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Manayunk Information
Manayunk is a neighborhood in the northwestern section of the United States
city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Located on the banks of the Schuylkill
River, it contains the first canal begun in the United States (although not the
first completed due to budget problems). The name comes from the language of the
Lenape Indians (who were later renamed the Delaware Indians by Europeans).
Manayunk is their name for the Schuylkill River, which literally translates "our
place for drinking". Manayunk's zip code is 19127.
Although historically a working class community, in recent years the
neighborhood has been gentrified substantially. Today's residents are mostly
middle to upper middle class, with a fair share of yuppies. Housing in Manayunk
is fairly expensive. In 2005, the median home sale price was $246,750. This was
an increase by 34% over the median price in 2004.
Map of Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania highlighting Manayunk Borough prior
to the Act of Consolidation, 1854Manayunk was originally a community in
Roxborough Township, Philadelphia County situated near the Schuylkill, south of
the Wissahickon. The town started out as Flat Rock in 1810, the name coming from
a peculiar flat rock lying on the lower side of the bridge, which was
subsequently called Flat Rock Bridge. The Bridge was part of the Flat Rock
Turnpike connecting Roxborough Township with Merion Township.
The settlement had its origin from the construction of the dam, canal and locks
there by the Schuylkill Navigation Company. These works were finished about the
end of the year 1818, and, the water-power being extensive, the Navigation
Company sought for lessees of the power for use in mills and factories. Capt.
John Towers was the second person who bought a water right and erected an
oil-mill. After that purchases of water-power and the erection of mills and
factories increased greatly, and the place became important as a manufacturing
village. Manayunk at the time was populated by a mix of German, Irish and Polish
immigrants as well as a sizable African American population.
After a time the inhabitants became dissatisfied with the name Flat Rock, and
held meetings on the subject. On one such an occasion, in 1824, it was resolved
to adopt for the place one of the names of the River Schuylkill, and from that
time the village was known as Manayunk, from the Lenape moneyung or
manaiung("where we go to drink"). The borough of Manayunk was incorporated June
11, 1840.
The borough would only last for 14 years though. In 1854 Manayunk as well as the
rest of the boroughs, townships, and districts making up Philadelphia County
were disbanded and merged into the City of Philadelphia, through the Act of
Consolidation, 1854. Even though it was no longer a separate entity the
community maintained its small-town charm and became one of the neighborhoods of
the city, continuing to be one of the manufacturing centers of the city for the
next 100 years.
In the 1980s, Manayunk suffered from the decline of manufacturing jobs and had
many empty storefronts along Main Street, its primary commercial street. In the
1990s, Manayunk's rebirth could be attributed to the opening of several upscale
restaurants on Main Street. These restaurants were backed by developers who
promoted Manayunk as a place to visit. Manayunk retained its small-town charm
with its small 2- and 3-story rowhomes, cobblestone paving, and hilly streets.
Many people who visited decided to stay and renovate the small rowhomes
characteristic of the area. Demand for housing in the area has lead to the
converting of the former mills into loft apartments, and upscale shops started
replacing the empty storefronts and mom-and-pop stores. In 2004, a new
condominium tower was built on part of Venice Island, and in 2005 there are
plans to build more condominium towers to replace the closed soap and paper
factories.
Main street continues on as Umbria street when heading West. Originally Umbria
Street was Washington Street but the name was changed concurrent with a large
influx of Italian immigrants at the turn of the century. Consolo's bakery was a
well-known Italian bakery located on Hermitage Street. This family business
closed in the 1970s. Originally, Domenico Consolo started his business on Main
Street but moved to the site on Hermitage Street in 1924, which had previously
been a German bakery. A distinctive product was "regonade" from the word
oregano. It is a bread product, in the shape of a ring, where the cross section
has a jelly-roll-like structure--the roll bread separating layers of paprika,
oregano, and oil.
Near the end of the American Civil War, a Canonicus-class monitor was launched
as USS Manayunk. However, when she was commissioned four years later, the ship
was renamed to USS Ajax by the prominent Philadelphian Secretary of the Navy
Adolph E. Borie.
The "Manayunk Wall" is an inclined street, comprising all of Levering Avenue
and a few blocks of Lyceum Avenue, that is a part of the Philadelphia
International Championship, an annual one day bicycle race. The "wall" begins at
Main Street in Manayunk and most years ends at Pechin Street in Roxborough.
The SEPTA R6 Norristown ex-Reading Railroad rail line runs through Manayunk,
partly along an elevated structure above Cresson Street. The Manayunk train
station is located on this elevated section. The other end of the R6 line used
to have a stop in Manayunk before the line was cut back to its current terminus
in Cynwyd. This line used the landmark Manayunk bridge, a concrete railroad
viaduct built by the Pennsylvania Railroad which spans the Schuylkill River.
This Manayunk bridge is an iconic symbol of Manayunk.
Some Things to Consider When Looking for a Place...
When searching for a new apartment make sure to take your time to think
through what are the most important things to you in an apartment and plan your
search based on those priorities. Here are some things to consider when planning
your move:
1. Consider the areas where you would like to live
* What is the crime rate?
* If you have children - what rating does the local school system have?
* Is there area convenient shopping, health and recreation services in the area?
2. Make a list of your housing priorities
* Do you have pets?
* Do you need parking?
* Do you need to be on the ground floor?
* What amenities are important to you - swimming pool, fitness room, in unit
laundry?
3. Evaluate the building
* What is the condition of the unit and building?
* Are the grounds maintained?
* Are windows, steps, and railings in good condition?
* View the property at night. Is it safe and well lit?
4. The security of the property
* Are there security service? When is the guard on duty?
* Does the building have controlled access?
* Does each unit have secure door and window locks?
5. Talk to the neighbors
* Ask other residents whether they are satisfied with the building.
6. Amenities
* Who is allowed to use the amenities?
* When are they open?
* Are the fees charged to use those facilities included in rent?
7. Ask about Utilities
* Does the owner or tenant pay the utility bills?
* Are any utilities included with monthly rent?
* Do units have separate thermostats to control heat and air conditioning?
8. Review the lease
* How much notice must you give before moving out?
* Can the rent be increased? If so, by how much and how often?
* Are pets allowed?
* What is the security deposit and cleaning costs upon move out?
* What is the responsibility of tenants for damage to property?
* Is there a penalty for breaking a lease?
9. Information too bring to a lease signing
* Credit Report
* Pay stubs/tax returns
* Reference
* Application
More Apartment Information
An apartment (or flat in Britain and most other Commonwealth countries) is a
self-contained housing unit that occupies only part of a building. Apartments
may be owned (by an owner-occupier) or rented (by tenants).
Some apartment-dwellers own their apartments, either as co-ops, in which the
residents own shares of a corporation that owns the building or development; or
in condominiums, whose residents own their apartments and share ownership of the
public spaces. Most apartments are in buildings designed for the purpose, but
large older houses are sometimes divided into apartments. The word apartment
connotes a residential unit or section in a building. Apartment building owners,
lessors, or managers often use the more general word units to refer to
apartments. Units can be used to refer to rental business suites as well as
residential apartments. When there is no tenant occupying an apartment, the
lessor is said to have a vacancy. For apartment lessors, each vacancy represents
a loss of income from rent-paying tenants for the time the apartment is vacant
(i.e., unoccupied). Lessors' objectives are often to minimize the vacancy rate
for their units. The owner of the apartment typically transfers possession to
the occupant by giving him/her the key to the apartment entrance door and any
other keys need to live there, such as a common key to the building or any other
common areas, and an individual unit mailbox key. When the occupant move out,
these keys should typically be returned to the owner.
Apartments can be classified into several types. Studio, efficiency, bed-sit, or
bachelor apartments tend to be the smallest apartments with the cheapest rents
in a given area. These kinds of apartment usually consist mainly of a large room
which is the living, dining, and bedroom combined. There are usually kitchen
facilities as part of this central room, but the bathroom is its own smaller
separate room. Moving up from the efficiencies are one-bedroom apartments where
one bedroom is a separate room from the rest of the apartment. Then there are
two-bedroom, three-bedroom, etc. apartments. Small apartments often have only
one entrance/exit. Large apartments often have two entrances/exits, perhaps a
door in the front and another in the back. Depending on the building design, the
entrance/exit doors may be directly to the outside or to a common area inside,
such as a hallway. Depending on location, apartments may be available for rent
furnished with furniture or unfurnished into which a tenant usually moves in
with his/her own furniture. Permanent carpeting is often included in an
apartment.
Laundry facilities are usually kept in a separate area accessible to all the
tenants in the building. Depending on when the building was built and the design
of the building, utilities such as water, heating, and electric may be common
for all the apartments in the building or separate for each apartment and billed
separately to each tenant (however, many areas in the US have ruled it illegal
to split a water bill among all the tenants, especially if a pool is on the
premises). Outlets for connection to telephones are typically included in
apartments. Telephone service is optional and is practically always billed
separately from the rent payments. Cable television and similar amenities are
extra also. Parking space, air conditioner, and extra storage space may or may
not be included with an apartment. Rental leases often limit the maximum number
of people who can reside in each apartment. On or around the ground floor of the
apartment building, a series of mailboxes are typically kept in a location
accessible to the public and, thus, to the letter-carrier too. Every unit
typically gets its own mailbox with individual keys to it. Some very large
apartment buildings with a full-time staff may take mail from the mailman and
provide mail-sorting service. Near the mailboxes or some other location
accessible by outsiders, there may be a buzzer (equivalent to a doorbell) for
each individual unit. In smaller apartment buildings such as two- or
three-flats, or even four-flats, garbage is often disposed of in trash
containers similar to those used at houses. In larger buildings, garbage is
often collected in a common trash bin or dumpster. For cleanliness or minimizing
noise, many lessors will place restrictions on tenants regarding keeping pets in
an apartment.
In some parts of the world, the word apartment is used generally to refer to a
new purpose-built self-contained residential unit in a building, whereas the
word flat means a converted self-contained unit in an older building. An
industrial, warehouse, or commercial space converted to an apartment is commonly
called a loft.
When part of a house is converted for the ostensible use of a landlord's family
member, the unit may be known as an in-law apartment or granny flat, though
these (sometimes illegally) created units are often occupied by ordinary renters
rather than family members. In Canada these suites are commonly located in the
basements of houses and are therefore normally called basement suites.
Staying in privately owned apartments rather than in a hotel is quickly becoming
popular with travelers.