When I started working as a reporter for the Star and Home News, I saw it as dream job for a fresh college grad: Plenty of writing experience, and plenty of time in some of Philly's best neighborhoods.
Today, after more than two years on the job, I still feel that way. But I also quickly realized that I had gotten myself into a whole lot more than just an entry-level journalism job.
The people living in our neighborhoods, from Fishtown to Fairmount and Manayunk to Kensington, are fiercely loyal when it comes to their stomping grounds.
Where outsiders see one rowhome-lined street fade to the next, our residents see distinct, iconic neighborhoods rich with individual histories, traditions and heroes.
And those differences are more than just in the mind, too.
It seems at times that, with everything we cover ó from zoning proposals and crimes to political races and village gatherings ó each community has its own distinct reaction.
As far as those litmus test-type issues go, it's hard to think of any issue that has rankled people and stoked civic activism more than the ongoing saga of SugarHouse Casino, proposed for the Fishtown-Northern Liberties border along the Delaware River.
It's an issue that has pitted politicians against politicians, neighbors against neighbors, unions against unions, and challenged the foundations of longstanding civic groups while underscoring the diverse population of blue-collar and white-collar residents who inhabit our neighborhoods.
That was clear this week as a group opposed to neighborhood slots ó the Philadelphia Neighborhood Alliance ó erected a billboard along Frankford Avenue in Fishtown with a direct message: "Get Jobs Fast. Move Slots Now."
Meanwhile, the SugarHouse Casino folks were planning their second annual "Picnic in the Park," a unity celebration for slots advocates who are treated to free food and music at Penn Treaty park (more than two years after receiving a gaming license from the state, SugarHouse has yet to break ground).
That event was rained out, but last year saw a hearty crowd in attendance. It also ended ugly, with some sour words and bloody noses. Not exactly a, well, picnic in the park.
Still, it's that kind of intense, in-your-face passion that has driven people to take a strong stance on this issue, whether it's expressed through long days and nights of negotiating with the casino to get the best deal for the neighborhood, or by championing die-hard efforts to repel the well-funded gaming industry.
And while Fishtown and Northern Liberties are the neighborhoods most immediately impacted by the casino, we've had plenty of passionate responses from places as far off as the Art Museum area and Bridesburg.
It's also a passion that seems to consume most anything that happens in our neighborhoods ó including turning to our papers each week for the latest neighborhood news, something that has been a habit among many readers for more than three decades.
That passion, expressed in countless letters, e-mails, phone calls and run-ins on the street, taught me that these papers really belong not to any company or editor, but to the neighborhoods and people that they serve.
For years, the Star and Home News have been the epitome of small-town community newspapers, existing only on the stoops and store counters where you could find them.
Now, by God, we've been dragged kicking and screaming into the 21st century, and we invite you, oh wide digital audience, to contribute to the tradition and community passion that have driven our papers since a ragtag group of writers and publishers got together in a Fishtown kitchen more than 30 years ago and decided that these were neighborhoods that deserved their own newspapers.
If there's one thing that has changed in those decades, it's that these areas deserve good reporting more than ever.
Whether you're a longtime reader keeping tabs on the neighborhood news while at work, or an outsider who wants to learn more about the happenings in some of Philadelphia's most dynamic neighborhoods, we hope to provide a place where the spirit of our neighborhoods shines through.
It's a big task, and we no doubt stand on the shoulders of heroes who truly were dedicated to their communities. But once you've experienced the passion that makes these Philly neighborhoods what they are, it's hard not to pay that back with a little passion of your own.
Brian Rademaekers
Managing Editor, Star and Home News
Today, after more than two years on the job, I still feel that way. But I also quickly realized that I had gotten myself into a whole lot more than just an entry-level journalism job.
The people living in our neighborhoods, from Fishtown to Fairmount and Manayunk to Kensington, are fiercely loyal when it comes to their stomping grounds.
Where outsiders see one rowhome-lined street fade to the next, our residents see distinct, iconic neighborhoods rich with individual histories, traditions and heroes.
And those differences are more than just in the mind, too.
It seems at times that, with everything we cover ó from zoning proposals and crimes to political races and village gatherings ó each community has its own distinct reaction.
As far as those litmus test-type issues go, it's hard to think of any issue that has rankled people and stoked civic activism more than the ongoing saga of SugarHouse Casino, proposed for the Fishtown-Northern Liberties border along the Delaware River.
It's an issue that has pitted politicians against politicians, neighbors against neighbors, unions against unions, and challenged the foundations of longstanding civic groups while underscoring the diverse population of blue-collar and white-collar residents who inhabit our neighborhoods.
That was clear this week as a group opposed to neighborhood slots ó the Philadelphia Neighborhood Alliance ó erected a billboard along Frankford Avenue in Fishtown with a direct message: "Get Jobs Fast. Move Slots Now."
Meanwhile, the SugarHouse Casino folks were planning their second annual "Picnic in the Park," a unity celebration for slots advocates who are treated to free food and music at Penn Treaty park (more than two years after receiving a gaming license from the state, SugarHouse has yet to break ground).
That event was rained out, but last year saw a hearty crowd in attendance. It also ended ugly, with some sour words and bloody noses. Not exactly a, well, picnic in the park.
Still, it's that kind of intense, in-your-face passion that has driven people to take a strong stance on this issue, whether it's expressed through long days and nights of negotiating with the casino to get the best deal for the neighborhood, or by championing die-hard efforts to repel the well-funded gaming industry.
And while Fishtown and Northern Liberties are the neighborhoods most immediately impacted by the casino, we've had plenty of passionate responses from places as far off as the Art Museum area and Bridesburg.
It's also a passion that seems to consume most anything that happens in our neighborhoods ó including turning to our papers each week for the latest neighborhood news, something that has been a habit among many readers for more than three decades.
That passion, expressed in countless letters, e-mails, phone calls and run-ins on the street, taught me that these papers really belong not to any company or editor, but to the neighborhoods and people that they serve.
For years, the Star and Home News have been the epitome of small-town community newspapers, existing only on the stoops and store counters where you could find them.
Now, by God, we've been dragged kicking and screaming into the 21st century, and we invite you, oh wide digital audience, to contribute to the tradition and community passion that have driven our papers since a ragtag group of writers and publishers got together in a Fishtown kitchen more than 30 years ago and decided that these were neighborhoods that deserved their own newspapers.
If there's one thing that has changed in those decades, it's that these areas deserve good reporting more than ever.
Whether you're a longtime reader keeping tabs on the neighborhood news while at work, or an outsider who wants to learn more about the happenings in some of Philadelphia's most dynamic neighborhoods, we hope to provide a place where the spirit of our neighborhoods shines through.
It's a big task, and we no doubt stand on the shoulders of heroes who truly were dedicated to their communities. But once you've experienced the passion that makes these Philly neighborhoods what they are, it's hard not to pay that back with a little passion of your own.
Brian Rademaekers
Managing Editor, Star and Home News
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