Analysis Of The Bartram Village As A Community

“The fact that people live close to one another does not necessarily mean they have much to do with each other. There may be little interaction between neighbors” (Lee & Newby, 1983); throughout the community mapping exercise and interviews in the Bartram neighborhood it was noted that many individuals both those who reside and work in the area do not recognize the Bartram Neighborhood as a community. Marsha, an employee at Bartram Village, stated that “Bartram is not seen as community by the people who live in it” (personal communication, March 2014). She further explained that the residents identified with the wider area of Kingsessing or Southwest Philadelphia. Mrs. Clara, a resident of the neighborhood, also explained how she and other members viewed the neighborhood. She stated that “If you mind your business and keep to yourself, you will be fine” (personal communication, February 2014). A Police Officer from the 12th District stated “Bartram is not a community. The community is Bartram Village the Housing Project; the rest is just Southwest Philly” (personal communication, March 2014). All individuals concluded that Bartram is “like an island”, community members do not interact, and there is no Bartram identity as a whole (personal communication February 2014. Some community members do not see this as a problem, “it is just the way that it has always been” (personal communication, February 2014). They mention lack of resources, crime/safety, lack of investments, and lack of educational resources as the neighborhood’s main problem. However, without this neighborhood coming together, these other problems will remain unaddressed. "A sense of community is the glue that can hold together a neighborhood (Chavis & Wandersman, 19...

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... and social networks flourish, individuals, firms, neighborhoods prosper economically. Social capital can help to mitigate insidious effects of socioeconomic disadvantage (Putnam, 2000).
Public Spaces in high social capital area are cleaner, people are friendlier and the streets are safer. Traditional neighborhood “risk factors” such as high poverty and residential mobility are not as significant. Places have higher crime rates in large part because people don’t participate in community organizations, don’t supervise younger people, and aren’t linked through networks of friends (Putnam, 2000).
There is an agreement in the literature that “when people share a strong sense of community they are empowered and motivated to change the problems they face and are better able to mediate the negative effects over things which they have no control” (Chavis & Wandersman, 1990).