Collingdale needs to change course

We constantly flirt with the prospect of our town turning into a dump. As more rental homes pop up, average income of the population inches downward. Neighborhoods begin to appear worn and tired as tenants understandably have the mentality that the home is just a mere rental. People of younger generations with a little more money don't rent, they buy. But they buy a home they refer to as a 'starter home.' Collingdale, with its surrounding struggling schools and inreasingly Philly like atmosphere is just a stepping stone for people, not a true home. However if we're not careful, as property values fall, Collingdale won't even be that. We can stop it, and in the process make Collingdale home, not just a way station.
-John Haenn, 27

too late they started moving in

It's not about race though, the problem and the solution have to be better than that.

Hey "Ghost": by "they started moving in" do you mean the WHITE punk kids who go around vandalizing people's property? Is that who you mean by "they"???

Let's all get it right it is about people every color just not caring. We let our kids rule us because if we try to correct them in any manner we have CYS on our ass. What ever happened to a good old ass beating to straiten our kids out. We all have to see it is not a color issue it is a people issue. I don't care what you look like just don't be a not my kid parent and don't let your kids destroy anyone and everyone's property but your's. What about getting to know your neighbor's and looking out for each other. This crap of seeing a person destroy someones property and keeping closed mouth is bull shit. Do you see you are letting the rotten kids win and sending a message that I can do anything and everyone will turn a blind eye because they don't want to get involved. It is them people who need to wake up and help us take back our street's. I as one person make it a point to see what is going on to sit out front of my house and say hi to everyone who comes by and hell I have even taken a package to help my neighbors while they are not home. If everyone would just care we can turn collingdale into a better place the place it use to be where our kids can go out front and play and we don't have to worry and yes maybe make a mistake or two but own up to it and make it right.

Yes! Thank you. I do agree!!! You said it better than I did.

It really couldn't have been said better. Nicely done.

It's Collor blacks are distroying Collingdale! Property value is down, whites have to move out, crime is up. wake up and call a spade a spade

John Morris you have to be kidding!!!! Who is destroying property? WHITE KIDS!!! You have to be joking, right? Out of six people who recently DESTROYED an innocent family's property and 200 cemetery headstones and grafittied all over town, ALL SIX of them are WHITE!!!!!!!!!!

Justice Prevails wrote:

John Morris you have to be kidding!!!! Who is destroying property? WHITE KIDS!!! You have to be joking, right? Out of six people who recently DESTROYED an innocent family's property and 200 cemetery headstones and grafittied all over town, ALL SIX of them are WHITE!!!!!!!!!!

All six of those who got CAUGHT are white.

i guess they are just dumb enough to get caught

Or innocent enough not to have as reason to run.

Justice prevails wrote:

Hey "Ghost": by "they started moving in" do you mean the WHITE punk kids who go around vandalizing people's property? Is that who you mean by "they"???

Yeah and the balckies too

is Collingdale where the old pool hall on MacDade Blvd. was?

Hi, I was born and raised in Collingdale and there definitely has been change. My mother grew up in this town and could tell you likewise. I agree with pissed. Children need to be kept in line and their lazy ass parents either need to ship up or use some kind of pregnancy contraceptive.
My grandfather, who is now deceased was very active in the community and cared alot about where he resided. Nobody cares anymore! I no longer live there. In fact, I'm out of the country, but I tell you what; the collingdale trash needs to be cleaned up. You know who I'm talking about (the drunks etc). Fines should be posted and the borough has to pitch in as well. Communities close by keep up and have to follow ordinances. Collingdale should as well! This town could have hope!

all of u putting race into this need to shut ur racist mouths. it aint about coller, its about parents who dont hive rats ass what there children are doing, as long as it dont affect them. im 16 yr old so u cant say i dont no what im talking about. parents need to keep an eye on kds, im not saying to put video camares up, and be strict , but mo what ur kids are doin. too many try to be hard, and gangsta by selling drugs and jumping somebody when u gaot a whole crew with you. i no kids who say " i sell crack, coke, weed" and think that there hard because there parent dont no. Parents, what im saying is keep tabs on ur kids cause if u aint theres a alot of fucked up stuff they could be doin witout u noing it. if u have too, peek thru there droors and in old boxes and stuff, thats where i keep mines. too many kids tellin me that they got guns and shit and im sorry but f one of your kds pulls a gun on me there gonna be the ones dead, not me half of theese kids dont even no where the safetey is, so if u really care, stop thinkin its wrong and go through there shit. And if they do get an attitude always remember that, A SHOT TO THE STOMACE LEAVES NO MARKS!!!!!!! ino my pop hitsme when he has to , and ur kids will thank u when all of there freinds are locked up and theysafe cause u beat they ass and wouldnt let them out

Butch,

Your spelling is awful and sometimes your word choice is even worse, but none of that matters. Because your message is right on point.

Sadly some of these kids only have one active parent in their life and when there are two parents, they are still at work when their children get home from school. "Back in the day," our Grandparents lived in an economy that was a little bit different. A mom could actually stay home with her family if she wanted to. Today that is not an option.

So when there is no stay at home parent and sometimes only one parent to begin with, these kids suffer froma lack of supervision. The only way to make up for that is with extracurricular and some kind of Community center for kids to hang out at, do their homework and play video games or sports etc etc until their parents get home.

The fact is that parents have autonomous legal control over their kids until they are 18. They should sign a form of some kid that ensures that: from the time they are released from school, until the time they come home from work; their kids are not allowed to leave the community center...

Some parents will do it, some won't but at least this will keep the good kids and good families that are left away from the bad kids whose parents have no interest their families. If we cannot fix the problem in these communities then we should stop the spread of the various affects that this problem has on the community. It is good, Butch, that you are observant enough to see that color really has nothing to do with this issue. It is actually a socio economic matter. What most uneducated white folks never have the chance to learn is that racial segregation has actually been replaced by socio-economic segregation. It just so happens that many blacks as well as some of us whites remain deprived of good community and educational services in our youth... But thats for another blog topic.

On the issue of at hand in this forum, we have to accepot that we cannot make other parents care about their kids. We cannot stop the problem of disintersted parents, but we can contain it! We
can do whatever it takes to offer an alternative environment for kids who have parents that do still care about where their kids are when they are working.

These neighborhoods in this particular school district and also communities much like those in every part of this state and this country really need to examine trying something like this. If they do not we run the risk raising an entire generation of Americans who had almost no supervision. We run the risk of forcing good kids, from good families to live and play in an environment that is negatively affected by the bad apples of a bunch!

The trick to keeping kids out of trouble is to keep them out of a troubled environment and keep them busy with other productive activities.

Kids are kicking down graves stones all over the damn world. Do you think only white kids kick over gravestones. Let me guess they were wearing trench coats and combat boots too. This racism is a cultural thing and people need to get their heads strait. As far as home go I own mine and I live in a pretty crappy area on macdade near darby let me tell you " I made the biggest mistake of my life moving into this area ". Ignorance is the biggest problem in this area. Try being a little nicer to each other and drop the racism crap be the bigger person.

The answer is community. Put race aside, we all live here. We all have unique problems, some are caused by ourselves, others not. We'll never have perfection, but we don't have to become south philly either.

It's a shame that people are still putting the
blame on blacks, whites, etc. Let's be real it is
all of us. My problem with Collingdale is that they just don't care. When black families move into neighborhoods we did not come here to bring it down or tear it up. We spend the same money that everyone else does, we work just as hard, and we want our families to get the same beneftis. If you want to make a change in your neighborhood go to the counsel meetings. The elected officals that WE put in office are not doing their jobs! Let's make them enforce curfews this summer, make them repair are streets and sidewalks, keep our parks maintained, etc. Did you notice your taxes always go up and the services in your borough goes down. To the homeowers who rent their properties to people who could care less. That is still your property if the property value of our homes go down, your property is not to valuable either. If you don't want to be here that's okay but keep your property maintained. We can do this people. Some of us will have to stay where we are..look out for your neighborhood. I know my borough hates me but that's okay because I see what's going on in my neighborhood, and I intend on making a difference. If I don't then I am just as bad as the abusers. Remember if you are a homeowner, people that rent don't care!