Thursday, July 25 2024
When walking through the streets of virtually any significant metropolis in the United States, one large and confusing word consistently pops up in conversation: Gentrification. So what is it? Gentrification at its base is the process in which a neighborhood is redeveloped, either privately or governmentally, from an area of typically lower socioeconomic status to a more wealthy, economically sound neighborhood. However, this does not come with its consequences, one of the largest being the sheer rise in the cost of living for its existing residents. Philadelphia is no exception to this practice, with Fishtown, a neighborhood in Philadelphia just northeast of Center City, a notorious embodiment of this phenomenon.
Fishtown, whose name is derived from its origins as a colonial fishing village, was a booming industrial hub in the mid-19th century, populated by waves of immigrants such as the German 49ers and Scotch-Irish. During this time, the United States was also amid an industrial revolution, with the neighborhood quickly becoming known for its shipbuilding, coal yards, and manufacturing. As a result, many of Philadelphia’s iconic rowhouses were built to accommodate this growing working-class population–the same form of housing we can still see today. However, in the ’60s, during the rise of the automobile and deindustrialization, many urban working-class neighborhoods, like Fishtown, began to fall into vacancy disrepair. The neighborhood then became further crime-ridden and, in the ‘80s, a drug center. Then, in the late 20th century and early 21st century, revitalization efforts backed by the city and private agencies began to gentrify Fishtown into a hip, trendy neighborhood, balancing its industrial heritage with modern living.
However, an issue that many residents face isn’t that the neighborhood is becoming “hippy” but that the cost of living in Fishtown, like many gentrified neighborhoods in American cities, has skyrocketed relative to a few years ago. In fact, according to Peter Lane Taylor from Forbes Magazine, “Home values [in Fishtown have nearly tripled since the Great Recession,” and “The current sale to list ratio is a scorching 98.8%, going toe to toe with Williamsburg (Brooklyn) and Washington, D.C” (Taylor). From a property owner’s perspective, this could be incredibly economically rewarding, but to many of the tenants of Fishtown, it could just be another struggle to deal with. Long gone are the days of Fishtown’s affordable housing and empty, overgrown lots. The neighborhood today booms, and thousands of young professionals are attracted by Fishtown’s relative safety, centrality, walkability, and proximity to the El. The benefits of Fishtown’s gentrification are purely subjective. Many claim that the neighborhood’s transformation revitalized the neighborhood into a more economically sound, well-kept, attractive part of the city, while others argue that this transformation damages the financial livelihood of its initial residents and takes away from the neighborhood’s original heritage.
Either way, it is undeniable that comparing this iconic Philadelphia neighborhood to what it was 25 years ago is like seeing night and day. So many elements–constructive or destructive–make up the foundation of what Fishtown has become in today’s day and age, and the future is where we will be able to see whether its redevelopment was truly an act of decency or just another controversial instance of gentrification. Only time will tell.
Bibliography
Betters, Jill. “Trying to be part of the solution in Philadelphia’s Fishtown.” WHYY, 21 Apr. 2015, whyy.org/articles/trying-to-be-part-of-the-solution-in-philadelphias-fishtown.
Bond, Michaelle, and Erica Palan. “Fishtown homeowners fight back | Real Estate Newsletter.” https://www.inquirer.com, 22 June 2023, www.inquirer.com/newsletters/streamline-water-damage-fishtown-ocean-city-black-history-20230622.html.
Taylor, Peter Lane. “How Fishtown, Philadelphia Became America’s Hottest New Neighborhood.” Forbes, 7 Feb. 2019, www.forbes.com/sites/petertaylor/2018/05/02/how-fishtown-philadelphia-became-americas-hottest-new-neighborhood.
“Urban Renewal and the Struggles of Gentrification in Fishtown, PA.” CORE Reader, core.ac.uk/reader/228660840.
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