Blog NKCDC One year ago, Kensington came together and made positive change

One year ago, Kensington came together and made positive change

Wed. March 23, 2022

A year ago, Kensington residents notched an important victory for collective action and positive change in Kensington.

On March 19, 2021, after no consultation with Kensington residents, SEPTA announced an “indefinite” closure of the Somerset El station due to unsafe working conditions and deterioration of the station from human waste and needles.

That El stop is a critical source of transportation for Kensington and Port Richmond. Residents, civic groups, faith communities, nonprofits, and city councilmembers organized in solidarity with SEPTA workers to demand “Safety and Solutions.” They asked for solutions that addressed the station’s underlying challenges so that the station could remain open and its problems would not simply be pushed into the surrounding neighborhoods or other SEPTA stations.

On March 23, over 200 people marched from the closed Somerset Station to Allegheny Station to call attention to the issues of homelessness, substance use disorder, and poverty that caused the station to close. The march was followed by Al Día News, Generocity, Metro Philadelphia, the Philadelphia Inquirer, Plan Philly, and The Star, as well as CBS 3, NBC 10, NYW News Radio, and Univision 65.

Within two weeks the station was open again as repairs continued.

“This was a significant win for the community,” said NKCDC Executive Director Dr. Bill McKinney. “Residents, civic groups, and nonprofits stood up together and won this battle. It went from ‘indefinite’ closure, to four or five weeks, to two weeks. The biggest variable was the amount of noise people made.”