Philadelphia police plan to increase presence in Kensington – NBC10 Philadelphia

Starting next week, more Philadelphia police officers will patrol Kensington, part of the second phase of the city’s plan to clean up and improve the neighborhood.

During the plan’s enforcement phase, Philadelphia police will target drug dealers, conduct warrant raids, and crack down on prostitution and other crimes that affect quality of life.

Philadelphia Police Chief Kevin Bethel told NBC10 he was concerned about a new deadly fentanyl mixture that had already killed users in Kensington.

“We will be deploying a significant number of officers to Kensington to combat drug trafficking, drug dealing and the sale of poisons on the street,” said Commissioner Bethel.

Since her first day in office, Mayor Cherelle Parker has made Kensington a focus of her administration, and City Council members also formed a task force to improve the neighborhood.

Earlier this year, the City Council enacted an 11 p.m. curfew for Kensington businesses that don’t have 24-hour permits. Mayor Parker’s budget proposal — approved by the City Council on Thursday, June 6 — also includes $100 million for triage facilities where drug users taken off the streets can be treated. However, as NBC10’s news partner KYW Newsradio reported, Parker also called for an end to the use of city funds for needle exchange programs.

The Kensington Planning Process – a collaboration of residents, organizations and civic groups – is also working on a plan to use millions in opioid settlement funds to improve the community.

Last month, as part of the cleanup plans, city staff and police cleared an encampment of about 75 people living in tents along the sidewalk of Kensington Avenue.

As police and officials prepare for the next phase of the plan, some community organizers say the city needs to consider their voices and input to make a real difference in Kensington.

“You can’t really get away with police brutality,” Rosalind Pichardo, project manager at Sunshine House, a one-stop shop for overdose and gun violence prevention, told NBC10. “You have to make sure people are getting treatment and the resources they need are available.”

Pichardo said she has seen a sharp increase in the number of overdoses since the raid on the Kensington warehouse last month.

“Yesterday we responded to four overdoses,” she said.

Pichardo believes medical professionals need to be included in the city’s plan to treat and help people with substance abuse problems. She also questioned the approval of the $100 million for the triage facilities.

“What are we supposed to do for three years while construction is underway here? What services will be provided?” she asked. “And how can we be supported?”

Pichardo believes the missing piece of the puzzle in the city’s plan is the voice of organizations committed to service delivery in Kensington.

“They didn’t ask us as harm reduction experts what works and what doesn’t work,” she said. “What is dangerous. What is not dangerous.”

The city is expected to announce further details on the enforcement phase of the Kensington plan on Monday, June 10.

The third phase of the city’s plan for Kensington calls for police officers to secure the neighborhood using barricades or bike racks on the sidewalks and keep criminal behavior out of the neighborhood until the areas are restored.

The fourth and fifth phases involve returning the community to its owners and reducing police presence if and when improvements are made.