The following analysis was written by Tammy Rojas, a leader with Put People First! PA and the Pennsylvania Poor People’s Campaign: A National Call for Moral Revival.
The Price the Poor Pay for Gentrification: Ewell Plaza
[aesop_image img=”https://kairoscenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/9E06E0EE-4192-4EA1-8DDB-2FAE30BD0A36-503-0000003E03B7D85F.jpeg” panorama=”off” alt=”Barney Ewell” align=”center” lightbox=”on” captionsrc=”custom” caption=”‘The more I learn about Barney Ewell, the more I see him as one of us, the poor and dispossessed.'” captionposition=”left” revealfx=”off” overlay_revealfx=”off”]
Plight of the Poor and Dispossessed: The Untold story of the Development of Ewell Plaza, Otherwise Known as 101 North Queen Street (101NQ)
The Ewell Plaza Project under way in downtown Lancaster is an example of an economic development program that doesn’t care much about the plight of the poor, the near-poor, and the dispossessed.
To give you a clear understanding of the plight of the poor and dispossessed around this project, I must begin from when the demolition of the abandoned structure in what was then called Lancaster Square began. The project began in early 2018, which was shortly after I had received my introduction to the Poor People’s Campaign, a National Call for Moral Revival,((The Poor People’s Campaign a National Call for Moral Revival is a national campaign in the United States being organized on the state level in about 40 different states. For more information check out the website at https://www.poorpeoplescampaign.org/.)) and had become Co-Coordinator of the Lancaster Health Rights Committee of Put People First! PA.((Put People First! PA is a volunteer based, grassroots human rights organization led by the poor and dispossessed currently campaigning for healthcare as a human right in Pennsylvania. For more information check out the website at https://www.putpeoplefirstpa.org/.))
I was still learning about how our economic system works at this time. I had a feeling like something wasn’t quite right about this project, despite the many “feel good” stories and comments about the development going around on social media and in the local newspaper. People were saying “It’s bringing desperately needed jobs to our community” while others were crying out “Gentrification” and “Now there are bars on the benches!” The people who were talking about the bars on benches were noticing the “Aggressive architecture” taking place. When local governments start implementing “Aggressive Architecture,” which includes but not limited to putting bars on benches, that’s a sign they are preventing poor and homeless people from hanging out in said area. It doesn’t usually stop at bar handles on benches; it typically progresses to anti panhandling ordinances, making it illegal to feed the homeless, narratives being spread to not give homeless money but instead give to nonprofits, and more aggressive police behavior. It’s happened in many other communities across the United States.
I didn’t know at the time what gentrification meant so I looked up the definition: “the process of renovating and improving a house or district so that it conforms to middle-class taste.” The definition baffled me because I just learned that 140 million people in the United States are poor or low income, equivalent to 43.5% percent of the population either living in poverty or one $400 emergency away from living in poverty. So I couldn’t understand why a country that is supposed to be the richest nation has so many poor people.
[aesop_quote type=”block” background=”#31526f” text=”#ffffff” align=”left” size=”1″ quote=”I couldn’t understand why a country that is supposed to be the richest nation has so many poor people.” parallax=”off” direction=”left” revealfx=”off”]
With all these questions and disparate impressions on my mind, I decided I’d pay a visit to the 101 North Queen Street project. I walked through downtown Lancaster, PA wearing my Poor People’s Campaign T-shirt and holding a “Systemic Poverty is Immoral” sign as I made my way towards the construction site. As I arrived, the construction workers were starting their lunch break and some homeless folks were sitting on the benches. I introduced myself. They saw my T-shirt which read “Poor People’s Campaign: A National Call for Moral Revival” and the sign I was holding, and we all immediately began a conversation. I shared with them that I was a member of Put People First! PA, our fight for healthcare as a human right, and our connection to the greater national movement.
The construction workers shared with me the woes of their job. Many worked through a temporary employment service desperately looking for more stable work. The pay for many of them didn’t exceed $12 an hour and one commented, “it’s a shame we work so hard to help build these luxury condos but will never be able to afford to live in one, shop at their shops or eat at their restaurants.” The homeless who were present were saddened to hear it was luxury condos being built but seemed to brighten up when I began to share about the Poor People’s Campaign: A National Call for Moral Revival.
I learned so much that day and was glad I took the time to go down to the development site of 101NQ.It helped me realize just how deeply needed the Poor People’s Campaign is and I made it a point after that day to regularly walk around downtown with my “Systemic Poverty Is Immoral” sign and wearing my Poor People’s Campaign T-shirt to do my part to spread the word about the Campaign.
[aesop_image img=”https://kairoscenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/553FABF8-57FC-4F4C-84F3-26364A2151E0-17118-000007C8DBE1A9E5.jpeg” panorama=”off” align=”center” lightbox=”on” captionsrc=”custom” caption=”The new Starbucks in what was formerly known as Lancaster Square.” captionposition=”left” revealfx=”off” overlay_revealfx=”off”]
Renaming of Lancaster Square
Fast forward now to the Summer of 2019. The 101NQ project started to get noticed again in connection with a process to rename the area (then known as Lancaster Square). A group of citizens has lobbied to change the name to Ewell Plaza starting around January 2019. The City’s Public Art Advisory Board had voted to recommend changing the name to Ewell Plaza, after Barney Ewell. City Council officially accepted the name change in August 2019. The name change seemed to be broadly supported in the community, even while there remained many expressions of concern about the gentrification of the area.
Henry Norwood “Barney” Ewell((Barney Ewell Wikipedia page link https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barney_Ewell.)) was a person of color who was born into poverty in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, on February 25, 1918. He attended John Piersol McCaskey High School in Lancaster, Pennsylvania and was a tremendously talented and successful athlete. Barney Ewell attended Pennsylvania State University, and after his time in WWII from 1941-1945 he returned to the university to receive his Bachelors of Science degree in 1947. He joined the Summer Olympics in 1948 and he won two silver and one gold medal that year. In 1988 during J.P. McCaskey’s 50th anniversary, Barney Ewell had his name inducted into the J.P MCCaskey Athletic Hall of Fame. The school also honored Ewell by dedicating their stadium in his name. Barney Ewell died April 4,1996 in Lancaster, PA.
The more I learn about Barney Ewell, the more I see him as one of us, the poor and dispossessed. The more I saw him as an example of how much talent our society loses when it doesn’t care for the poor and dispossessed, the more confused I become about the 101NQ development and public art project proposal.
[aesop_image img=”https://kairoscenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/B22AF3C2-929B-4102-9F9A-41BC2335B8B9-17118-000007C9362AA59A.jpeg” panorama=”off” align=”center” lightbox=”on” captionsrc=”custom” caption=”The proposed new Lancaster Public Library and public art.” captionposition=”left” revealfx=”off” overlay_revealfx=”off”]
Fight of the Poor and Dispossessed
The announcement that a Starbucks would open at 101NQ led to a public outcry on social media. People were concerned that the Starbucks would hurt the small business type coffee shops in town, and they should be. This is happening all across the nation due to gentrification. Our economic system is such that small businesses can’t compete with corporations and large retail chains thus leading to small businesses closing and the owners finding themselves among the poor and dispossessed population.
There is more. Ewell Plaza will be the site of the Lancaster Public Library (moved from another location) and of a parking garage. The architectural design includes a huge facade of tubing displaying art (see picture above). The Historical Commission voted against the facade art project that had been designed by R&R Studios and budgeted at $600,000, but the City Administration advised City Council to overlook the negative recommendation of the Historical Commission and approve the art proposal. This news upset the Historical Commission.
The poor and dispossessed continued our own cries of gentrification. “We lost our bus shelters and bus stop,” we cried out: it had been devastating to see the bus shelters and stop that had been located on the 100 block of North Queen Street had been removed, with the bus stop moved up the block and the shelters disappearing altogether. The designers of 101NQ, with the complicity of the relevant authorities, had committed another act of Aggressive Architecture: many people think the removal of the bus shelters is a way of pushing the homeless, who might have used them for sleeping, away.
The dissatisfaction of the poor and dispossessed and of citizens concerned about the art proposal were both present at City Council meetings, a November 4th Committee Meeting at City Hall and a November 12th public Lancaster City Council Meeting, for which a vote on the proposed art project had been scheduled. Many people complained about the art proposal: about its content, and perhaps even more importantly, about the fact that the local art community had not been properly involved. The Lancaster art community realized they had been largely excluded from what could potentially be the most largest and costly public art project in Lancaster’s history, finding themselves under threat of dispossession themselves.
We from the Lancaster HRC of PPF! PA spoke. We spoke out against the loss of the bus stop and the bus shelters. We spoke out against the increased aggressive police presence in Binn’s Park (which is right across Ewell Plaza). We protested against the prospects of the poor and homeless not being welcomed at the new Public Library site. We shared about our experiences when we gather in Binns Park on Saturdays with Lancaster Food Not Bombs to serve the homeless in our community. We have experienced many occasions of people passing by us while we’re serving showing uneasiness by the sight of us, and on one occasion a self proclaimed rich man, not pleased by our sign that read “Systemic Poverty Is Immoral” told us he was the one facing discrimination because he’s rich.
We proposed to Lancaster City Council that the façade should end up with art representing the poor and dispossessed, as a way of counteracting the feeling of exclusion the whole 101NQ project generates among us. We felt, and argued, that such art would be more appropriate than the art those in power had come up with for a place named in honor of Barney Ewell, who had indeed come up from the ranks of the poor and the dispossessed.
[aesop_image img=”https://kairoscenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/IMG_5788.jpeg” panorama=”off” align=”center” lightbox=”on” captionsrc=”custom” caption=”Members of PPF-PA and the PA Poor People’s Campaign protest at the Nov. 12 Lancaster City Council meeting.” captionposition=”left” revealfx=”off” overlay_revealfx=”off”]
Insight of the Poor and Dispossessed
At the November 12th Lancaster City Council meeting we not only spoke out against the art project, we also shared our personal testimonies around poverty which was our “Fight Poverty Not the Poor” action. Despite massive outcry in the community around the proposed art project there was little mention of the legacy of Barney Ewell, whom this project should have been designed to represent. We did connect with some members in the community at that meeting, one of which was a local librarian who wanted to assure us we would be welcomed at the new library; however, it was sad to see the majority of them get up and walk out once the vote was cast by City Council in favor of the proposed art project and that they didn’t choose to stick around to listen to the ending comments made by the Mayor and City Council. Two voted against the art project, but not enough to be the majority, so the project continues forward with some outlined stipulations to include public input.
About nine days after the vote that felt like a betrayal to the people in so many ways and the reassurance which was made that the poor and dispossessed will be welcomed in Ewell Plaza, an announcement was made in the paper that the 100 block of North Queen Street would be blocked off for the day for a by “Invite Only” celebration of the 101NQ grand opening! That in itself couldn’t be any clearer that in fact the poor and dispossessed are not welcomed in Lancaster, PA, let alone downtown at Binns Park and Ewell Plaza.
I watched video footage of the November 26th City Council meeting and a woman named Desiree Cole shared her discontent with the Lancaster City Administration regarding their lack of respect they showed Barney Ewell at the November 12th City Council meeting. She said the meeting felt “unwelcoming and disturbing” and she continued her remarks by highlighting her experiences with systemic racism.
During the same November 26th meeting a regular to Lancaster City Council meetings, Mr. Brown confronted the City Administration about closing off Binns Park for a “by invitation only” event to celebrate the grand opening of 101NQ. Mr. Brown directed his comments and questions towards Mayor Danene Sorace: “it’s to the mayor now I walk up down the street by the homeless, people say they’re not allowed inside of Binns Park, is there a reason why?” Mayor Sorace responded with, “it’s a public park, they’re not allowed to sleep there” and Mr. Brown then said, “OK, I know about that, well and hard, they’re saying that because they had the thing [invitation only event] they said they’re not going, I said that’s a free park for anybody to go in.” Mayor Sorace replied with “that’s correct.” Mr. Brown reiterated “that’s a free park but whoever told you that there is telling you a lie” and the Lancaster City Council President, Mr. Reichenbach, responded with “that is possible.” Mr. Brown poetically pointed out the hypocrisy of the City Administrations idea of what is considered a “free park.”
At this point we know we can’t stop the gentrification that is stemming from the 101NQ development project that already been renamed to Ewell Plaza; the best we can hope for is to push for public art that represents Barney Ewell and the poor and dispossessed, for Barney Ewell was one of us and if we want to truly honor Barney Ewell then Ewell Plaza must be designed and welcoming to the poor and dispossessed in our community. Put back the bus shelters and bus stops, remove the bars on the benches in Binns Park, put a stop to police aggression towards the poor and people of color, place an array of art throughout the plaza and inside and outside the public library that clearly shows the poor and dispossessed are welcomed at the 101NQ/Ewell Plaza development property and NO MORE shutting down public areas for by “Invite Only” parties for the “economically comfortable.” It’s time we come together as a community and fight poverty, not the poor! When we lift from the bottom up, we all rise! Let’s rise TOGETHER!
[aesop_quote type=”block” background=”#31526f” text=”#ffffff” align=”left” size=”1″ quote=”It’s time we come together as a community and fight poverty, not the poor! When we lift from the bottom up, we all rise! Let’s rise TOGETHER!” parallax=”off” direction=”left” revealfx=”off”]