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| St Stephen's good old-fashioned local parish Lenten fish fry in the school basement |
Friday for dinner there’s fish
Fry at St. Stephen’s parish hall
Off West 57th. Stephen’s is a
Catholic church whose founders
Were of German heritage. The
Parish is located between two
Nearby Irish origin parishes—
St. Patrick’s, Bridge, 36ish, &
St. Colman’s, 65th near Lorain.
Colman’s also offered Lenten
Fish fries but I didn’t see a sign
There today. Steve’s is getting to
Recognize me as a regular on
Fridays. Probably not the best
Diabetic choice as far as all the
Carbs go with heavily breaded
Fish, but it’s close and nostalgic—
Reminds me of my years as a
Catholic teen in my old Polish
Parish, Our Lady of Czestochowa,
Often called by those who couldn’t
Handle slavic pronunciations—St. Mary’s.
And also, the “Black Madonna,”
Of which I’ve written before,*
But I’ll not address that now. Stephen’s
Has a full complement of parish
Buildings still in use: main church,
What might once have been a
Convent house (sisters’ residence),
Elementary school, Rectory
(Priests’ quarters), and What
Looked like a parish hall/theater/gym (?).
Not far on the same block is
A recently built development to
House the elderly, in which they
May have had a hand. (Colman’s
Has a similar but smaller set of
Units on their property.) What is
Not present anymore is the thriving
Neighborhood. Thanks to the banks’
Shenanigans in housing in 2008, the
Adjacent streets, where I canvassed
For the 2010 census, are a mix of
Vacant houses, lots where vacant
Houses once stood, here and there
An occupied shabby house, some
Older well-kept homes very like
Ohio City houses closer in where
I live, which by comparison is a
Gentrifying monster of inner-city
Restorations. Most of the economic
Damage not wreaked by the foreclosure
Crisis falls to the Great Recession and
The exodus of employers inside the
City limits. Like the redlining of
Which I wrote some days ago** this
Area looks like forces decided to
Lay it waste entirely but forgot
A few houses here and there.
I don’t think the density stats
Indicate it’s a sustainable community
Any longer. What can its
Residents do but wait for the
Desert weeds to sprout up and the
Tumbleweed to roll across their
Lawns? Developers seeking to
Bring jobs back here want blocks
Of open space. And that’s available
Already in so many other locations.
It’s not just this neighborhood. It’s
Not just Cleveland. For all the
Politicking and economic theorizing
Going on today, from the local bars
To the great universities, nobody’s
Yet come up with anything like a
Solution. They know how to make
A buck in Westlake and in Ohio City
But for the poor of the east or west
Side, and in every Flint and Detroit,
Even what they have shall be taken
From them.
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