Upon first viewing the Fillmore District in San Francisco I didn’t know what to think of the neighborhood. Going up Fillmore Street on the bus I saw McDonald’s, Starbucks and some other popular chain restaurants. However, after spending the week walking around the Fillmore District and interviewing the locals I realized that the Fillmore District was a very fascinating place.
The residents of the Fillmore and the people who work in the area were very friendly. Everyone I talked to was happy to answer my questions and give me information about his or her neighborhood. The neighborhood is very diverse, which makes the area interesting because of all the different shops.
As I was walking around Fillmore Street I saw that amongst plenty of clothing shops and hair and nail boutiques there were jazz clubs and a Jazz Heritage Center. It was obvious that some of the stores have been around for a long time, such as Jean Nobles Style. Jean Nobles Style is a clothing shop that’s been around for 30 years and has been on Fillmore Street for 22 years, according to Carylon Alexander, an employee at the shop. However, alongside the older establishments were newer ones like Starbucks and Jubili Frozen Yogurt and Cereal.
According to Alexander, the Fillmore District is an important place because of its “ethnic importance as well as the music and arts.”
One doesn’t have to walk far on Fillmore Street to notice that there are a lot of culture and art in the area. I passed one building with painted signs hanging up that said things like “black is being beautiful” and “ Fillmore Great Place To Live.” Visit the Fillmore on a Saturday and you will see the weekly farmers market, where plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables and tasty food is available. Across from the farmers market musicians perform and often times there will be people set up supporting some cause or another.
Like any neighborhood the Fillmore District has problems. I saw homeless people and residents talked about the violence in the neighborhood.
When I asked Alexander if there were any issues she was concerned about she said “ The neighborhood in general, safety, police or lack of police safety protection.”
According to Tes Sebhatu, a resident of the Fillmore, there is youth violence, but it generally takes place at night.
There are some residents who feel that the violence in the neighborhood isn’t really a problem. According to Tami Andrade, there is a gunshot occasionally but there are neighborhoods a lot worse than the Fillmore.
I asked Alexa Adams, a resident of Fillmore moving because her lease is up, what she thought of the neighborhood, she said she liked the area and felt that it was safe place to live, and she'd recommend living in the Fillmore.
While a few people told me not to go out at night I felt safe in the Fillmore District during the day.
If people are willing to take the time to visit places like the Jazz Heritage Center and Yoshi’s restaurant and jazz club they will be able to listen to jazz music and learn about the Fillmore Districts jazz history. I also found information on PBS.org about a documentary called The Fillmore. According to the site the documentary premiered in 2001 but there is a website for the documentary still up also called The Fillmore that provides information about the area for anyone interested in learning more about the Fillmore District.
