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Some of you have probably seen me reference "middle neighborhoods" on other threads on the Philadelphia board.
If you're not familiar with that term, it refers to those neighborhoods that are neither "strong" nor "distressed" - they're neither the havens of the affluent that often get pointed to as the best this city has to offer nor the bleak, beat-up blocks of the city's impoverished neighborhoods. These are the real heart of Philadelphia, home to the plurality (41 percent) of its residents and the majority of its homeowners. Their household incomes are within the three middle quintiles, and their home values are within 25 percent either way of the citywide median, which is in the neighborhood of $95,000. They're also where most of the city's population growth has occurred, particularly in the immigrant-magnet neighborhoods of the Lower Northeast.
I've been working on a feature for Next City that examines the promise and prospects for these neighborhoods through the prism of one of them: the part of upper East Mt. Airy many call Cedarbrook (though many who live there hate it when they do that). This neighborhood is an African-American middle-class success story:median household incomes above the median for middle neighborhoods as a whole and house values above both the citywide median and that for middle neighborhoods. Its homeownership rate of more than 75 percent is the highest in the city, and its residents are engaged with local politics, turning out to vote in much higher than average numbers.
If they can at all help it, the people here are going to do something that hasn't happened often among middle-class African-Americans in our history: transfer wealth on a large scale to their children and grandchildren.
But there are forces that could thwart that goal if left unchecked: foreclosure, lack of investment, and an absence of new blood to buy the homes the children don't inherit.
You can read about this neighborhood and the forces that could keep it desirable or send it into decline now on Next City:
You're welcome to chew over the issues this article raises here - and on Thursday, May 18, at 5:30 p.m. Relish, 7165 Ogontz Avenue in West Oak Lane (another middle neighborhood). There's a link to register for the panel discussion at the end of the article; while the event is free, so is the food and drink, so you must RSVP in advance so the folks at Next City can get an accurate headcount. Can't attend? You can participate in the conversation via a live online feed the evening of the event.
Hope to see some of you there - I'll be one of the panelists.
I enjoyed your article. I would love to see Wadsworth Ave become more vibrant. There doesn't seem to be much there now that would draw in outsiders. It would be nice if that area could attract some immigrants like the lower NE. Having some good ethnic restaurants or stores could draw some people to Wadsworth. I know Mt. Airy USA has made some effort to attract immigrants with their immigrant business hub but I don't know if they cover 19150. I also don't know how effective they have been.
I also wonder what the economic outcome has been for their children. I also agree with PMAN that schools are an issue though not the only issue. Mt Airy west of Stenton is still pretty stable despite the lack of good public schools; as is Chestnut Hill. A lot of middle class areas in the city have struggled to create good neighborhood schools. Everyone sees the value but there seems to be a prisoners dilemma with trusting other parents to also send their kids to public school.
FWIW I am also worried about 19119 Mt. Airy's business district on Germantown Avenue.
Interesting topic, although I'm not sure I understand the proposed solutions. It seems to me, from how I read the article, that slightly more affluent and thus stable residents are needed to help support those residents on the edge (i.e. pre-foreclosure, recently retired and not able to afford general home maintenance, lack of emergency funds to get through the unexpected, etc...) and ultimately the community. However, my experience with the kind residents the 19150 neighborhoods could use to help stabilize the community is that they much prefer to live close to the amenities, events and the excitement of the city proper. As long as the near CC neighborhoods provide generally affordable housing options and quality of life, I think it will be very difficult to attract this demographic en mas to a removed neighborhood like Mt. Airy.
I think it is fair to say that most neighborhoods undergo transition because communities are dynamic. Personally, I place a lot of emphasis on the data over anecdotal personal experience. The data is an aggregate of all the people and it is good at pointing out trends. When interviewing, it's important to strike a balance between the subjects, or you end up with a one sided story that contradicts the data.
The question for me is, has the zip code, regardless of whatever name they choose to call it, hit rock bottom? Are they turning around or stuck at where they are. What will be neighborhood transition to in the next 10 yrs.
My take, the country is doing well and they should benefit from the upturn of the overall economy. Just like the rest of the city. The key to their future lies in education. So I would like to see an improvement in the schools or else when we hit the next rocky patch they will fall again through the cracks. In short, they need to do a lot more.
Interesting topic, although I'm not sure I understand the proposed solutions. It seems to me, from how I read the article, that slightly more affluent and thus stable residents are needed to help support those residents on the edge (i.e. pre-foreclosure, recently retired and not able to afford general home maintenance, lack of emergency funds to get through the unexpected, etc...) and ultimately the community. However, my experience with the kind residents the 19150 neighborhoods could use to help stabilize the community is that they much prefer to live close to the amenities, events and the excitement of the city proper. As long as the near CC neighborhoods provide generally affordable housing options and quality of life, I think it will be very difficult to attract this demographic en mas to a removed neighborhood like Mt. Airy.
I'm exactly the kind of individual(AA, middle-class and successful career-wise) Mt Airy should have attracted 25 or so years ago.
I didn't even consider it when I first contemplated moving to the city.
However, my experience with the kind residents the 19150 neighborhoods could use to help stabilize the community is that they much prefer to live close to the amenities, events and the excitement of the city proper. As long as the near CC neighborhoods provide generally affordable housing options and quality of life, I think it will be very difficult to attract this demographic en mas to a removed neighborhood like Mt. Airy.
I don't think young people need to come "en mas" just at a rate equal or greater than the current residents are leaving or dying. I think the goal is more to maintain. If the City could actually do something about wage tax I think the area would be much more attractive to professionals who work in job centers in Conshy, Plymouth Meeting, Fort Washington, etc. This would benefit 19119 and 19150. 19119 is can (and does) appeal to young people mostly due to the two trains lines to center city, leafiness, amazing housing stock, and progressive ideals, space, and decent main street.
I don't think young people need to come "en mas" just at a rate equal or greater than the current residents are leaving or dying. I think the goal is more to maintain. If the City could actually do something about wage tax I think the area would be much more attractive to professionals who work in job centers in Conshy, Plymouth Meeting, Fort Washington, etc. This would benefit 19119 and 19150. 19119 is can (and does) appeal to young people mostly due to the two trains lines to center city, leafiness, amazing housing stock, and progressive ideals, space, and decent main street.
Very true, wage tax reduction would certainly help, but unfortunately the other shortcomings of the city: [generally poorer services (i.e. trash removal, social services, construction and repairs, etc...), higher levels of crime compared to almost every single nearby suburb, considerably worse schools, seriously dysfunctional government...], I just can't see why anyone would choose a neighborhood that's 30 minutes out of the advantages the city when they could live in a suburb that's just a bit further and not deal with the above issues.
For those who know this topic better than me, what exactly is the draw to Germantown/Mt. Airy for residents considering a relocation? How do you pitch this over the city proper or the nearby NW suburbs like Conshy, Plymouth Meeting, Fort Washington...?
Last edited by Pennsport; 05-16-2017 at 01:24 PM..
Very true, wage tax reduction would certainly help, but unfortunately the other shortcomings of the city: [generally poorer services (i.e. trash removal, social services, construction and repairs, etc...), higher levels of crime compared to almost every single nearby suburb, considerably worse schools, seriously dysfunctional government...], I just can't see why anyone would choose a neighborhood that's 30 minutes out of the advantages the city when they could live in a suburb that's just a bit further and not deal with the above issues.
For those who know this topic better than me, what exactly is the draw to Germantown/Mt. Airy for residents considering a relocation? How do you pitch this over the city proper or the nearby NE suburbs like Conshy, Plymouth Meeting, Fort Washington...?
I largely agree as far as 19150 is concerned. The neighborhood has less attractive housing stock and is not particularly walkable. I don't think the area can win on Amenities. I think it could, however, draw residents in based on price. As the article stated the median price of a house is ~$100k. Can't find a lot of decent houses at that price point in the nearby suburbs. The goal isn't to make the $100k houses worth $300k; the goal is to prevent them from being worth ~$60k. I think affordability combined with proximity to job centers could be appealing to a decent number of truly middle class households.
As for 19119 the area is quite walkable and gives excellent proximity to the commercial areas on Germantown Avenue in both Mt. Airy and Chestnut Hill. The proximity to the Wissahickon is also a big plus.
For me (I moved here from south philly) the appeal was the leafiness of the area, the walkability of the area, the ease of access to center city compared to the suburbs, the proximity to chestnut hill and the park, the amazing history. I will never get tired of walking my dog around these amazing stone houses.
I largely agree as far as 19150 is concerned. The neighborhood has less attractive housing stock and is not particularly walkable. I don't think the area can win on Amenities. I think it could, however, draw residents in based on price. As the article stated the median price of a house is ~$100k. Can't find a lot of decent houses at that price point in the nearby suburbs. The goal isn't to make the $100k houses worth $300k; the goal is to prevent them from being worth ~$60k. I think affordability combined with proximity to job centers could be appealing to a decent number of truly middle class households.
As for 19119 the area is quite walkable and gives excellent proximity to the commercial areas on Germantown Avenue in both Mt. Airy and Chestnut Hill. The proximity to the Wissahickon is also a big plus.
For me (I moved here from south philly) the appeal was the leafiness of the area, the walkability of the area, the ease of access to center city compared to the suburbs, the proximity to chestnut hill and the park, the amazing history. I will never get tired of walking my dog around these amazing stone houses.
Hmmm... all good points - makes sense to me.
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