kensingtonplan.org<\/a><\/p>\n\u201cPeople very much want a functional library,\u201d said Dr. Bill McKinney, executive director of the New Kensington Community Development Corp. (NKCDC), a nonprofit that promotes social equity and economic empowerment in the Kensington, Fishtown and Port Richmond neighborhoods, \u201cbut they also want to be able to stay in their homes, right? They want to have food to eat. They want to be healthy.\u201d<\/p>\n
Parker is looking to accomplish what those before her in the mayor\u2019s office could not: a Kensington on par with some of the city\u2019s most vibrant and wholesome neighborhoods. Mayor Ed Rendell launched Operation Sunrise in 1998. Mayor John Street launched Operation Safe Streets in 2002. Mayor Michael Nutter launched a Block-by-Block Approach in beginning in 2008. Parker has launched One Philly Kensington Blitz.<\/p>\n
Yet, some residents inside the community say they see little change.<\/p>\n
Asked if City Hall listens to residents, Thornton-Trice answered with an immediate, \u201cNo.\u201d Adding, \u201cWe get a lot of attention for various reasons. But I don\u2019t think it\u2019s focused attention. Like, it\u2019s scattered.\u201d<\/p>\n
Just outside Parker\u2019s celebration and groundbreaking in Kensington late last month, people affected by drugs remained on the sidewalks. \u201cThe Kensington that I\u2019m standing in today \u2014 this is not the Kensington that I walked in January of 2024. Quality of life is improving here,\u201d Parker declared.<\/p>\n
![\"McPherson](\"data:image\/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAQAAAADCAQAAAAe\/WZNAAAAEElEQVR42mM8U88ABowYDABAxQPltt5zqAAAAABJRU5ErkJggg==\")
<\/p>\n
The McPherson Library in Kensington is currently undergoing renovations.\u00a0\u2014TRIBUNE PHOTO\/KAYLA BROWN<\/p>\n
Kayla Brown
\nTRIBUNE PHOTOGRAPHER<\/p>\n
City officials say the investment will help return McPherson Square to families who have spent years navigating drug activity near one of the neighborhood\u2019s most important public spaces.<\/p>\n
McKinney questions the public ceremonies held by elected officials touting have much better things are in Kensington. \u201cAre things better or have things just changed?\u201d he asked. \u201cBecause the core issues haven\u2019t been addressed.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe real issues here aren\u2019t just cleanliness and crime,\u201d he added. \u201cThe problems are jobs and education. That\u2019s what\u2019s at the root\u201d<\/p>\n
He compared the city\u2019s efforts to the way he tidies up his office before guests arrive. \u201cI straightened up a little bit before you all came,\u201d he said to a group of journalists. \u201cAll my trash is under my desk right now. It\u2019s still here.\u201d<\/p>\n
No one should trust the ceremonies that promise a better Kensington, McKinney said, because he\u2019s in the community before officials show up and after the cameras are gone. \u201cCome see it for yourself,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Mayor Cherelle Parker celebrates the renovations being done at McPherson Square Library and Park in Kensington.\u00a0\u2014TRIBUNE PHOTO\/KAYLA BROWN<\/p>\n
Kayla Brown
\nTRIBUNE PHOTOGRAPHER<\/p>\n
So we took him up on his offer.<\/p>\n
The Tribune walked Kensington\u2019s streets with McKinney and interviewed residents whose experiences illustrate the economic hardship accompanying the neighborhood\u2019s drug crisis.<\/p>\n
McKinney, who has lived in Kensington for about 25 years, believes the neighborhood cannot recover without addressing the poverty and unemployment that helped the illegal drug economy take root.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe core issues are poverty, workforce development, education,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Dr. Bill McKinney, NKCDC executive director, on Tusculum Street in Kensington.\u00a0\u2014TRIBUNE PHOTO\/KAYLA BROWN<\/p>\n
Kayla Brown
\nTRIBUNE PHOTOGRAPHER<\/p>\n
The mayor says the general well-being in the area has improved. But has it really?<\/p>\n
This article begins a series of online and print reports over the next several weeks detailing what residents say about life inside Kensington; what city officials say they are doing to improve the quality of life in the area; how one non-profit organization and citizens have put together their own framework for change and a myriad of other issues confronting the area.<\/p>\n
What residents say<\/p>\n
Anthony \u201cTony\u201d Russo, 62, a longtime Kensington homeowner and retired machinist, welcomes the city\u2019s investment because \u201cKensington has been treated like the city\u2019s dumping ground \u2026 better lighting and a nice park path are great deterrents for crime,\u201d he said before adding, \u201clet\u2019s be honest: addiction, poverty, and homelessness are human problems, not architectural ones.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf the city spends millions to beautify the grass but doesn\u2019t radically scale up long-term housing, mental health treatment, and economic pipelines for our people, they are just pushing the addiction crisis a few blocks over into someone else\u2019s front yard,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Samira Allen, 45, born and raised in Kensington, wants to know what happens when the library is closed during the two years of construction.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s two full years where the community loses its anchor, and the immediate block loses its eyes and ears,\u201d she said. \u201cI worry that without active daily programming to keep the space activated during the construction phase, the drug trade will just consume the perimeter. We need structural, daily enforcement and public health interventions to run parallel to this construction, otherwise we\u2019re just putting a Band-Aid on a broken bone.\u201d<\/p>\n
Elena Rosario, 68, a retired seamstress, said she\u2019s watched the neighborhood change for three decades. \u201cYou may not always see people my age after dark, but don\u2019t think we aren\u2019t here. We are the eyes of these blocks. We watch out for each other. We share groceries, and we keep our front areas clean and as safe as\u00a0possible. We stay here because this is our home, and our roots are deep, and we can\u2019t lose that.\u201d<\/p>\n
City Hall\u2019s Kensington Blitz<\/p>\n
First Deputy Managing Director Crystal Yates-Gale, who oversees Philadelphia\u2019s health and human services departments, said the Parker administration is working to improve conditions through an intensive, coordinated effort across city agencies.<\/p>\n
The effort, known as the One Philly Kensington Blitz, began on Sept. 5 under Managing Director Carlton Williams.<\/p>\n
The city divided Kensington into three geographic zones and concentrated services in one zone each week. Workers clean and power-wash streets, remove trash and abandoned vehicles, address dangerous properties, collect discarded syringes, and connect people experiencing homelessness or substance use disorders to treatment and shelter.<\/p>\n
The operations involve the Police and Fire Departments, Emergency Medical Services, the Department of Behavioral Health and Intellectual Disability Services, the Office of Homeless Services, the Health Department, Streets and Sanitation, Parks and Recreation, Licenses and Inspections, the Water Department, and the Philadelphia Parking Authority, said Yates-Gale.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat we\u2019re trying to do from the managing director\u2019s perspective is more coordination and collaboration across many city departments,\u201d Yates-Gale told the Tribune.<\/p>\n
Yates-Gale said Philadelphia has established 785 of the 1,000 additional shelter beds sought through Parker\u2019s expansion initiative, and those beds are operating at approximately 95% capacity.<\/p>\n
Yates-Gale also cited reductions in shootings, homicides, and fatal overdoses as evidence of progress, though she could not provide the specific figures during the interview. \u201cI think that evidence comes from the police district\u2019s reporting,\u201d she\u00a0said when asked whether measurable improvements show Kensington is becoming safer.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
People doze along a sidewalk in Philadelphia’s Kensington neighborhood. \u2014TRIBUNE PHOTO\/KAYLA BROWN<\/p>\n
Kayla Brown
\nTRIBUNE PHOTOGRAPHER<\/p>\n
The city has also found that new people continue arriving in Kensington seeking drugs or experiencing homelessness. \u201cAnd we have to figure out how to do things upstream,\u201d Gates offered.<\/p>\n
McKinney and other neighborhood advocates believe that organizations already working with residents should play a greater role in shaping the city\u2019s response.<\/p>\n
Yates-Gale acknowledged that the government cannot achieve its goals alone.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe know that the residents can\u2019t solve it alone. And we know the nonprofit organizations can\u2019t solve it alone. We have to all do it together,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Parker isn\u2019t the only elected official with a focus on the community.<\/p>\n
Council representation<\/p>\n
Councilmember Quetcy Lozada, who has represented the district since 2022, said she has taken \u201cconcrete steps\u201d to address challenges in the community including the establishment of the Kensington Caucus and the Special Committee on Kensington \u201cto bring greater focus and coordination to issues affecting residents.<\/p>\n
She also points to securing $750,000 for mental health support in Kensington schools for children directly or indirectly affected by witnessing substance use disorder, \u201cwhich I will continue to prioritize,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cEvery child deserves to feel safe in their neighborhood, and every family deserves clean streets, safe parks, and access to the services they need,\u201d she said. \u201cNo single program or investment can solve a crisis of this magnitude, but each of these efforts is part of the sustained work needed to make Kensington safer and stronger.\u201d<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
A person dozes along a sidewalk in Philadelphia’s Kensington neighborhood.\u00a0\u2014TRIBUNE PHOTO\/KAYLA BROWN<\/p>\n
Kayla Brown
\nTRIBUNE PHOTOGRAPHER<\/p>\n
Lozado added, \u201cresidents need relief. Children need safer blocks. People struggling with addiction need real pathways to care. Service providers need clear guidelines. Coordination, collaboration, and care continue to be our guiding lights. Our work is far from finished, but we\u2019re making steady gains.\u201d<\/p>\n
When Kensington had jobs<\/p>\n
Long before people traveled to Kensington to buy fentanyl, thousands came to work in Kensington.<\/p>\n
Textile mills, machine shops, metal manufacturers, and other industrial businesses filled the neighborhood with jobs. Factory wages covered mortgages, supported corner stores, and sustained families, many of whose children stayed in Kensington as adults.<\/p>\n
Workers could walk to their jobs, and the streets filled with people starting shifts, leaving factories, and shopping at businesses that relied on their paychecks.<\/p>\n
Beginning in the 1960s, industrial employers closed plants or relocated operations. Jobs disappeared, commercial corridors weakened, and families with the means to leave sought opportunities elsewhere.<\/p>\n
Illegal drug trafficking expanded as legitimate employment declined. Methamphetamine operations emerged in the 1970s, crack cocaine spread in the 1980s, and high-purity heroin attracted customers from across the region in the 1990s.<\/p>\n
Kensington\u2019s transportation connections brought buyers directly into the neighborhood. Empty industrial buildings and abandoned properties provided the trade with space to operate.<\/p>\n
By 1992, the illegal drug economy was reportedly valued at $250 million, according to law enforcement.<\/p>\n
Police launched raids, made arrests and conducted major enforcement campaigns, including Operation Sunrise in the early 2000s. Dealers adapted, customers continued to arrive, and increasingly dangerous drugs entered the market.<\/p>\n
McKinney sees a familiar approach across successive administrations. \u201cPolicing and sanitation,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
He acknowledges that some streets are cleaner, violence has declined, and fewer people are dying from overdoses. But he questions whether these changes have improved Kensington families\u2019 financial circumstances.<\/p>\n
\u201cKensington is still just as poor as it was.\u201d<\/p>\n
‘Keep hope’<\/p>\n
For Thornton-Trice, the problems facing Kensington families become especially painful at McPherson Square.<\/p>\n
She remembers visiting the playground with her children and discovering that the equipment and surrounding grounds were being used for purposes far removed from recreation.<\/p>\n
\u201cSomebody\u2019s sleeping under the slide. There are belongings, lighters, needles on the slides, on the steps, on the benches, and human feces,\u201d she recalled.<\/p>\n
She has also encountered what appeared to be blood on the playground equipment.<\/p>\n
These are the things she has to explain to her children.<\/p>\n
\u201cI tell them the truth,\u201d Thornton-Trice said, explaining that she warns them about the physical dangers of drugs and discarded needles. \u201cI have to be transparent and real. And tell them exactly what it is. Otherwise, they might run into something and not understand how to deal with it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Yates-Gale was asked directly about parents, such as Thornton-Trice, whose children have witnessed overdoses before being old enough to attend elementary school.<\/p>\n
\u201cI say, \u2018keep hope.\u2019 Remain hopeful because I also am hopeful,\u201d she remarked, acknowledging the potential psychological consequences for children exposed to drug use and medical emergencies.<\/p>\n
\u201cSeeing these types of things can be traumatic,\u201d Yates-Gale noted.<\/p>\n
Neighbors fight for their blocks<\/p>\n
Thornton-Trice grew up in Kensington, moved away as a child, and returned in 2019.<\/p>\n
She became a block captain after recognizing that neighbors needed help organizing cleanups and addressing drug activity near their homes. As a result, residents have begun telling people they can\u2019t use drugs on their block, and neighbors have worked together to remove trash and improve conditions.<\/p>\n
Thornton-Trice credits the Kensington-based IMPACT program, which provides employment assistance, job training, housing support and neighborhood services, with helping keep the streets cleaner.<\/p>\n
She said sanitation crews now visit more frequently.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt used to be a lot worse,\u201d she insisted.<\/p>\n
Thornton-Trice remembers 2020, when encampments filled parts of McPherson Square and mattresses, couches, clothing, and other belongings accumulated throughout the park, remembers McPherson Square before the playground became a place where she worried about needles and overdoses. \u201cThis park is beautiful. I used to play in the park all the time,\u201d she reminisced.<\/p>\n
She hopes her children can make their own memories there rather than merely hearing stories about the park she once knew. But what she heard from them recently troubled her.<\/p>\n
\u201cMom, tell them to stop doing bad stuff. Tell them to stop doing drugs in the park,\u201d they told her.<\/p>\n
Stay informed and connected \u2014 subscribe to The Philadelphia Tribune NOW! Click Here<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"This installment is one in a series of reports on the travails of Philadelphia\u2019s Kensington community. Near McPherson…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":313914,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[7487,9537,17693,8921,128125,128126,128127,69,71,70,26503],"class_list":["post-313913","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-philadelphia","tag-carnegie-library","tag-cherelle-parker","tag-fishtown","tag-kensington","tag-mcpherson-square","tag-new-kensington-community-development-corporation","tag-nkcdc","tag-philadelphia","tag-philadelphia-headlines","tag-philadelphia-news","tag-port-richmond"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/313913","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=313913"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/313913\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/313914"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=313913"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=313913"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=313913"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}