In addition to persistent crime, Chester has been under state financial supervision for more than a decade, its schools have been slow to improve standardized test scores and the nearest supermarket is in another town. So why are name-brand companies that had shunned the city for years starting to trickle in?
Why are residents such as Tamika Friend, a Chester High track star, purchasing new homes in the city, instead of looking elsewhere?
Why did Cheryl Stevens recently expand her southern-style restaurant in downtown Chester?
Why is a $115 million Major League Soccer stadium being built on the waterfront?
Because, if you look beyond the headlines, you might find that Chester is Pennsylvania's dark horse city, rounding the turn and poised to finish strong. Betting on its future doesn't seem as crazy as it did just a few short years ago.
City on the move
For decades, the phrase "Chester is changing" had a negative connotation: White residents muttering about the city's growing African-American population. Old heads gruffing that today's kids have no respect. Complaints about the loss of manufacturing jobs on the waterfront.
But check out some of the more recent changes in Delaware County's only city:
_ A Best Western hotel - the first hotel to open in Chester in 35 years - and an apartment complex have been erected as part of the University Crossings project near Widener University.
_ A TD Bank - the first new bank in 15 years - is preparing to open on the ground floor of the hotel. Butler said that talks are also underway for another hotel.
_ Groundbreaking for a $3 million recreation center at 7th and Madison streets took place in June. It will serve as the new home for the city's Boys and Girls Club.
