The Near Westside is one of the oldest Syracuse neighborhoods. In the early 1900s there were many wealthy families, including the Mayor of Syracuse, living along West Onondaga Street in many very large homes. A beautiful fountain with many statues was located at Onondaga Circle, the junction of West Onondaga Street and Delaware Street. Streets like Delaware Street were lined with large elm trees and large beautiful homes.
Along the borders of the neighborhood were many factories that employed many neighborhood residents such as the Franklin Automobile complex along Geddes Street (current location of the George Fowler High School and City Hardware of Calley's United Appliance) that produced luxury air cooled cars from 1904 to 1934. There were typewriter factories, machinery factories and a large railroad yard along West Fayette Street. Irish families who settled in the neighborhood were attracted to St. Lucy's Catholic Church.
Until the year 1886 the western boundary of Syracuse was Geddes Street. All the land west of there was either in the Village of Geddes or the Town of Geddes. In 1886 the Village and parts of the town joined Syracuse. Major Burnet gave the land now known as Burnet Park to Syracuse in that same year on the condition that the city spend at least $6,000 per year for several years to build roads and to plant trees on the land.
Today, the Near Westside is home to Syracuse's growing Latino community with high numbers of Puerto Rican and Cuban families. St Lucy's Catholic Church continues to serve the area and its growing Latino population, offering services for immigrants and refugees at the West Side Learning Center,[1] as well as hosting events such as Latino Town Hall meetings at the St Lucy's Auditorium.[2] The area is described as one of America's poorest neighborhoods by United Way of Central New York,[3] with high levels of child poverty.[4] Fowler High School, located on the western end of the neighborhood, has experienced a high percentage of students eligible for free and reduced lunch among other topics of concern within the community. The area is also served by many non-profit organizations. Several organizations based in this neighborhood provide services for the Latino community, such as the Spanish Action League and Syracuse Area Latinos United against Disparities (SALUD) Inc.
Sources
- Syracuse.com West Side Learning Center
- Syracuse.com Latino Town Hall Meeting
- United Way of CNY
- Howie Hawkins Poverty in Syracuse
- Fowler High School at SchoolDigger.com
References
- ^ We welcomed 70 new American citizens Thursday - Metro Voices on syracuse.com
- ^ Syracuse.com Latino Town Hall Meeting
- ^ United Way of CNY
- ^ Howie Hawkins Poverty in Syracuse
|
|||||
This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)
