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Does anyone actually say "East Kensington"? I thought there was only Kensington and West Kensington.
It's a realtors creation and it's now a thing. I don't think it's that big a deal ... they need to separate the 'better' section of Kensington that borders Fishtown from the rest of Kensington.
I don't care how much the homes are worth, East Kensington and Northern Liberties still don't impress me. But, to each their own ... Fishtown has it all over both of them, IMO.
I know people think the gentrification will never end, but I wouldn't expect the 'money' to spread above Lehigh Ave any time soon. Every neighborhood isn't going to be a home run.
There were some trying to bring Frankford 'back' about ten years ago ...
Last edited by 2002 Subaru; 03-13-2017 at 05:40 PM..
It's a realtors creation and it's now a thing. I don't think it's that big a deal ... they need to separate the 'better' section of Kensington that borders Fishtown from the rest of Kensington.
I don't care how much the homes are worth, East Kensington and Northern Liberties still don't impress me. But, to each their own ... Fishtown has it all over both of them, IMO.
I know people think the gentrification will never end, but I wouldn't expect the 'money' to spread above Lehigh Ave any time soon. Every neighborhood isn't going to be a home run.
There were some trying to bring Frankford 'back' about ten years ago ...
As long as the proportion of people who prefer cities to suburbs and rural areas continues to grow, as has been the trend for a couple of decades now, the gentrification will never end. That doesn't however mean everywhere will be gentrified. Gentrification tends to flow in pretty predictable ways if you've been paying attention.
You're right that I don't see the money going past Lehigh, but that makes sense. Considering after lehigh you have a giant railroad bed that limits crossings and makes walking past Lehigh involve walking under a dank underground passage, not to mention numerous scrap yards and abandoned industrial buildings. This creates a barrier that makes the spread of gentrification really unlikely.
But pointing to the failures of gentrification efforts in the past to indicate that other dissimilar efforts will fail is just as nonsensical as me pointing out that some neighborhoods have gentrified and assuming that thus all neighborhoods will gentrify.
This part of town is gentrifying and is already a safe place to live. It's still not the best part of Philly obviously, but it has a lot going for it. And those who are saying they flat out wouldn't even consider it or this area is full of heroin addicts very clearly just have no clue what they're talking about and have likely never walked through this neighborhood or at least haven't for a very long time.
You have a funny idea of a brisk pace. I walk to work nearly every day and it takes me 25 minutes to go 1.5 miles. It'd take me 18 minutes to get to Girard and Frankford. Then again I guess I walk kind of fast, but even google estimates the 1.1 mile walk at 22 minutes. Half an hour is a snail's pace. But it's all besides the point, I didn't say it was 15-20 minutes to get to Girard and Frankford, I said it was 15-20 minutes to get to Girard, and if you head straight to Girard from York and Coral, it's .8 miles away and like I said, about 15-20 for an average person.
I'll grant you Front St is not great, but in this area it's more ugly than truly dangerous. The biggest issue is the area right off of Front St heading down York from the MFL is very desolate and even though I know the crime statistics in this area aren't bad, I'm always uneasy walking down stretches such as this and I'm a grown man. But you also have to keep in mind that in a gentrifying area such as this a few blocks make a big difference and while a few blocks north things start to get sketchy, Coral and York itself is nice. If it was my daughter I'd probably advise she use the Berks Station even thought the York station is a few minutes closer. And if it's late at night, I'd rather they Uber or even walk through Fishtown. But again this is more out of an abundance of caution and perception more than anything, violent crime is not high in this area and has been trending further down for years.
You probably would have called the people who were buying homes for this price in Northern Liberties fools a decade ago and now they're laughing all the way to the bank.
Interesting tidbit concerning the "El" and this area.
speaking of lehigh, i'm interested to see what happens when the kensington co-op opens and that big apartment building is built in the old lumberyard at frankford and lehigh. i have a suspicion that you'll see the commercial district between norris and lehigh fill in a lot. there are already new businesses opening like crazy along that corridor - in the last year a record store, comic book store, skate shop, boutiques, vintage stores, a consignment store, a couple of new restaurants opening soon on frankford between dauphin and susquehanna.
it's definitely not as happening as it is closer to girard but there are several hipster-y bars and restaurants. besides the things on and near frankford (martha, atlantis, soup kitchen, pizza brain, little baby's) there are a bunch of places not too far away like frannie lou's porch (which is lovely and my favorite coffee shop in the immediate area, and very close to if not at york and coral - it's either coral or amber), cedar point kitchen, reanimator coffee, memphis taproom, cook & shaker, medusa pizza, etc. also not too far to the things around palmer like philly style bagels, the coffee shop and wine bar down there.
i live near york and frankford, but on the other side of frankford, and i walk down to girard and back to see bands play all the time. i did walks like that frequently when i lived in nyc in my early 20s (late 90s) and wanted to get to greenpoint from bushwick without waiting for the g. it's part of living in a city. i've never been some super fitness person either but it's an easy walk. i'd be fine walking that by myself at night but i'm usually with my husband.
york and coral is totally fine, i'd recommend either walking down dauphin to the el (rather than york) or going to the berks stop as someone mentioned. or walking over to frankford and taking the 5 bus to girard, which is just as fast or faster IF the bus comes at the right time. york & front is kinda sketchy, and right before front there's a big mostly empty block that i would not feel comfortable walking down by myself at night. things are being built there though, so it won't always be that way.
overall it might be a bit of a sleepy area for someone who wants to really be in the thick of things, and you need to have some street smarts. but if they can't afford something more central i think it's a perfectly fine place to be. as someone who's not that interested in night life but is interested in having a sense of community, getting to center city easily, not having to drive much, having some nice coffee shops and restaurants and soon a co-op around, etc it's a great place to be.
I live just north of Frankford and York and agree with the assessment below.
If you draw a line around East Kensington and define it as Kensington Ave to Frankford Ave, from Lehigh down to Berks, the more south and the more east you are the better. Coral and York is fine, in fact anywhere from Cumberland to the south is fine. North of Cumberland gets sketchy the further North you go. From Huntingdon to the north is still pretty sketch, a lot of hookers and junkies dunking in and out of the shadows. Although I've scene a few hipsters walking down Huntingdon in the daytime to the train.
Did anyone see the 6 unit being built on Huntingdon connected right to the El??
However on a different topic, the housing prices in East Kensington are insane relative to how the neighborhood is. The new construction houses on the corner of Cumberland and Jasper are essentially still in the middle of a waste land, there is trash everywhere and it's a pretty far walk to the core of Fishtown, and some have sold for $400K? I mean really people? It wasn't 6-8 years ago that you could get a decent new construction in NoLibs for $450K. And you were right there close to Center city and Northern Liberties with the brand new piazza and a whole lot of stuff on N 2nd st actually had a lot to offer. These people paying $400K to $430K to live 1 block off East Kensington Ave need to have their heads examined. These realtors and developers are taking these buyers for all they have. There is a ton of inventory in East Kensington in the new construction category and a whole lot of vacant land still empty along the Jasper/ Emerald corridor. If there was no developable land left and if there were actual shops in that part of East Kensington, then MAYBE $400K, but as it is now, no new construction is worth more than $300K along the Jasper / Emerald corridor, I don't care what any realtor has to say. If we experience a real estate downturn this will be the first area to get burnt as this is pure speculative frenzy.
Quote:
Originally Posted by groar
overall it might be a bit of a sleepy area for someone who wants to really be in the thick of things, and you need to have some street smarts. but if they can't afford something more central i think it's a perfectly fine place to be. as someone who's not that interested in night life but is interested in having a sense of community, getting to center city easily, not having to drive much, having some nice coffee shops and restaurants and soon a co-op around, etc it's a great place to be.
the prices on the new construction places are bonkers. we got a regular old row house in fine condition (not fancy, but has a decent newer kitchen and didn't need any major work or updating) for $160k a couple of blocks north of york and east of frankford (technically old richmond, and a really nice, quiet block) a year ago. prices have gone up since then and i don't think you could get a place like ours for the price we paid unless you go closer to lehigh or front/kensington, but the new places are still way out of proportion to the prices of even nicely updated older places. even when you factor in them being bigger and fancier. and i have my doubts about the quality of a lot of those builds, but that's a whole other issue.
I live just north of Frankford and York and agree with the assessment below.
If you draw a line around East Kensington and define it as Kensington Ave to Frankford Ave, from Lehigh down to Berks, the more south and the more east you are the better. Coral and York is fine, in fact anywhere from Cumberland to the south is fine. North of Cumberland gets sketchy the further North you go. From Huntingdon to the north is still pretty sketch, a lot of hookers and junkies dunking in and out of the shadows. Although I've scene a few hipsters walking down Huntingdon in the daytime to the train.
Did anyone see the 6 unit being built on Huntingdon connected right to the El??
However on a different topic, the housing prices in East Kensington are insane relative to how the neighborhood is. The new construction houses on the corner of Cumberland and Jasper are essentially still in the middle of a waste land, there is trash everywhere and it's a pretty far walk to the core of Fishtown, and some have sold for $400K? I mean really people? It wasn't 6-8 years ago that you could get a decent new construction in NoLibs for $450K. And you were right there close to Center city and Northern Liberties with the brand new piazza and a whole lot of stuff on N 2nd st actually had a lot to offer. These people paying $400K to $430K to live 1 block off East Kensington Ave need to have their heads examined. These realtors and developers are taking these buyers for all they have. There is a ton of inventory in East Kensington in the new construction category and a whole lot of vacant land still empty along the Jasper/ Emerald corridor. If there was no developable land left and if there were actual shops in that part of East Kensington, then MAYBE $400K, but as it is now, no new construction is worth more than $300K along the Jasper / Emerald corridor, I don't care what any realtor has to say. If we experience a real estate downturn this will be the first area to get burnt as this is pure speculative frenzy.
It costs a lot of money to be in with the 'cool' kids ... I'd bet there are very few (if any) native Philadelphians paying these outrageous prices to reside in Kensington. I think they're getting suckered.
Take a look at those "Suite Row" homes being built at Jasper and Cumberland. They are building them with tyvek wrap over OSB sheathing. Cheap as heck. I went into one of those homes and there is nothing to them. Kitchens are bland and lack any imagination. They are charging $5K??? upgrade just for different appliance package... how absurd. They have downspouts coming off the pilot house and just terminating right on the roof deck, where water will freeze / thaw and crack the fiberglass over time. Never in a million years are those houses worth $400K. It's a fraud I tell you.
Quote:
Originally Posted by groar
the prices on the new construction places are bonkers. even when you factor in them being bigger and fancier. and i have my doubts about the quality of a lot of those builds, but that's a whole other issue.
Take a look at those "Suite Row" homes being built at Jasper and Cumberland. They are building them with tyvek wrap over OSB sheathing. Cheap as heck. I went into one of those homes and there is nothing to them. Kitchens are bland and lack any imagination. They are charging $5K??? upgrade just for different appliance package... how absurd. They have downspouts coming off the pilot house and just terminating right on the roof deck, where water will freeze / thaw and crack the fiberglass over time. Never in a million years are those houses worth $400K. It's a fraud I tell you.
This is true. I've bought two houses in South Philly and wouldn't even consider a "newly renovated" home because of my distrust of quality in a lot of these developers. I bought an old, solid home in both cases at a lower price-point and then invested in the things that need to be enhanced myself.
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East Kensington
