensibly to repair elevators that had been damaged by human waste and trash and concerns about safety for workers. Also alarming is Philadelphia's drug overdose rate. kensington ave philadelphia - summer daytime compilation GDPGDP Looking to be close to Center City by both car and transit, young white collar workers have been moving to cheaper neighborhoods around downtown. West Kensington is similar to Norris Square and Fairhill in that it has a similar demographic to most of Kensington while having a more North Central Philadelphia identity,[citation needed] but unlike the other two neighborhoods it remains certainly part of Kensington. Stop writing about Kensington Avenue like its Mordor. Were trying to make sure people are attaching to services rather than moving, Gladstein said. The city of Philadelphia has set a deadline of Aug. 18 for encampments of people living homeless on the sidewalks of Kensington to be cleared. 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. He also sold to recent German fishermen immigrants. And public homelessness ranks high on the list of concerns. I cant just arrest someone for hanging out on a stoop looking like theyre high on drugs., Even if Philadelphia hasnt officially decriminalized drug use in Kensington, the citys addicts are well aware that this is a place where they can get high without police harassment. Forgotten by whom? Kensington development team seeks middle ground between gentrification and stagnation. Within Kensington, various sub-neighborhoods including Kensington (the Heart of Kensington), Harrowgate, Lower Kensington, West Kensington. Police confirmed that a total of eight vehicles became involved in a messy collision in the [] A rail-thin woman with hollowed-out cheeks rushed from beneath the El tracks. Probably for. They declared a statewide disaster over the drug epidemic in 2017. The area is known as the center of Kensington and was historically the commercial center of the neighborhood. [10] Initially, employment focused around the nearby waterfront and the activities of fishermen and ship- and boatbuilders. Subs and Xany bars, subs and Xany bars, chant men in cockeyed baseball caps while pacing the corner, searching the crowd for potential customers. Philadelphia Kensington Avenue, What happened on Monday, June 28 2021. [57] Rodriguez confessed to the murders and was sentenced to life in prison in 2012. Construction has started on Penns Landing park over I-95 highway trench. 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 the absence of a larger plan, he was certain those encampments would grow in the coming weeks. Kensington has become a welter of crisscrossing needs and opinions, a civic puzzle no one's been able to solve. Even Dr. Oz took the time to show us a Kensington Avenue as a hellscape. These articles tell an intentional narrative, one which has no room for hope. Official estimates vary as to how many people are living on Kensingtons streets. McKinney says the city could use regional support in creating a long-term solution for Kensington. 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 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. "PR," age 41, of Philadelphia, PA, was convicted at trial of all counts with which he was charged, including conspiracy to distribute controlled substances and possession with intent to distribute crack and heroin, arising from his leadership role in supplying a drug . Answer (1 of 3): Kensington is the dark side of Western Industrialized society. Dealers stand out in the open, hawking their wares. Kensington is a primarily low income area after the loss of its industries in the 1960s during deindustrialization and the subsequent loss of much of its working class population to the suburbs. [39], The proposal to open a supervised injection site in Kensington has faced backlash from residents, despite the area's prevalent public drug use. The opioid epidemic has played a significant role in this problem, as it has in much of the rest of the country. 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. [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. The camp was cleared, the people chose new spots in the neighborhood to overrun with used needles, overdoses, and trash. 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. Subscribe to SBC News: https://www.youtube.com/c/SBCNewsYouTube?sub_confirmation=1#SBCNews Its mid-century decline due to deindustrialization paralyzed Kensington. This is probably one of the most drug infested streets in Philadelphia. 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. Natalie Raitano is a fitness instructor and former actress who is most famously known for her role on the show V.I.P. Its so well known that a simple Google search for really bad drug areas brings it up. Crack, meth, heroin, oxycodone, weed, percocet, PCP these are all the usual suspects around Kensington Ave. Well probably have a detail stationed [there], Alexander said. As a nonprofit organization, we rely on financial support from readers like you. 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.