This isn't the Art Museum....regardless of what your Realtor says

I know there has been a lot of grumbling about the wet and relatively cool weather we've been having the past few weeks. I guess April showers also happen in mid-June. In an odd way, I've found it somewhat refreshing. Summer in Philly can be hot, humid and stifling. I can already see when we're in the middle of a heatwave people will be wondering 'where is the rain?' What I love most about these cooler days is how enjoyable it is to just walk around my neighborhood. I have a great view of the Center City skyline so can you blame me?

But, in what neighborhood do I actually live? I say this in a rhetorical way because I know I live in the Spring Garden section of the city. Unfortunately, I'm starting to see my neighborhood lose its unique identity.

As the Philadelphia real estate market grows, and people are looking to move into the most desirable neighborhoods, the boundaries of neighborhoods seem to grow. I live on the 1700 block of Wallace Street which according to Google Maps places me over a mile from the Philadelphia Museum of Art, but when I look at condo listings for my block, I am somehow in the Art Museum neighborhood. I know neighborhood lines can be a tad blurry but one mile....really!?

(1700 Block of Wallace Street)

In part, this is a shorthand way of giving people a sense of where they're are. I doubt most people know where Spring Garden is but at this rate Broad & Wallace Streets will become part of the Art Museum as well. In my opinion, I would love to see this shorthand thrown out the window. I believe this type of shorthand does nothing more than to devalue the history of a neighborhood and conceal what makes each neighborhood unique.

Spring Garden is currently a neighborhood in the midst of a change. I don't know the longer history of the neighborhood but in more recent decades Spring Garden has been the home to a vibrant African-American and Puerto Rican community. The Puerto Rican community was so large that the neighborhood was nicknamed Little San Juan. The community isn't as large as it once was but it's still a presence. Throughout the summer you can hear the smashing of dominoes while Tito Puente plays in the background and older men sip their Malta. Also, weekly events are held at the Roberto Clemente Community Center, and adjoining ball-field at 18th and Wallace.

(Clemente Community Center and Field)

**Fun fact - the basketball court is where the opening theme song to Fresh Prince of Bel-Air was filmed...take that West Philly**

The 1800 block of Wallace has become the embodiment of how the neighborhood is changing. On the south side of the street, is the ball-field and community center. In the afternoons and evenings, there are pick-up basketball games, high-school football practice, people just hanging-out and even a make-shift dog run. On the north side is the crown-jewel of our community--The Spring Gardens. It's one square block of nature which can be a challenge to find in the city.

(The Spring Gardens)

These two square blocks exhibit the diversity of the neighborhood. Age and race do not keep the members of the community from using the spaces.

In no way am I trying to say my neighborhood is utopian. Spring Garden is in the midst of a major revitalization project. While millions of dollars have been spent to rehab the neighborhood, the downside is seeing the ways in which many of my neighbors live. Our local CDC offers GED and ESL courses as well as lessons in basic computer skills. We have great local restaurants which are across the street from Food Stamp and WIC approved corner stores. Spring Garden truly is a neighborhood where diversity exists.

(Spring Garden CDC, 17th & Wallace sts.)

(St. Stephens Green, 17th and Green sts.)

(Corner Store, 17th and Mt. Vernon sts.)

Living in Spring Garden means a lot to me and it provides me with a sense of place. I am proud of this neighborhood; the good and the not so good. Attaching the neighborhood label of Art Museum strips the community of pride, history and identity. Philadelphia is seen as a city of neighborhoods and this is mine. I say it loud and proud, "I live in Spring Garden...not the Art Museum."