The recent actions taken by the city of Philadelphia have put Cantina la Martina in a difficult position. The restaurant, located in the Kensington section, has seen a 60% drop in sales since early May due to an encampment being cleaned up in the neighborhood. As a result, homeless individuals and drug users have started to gather near the restaurant, causing concerns for the safety of the business.
Mariangeli Alicea and Chef Dionicio Jiménez, co-owners of the restaurant, expressed their frustrations about the situation. They believe that simply relocating people from one area to another is not enough to address the underlying issues. Instead, they feel that increasing police presence in the neighborhood is not enough either. They emphasized that long-term solutions are necessary to tackle the complex problems at hand.
The Philadelphia Police Department has deployed a new class of officers to Kensington to address these challenges. However, Alicea and Jiménez still feel that there needs to be more communication from Mayor Cherelle Parker’s office about long-term plans for addressing homelessness and substance abuse in the community. They believe that policing alone will not solve these problems and that comprehensive solutions are needed.
Alicea and Jiménez also operate a food truck at Cherry Street Pier to supplement their income. While they appreciate some progress made by recent developments, they still face additional setbacks due to these recent changes. They hope for more effective communication from city officials about their plans for addressing homelessness and substance abuse in order to find lasting solutions for themselves and their community.
Overall, Cantina la Martina owners face significant challenges after recent city actions aimed at cleaning up homeless encampments in Kensington section of Philadelphia. While there have been efforts by law enforcement agencies such as Philadelphia Police Department, owners Mariangeli Alicea and Chef Dionicio Jiménez feel that more needs to be done beyond just relocating people from one spot to another or increasing police presence in order to address root causes of homelessness and substance abuse in community effectively.
