Blackbottom

Mr. Arnold noted three distinct changes in the area involving expansion and land use and lack thereof:

The expansion of Girard College is a sore point for community members. The newer buildings do not have the same aesthetic quality as the older ones and there is a community tension around the construction- Also Girard College is opening an access point on the West College Avenue, which will change the traffic patterns through the community.-

Expansion along the Parkway, shops and condos has caused contention in the Fairmount neighborhood. Developers want to take away the parks and make it into an exclusive area for the wealthy.

The new parking lot on Fairmount was an abandoned lot for many years; it was purchased by the school district in the 1970’s, however, due to the population decreasing in the city. The school was never built. The lot remained empty for over 20 years and developers have proposed many projects for the property. Before land was cleared there were homes.

Other residents, one being a political leader, from Fairmount noted the mixed emotions of territorialism, fear of the other, and uncertainty that played into the political and emotional tone of the time. When asked about the reasons for the change in the community, concerns that “blight was coming down from the north of Girard” and only the Penitentiary buildings separated from the struggles of North Philadelphia were noted. In addition, the rising taxes forced out elderly residents with fixed incomes. Residents tried to fight them, but it was a losing battle in the face of rising housing costs because of Fairmount’s newfound popularity with housing developers and professional residents they attracted. One interviewee said, “Developers started coming in taking over the empty land, commercial property and buildings like brewery place, which is converted into apartments now.”

Another site that was the source of controversy was the area across from the penitentiary:

“The parking lot over by that penitentiary was an integrated area. It was taken over by the city under eminent domain, the school district bought it from the city_ Some of the people moved out of the area, some into Fairmount with their relatives. The homes were demolished for no reason, there ain’t school up there. The city never found them homes. There was no school (built because) public school was seen as black schools. People won’t admit it, but that’s the truth. It was during (the tenure of then) Mayor Rizzo. (His message was that) if don’t want it in your neighborhood, you don’t have to have it. The school was blocked, but the people still moved out. It remained abandoned for over 30 years.”

Major Shifts

From the family owned businesses to the multi-family dwellings of the late 1800s and early 1900s, the Fairmount neighborhood changed dramatically after the 1940s and 50s. The voices of those who live in the area, many of whom lived through the very time period, are gathered here to tell the story.

The riots, during the Civil Rights era, destroyed the Girard Avenue shopping are, according to Mr. Ashbridge, and it has never been built up again. Another interviewee from the park on 24^th and Aspen adds that “the Government some in and paid off the storeowners. The older people, they took the money and left the area. Stores (were) left abandoned.” Mr. Ashbridge believes the collapse of business on Girard Avenue changed the way people shop. Mr. Fortizi, a storeowner himself, reason that “As automobiles got popular, people would go further out to shop. Mom and pop shops started closing.” The Guertneys and Ms. Reichert, Fairmount neighbors, can only remember two cars being on the block in the 1940s and 50s. They summarize the plight of business in general, “No bakeries, no Chinese laundries, no markets, (nor) grocery stores could compete with big shops. A lot of property was sold and made in townhomes. We lost bakeries; hairdressers… lost lots of bars. Lost 5/10 (Five and Dime Stores), Woolworth’s, Kreski’s, and Green’s was the last to go.”

The addition of townhomes, mentioned above, did not mean that families were able to stay in Fairmount. On the contrary, it was quite the opposite. The Guertneys and Ms. Reichert vow that they are not moving, but they concede that “Children all move away… St. Franny’s is empty compared to when we went… there is an annual picnic. It gets smaller and smaller and older and older.” Mr. Ashbridge agrees, “Between the 1960s and 1970s people would come back to the area. Old times stayed while their families moved away. In the mid 1970s developers started looking at the Fairmount area again, started looking to move… The Penitentiary closed in the 1970s, which made the neighborhood seem more attractive. Now it is more an area for professionals, college kids, the rents is getting high and the prices of homes (is too).”

The men interviewed at the park talk of the contrast in housing and people over the years: “Pigs Alley, man, if you had seen that street. It used to be where the poor lived. Now it is done up. The houses there are $ 100,000! That’s crazy. It is still a nice neighborhood. We like it. It’s changed, but the people moving in, they take care of the places. Some say

hello, but it ain’t like when we were young and out kids.”

Another interviewee, who talked while shopping at the Philadelphian, spoke of the different perception of the neighborhood that the newer residents have. She feels that difference, Mr. Greenly said, “Fairmount used to be full of families and kids, now (it is) raising more dogs.”

Mr. Arnold speaks of the change in terms of class conflict or difference in values between the new professional types moving in and the old-timers: “It was an area of breweries and tanneries. The factory workers lived in Fairmount, while the managers lived in Spring Garden. Fairmount was mostly a working class area and families tended to live generationally in the community. This is stopped due to younger generations either opting to live in the suburbs and/or because of the increased costs of homes. The younger generation cannot afford to stay.”

Gentrification and Urban Renewal: Fairmount enjoys a multiethnic mix from all socioeconomic strata. Its southern half has become increasingly gentrified in recent years, with newcomers, typically younger artist and professional couples moving into the city and settling in the neighborhood because of its proximity and easily accessible transportation to downtown Center City. In the 1960s and 70s, both the neighborhood and residents of Fairmount experienced the hardships of deindustrialization as they were being similarly felt in other major “rustbelt” cities across the country. Factories closed, and poverty and crime increased during these years, and the demographics of the area changed as many white residents moved to suburban areas, and parts of the neighborhood became predominately African-American or Hispanic.

The western end of Fairmount remained more stable than many Philadelphia neighborhoods, retaining its largely white and working class population until the real estate booms of the 1980s and 1990s. It was at this time that the neighborhoods like Fairmount in Philadelphia began to draw many people back from the suburbs. People were attracted by its location adjacent to Center City (downtown), the Art Museum, and Fairmount Park, along with the shopping, popular bars and restaurants that had multiplied and flourished over the past few decades particularly in the western end. Members of the community have also worked diligently to preserve their neighborhood and improve it when necessary, forming partnerships and associations, such as the Fairmount Civic Association, to keep residents abreast of new developments and challenges. Neighbors have combined to beautify parts of the area, successfully converting a parcel adjacent to Eastern State into a small park and dog run. A large community garden, the Spring Gardens, occupies the site of a former open-air drug market.

In the 20th century, Polish and Ukranian Immigrants moved into the neighborhood. This population became one of the largest in the northern parts of Fairmount. The neighborhood still remains largely white, however is continues to become gentrified. Younger professional families, students, and singles are moving in. There is an increasing presence of the gay and lesbian community as well. The attraction is mostly its proximity to Center City, the famous and beautiful Fairmount park, and the Art Museum. Families with long historical lineages to the area are becoming less prevalent in the area. The area has been described as becoming more of a “cosmopolitan, downtown district.”

Sources Include:

www.wikipedia.com