Posted by Madeleine Callanan '19
Cherry Street runs east and west for three blocks from Franklin Street to Beekman Street. Several houses, Allerdice hardware store, and a crane services warehouse line the street, and new townhouses are being built on a plot of land where the Ellsworth Ice Cream Company once stood. A house recently built by Habitat for Humanity sits between Allerdice crane services and a house separated into multiple apartments. During my research, residents who have lived in the area for a long time expressed concerns and negative perceptions of the cultural impacts of the economic and housing transitions on Cherry Street.
John, a customer at Allerdice, illuminated how important community and family are to some of the individuals in the area. John is a 52-year-old white man who has lived in the west side since January 1981. He is an engaging speaker and story teller who enjoys discussing community and global issues alike. He said that years ago most people who worked in the neighborhood could also afford to live there. He painted a picture of the west side thirty years ago when family formed the center of the community. Kids typically grew up with their cousins, aunts, uncles, and grandparents all in the neighborhood. He said people now "don't have what a lot of people grew up with - the whole family live[d] in town . . . [which was a tight community." Family was "the heart of what this town was before". "Economic diversity" allowed people starting out to get a starter home and left room for other people to secure financial stability in an affordable neighborhood.
John, a customer at Allerdice, illuminated how important community and family are to some of the individuals in the area. John is a 52-year-old white man who has lived in the west side since January 1981. He is an engaging speaker and story teller who enjoys discussing community and global issues alike. He said that years ago most people who worked in the neighborhood could also afford to live there. He painted a picture of the west side thirty years ago when family formed the center of the community. Kids typically grew up with their cousins, aunts, uncles, and grandparents all in the neighborhood. He said people now "don't have what a lot of people grew up with - the whole family live[d] in town . . . [which was a tight community." Family was "the heart of what this town was before". "Economic diversity" allowed people starting out to get a starter home and left room for other people to secure financial stability in an affordable neighborhood.
These types of local responses to transitions on Cherry Street offer insight into the common human tendency to be skeptical of change and uphold values from the past. Cherry Street experiences offer examples of resilience of culture, even in the face of big changes. An understanding of how the Cherry Street community has held onto community values can translate into a wider understanding of community. In the case of Cherry Street, it was the seeking of wealth that caused property owners to invest in the area, thus pushing out working class individuals. Residents, however, continue to value west side culture such as projects like Habitat for Humanity and community-oriented businesses like Allerdice.