All posts filed under: Franklin Heights

Franklin Heights is bordered by Capitol Drive to the north, 20th Street to the east, Burleigh Street to the south and 35th Street to Townsend Street to the railroad tracks on the west. One third of the Franklin Heights population lives below the poverty line.

“They tell me you change careers ten times in a lifetime”

Published by

Richard Hodge stands on the corner of 24th and Burleigh, outside COA’s Goldin Center campus, on a sunny Friday afternoon. The bright greenish-yellow of his crossing guard uniform immediately catches the eye, a necessary characteristic in this line of work. He fist-bumps children on their way by, creating a sense of safety that extends past the uniform. For Hodge, this isn’t just another job. “The most important thing is the safety of the kids,” he says.

“I kind of followed my mother here”

Published by

This story is part of a series focusing on the 30th Street Industrial & Economic Corridor. Robert Stewart stands outside his garage on a dead-end street in Franklin Heights. Steward says he ended up in Milwaukee because of family and the chance to get a good job. “I kind of followed my mother here – she lived up here; I was livin’ in Missouri. [The city] seemed like it had good opportunities back then.”

“It’s only a struggle if you let it get to you”

Published by

This story is part of a series focusing on the 30th Street Industrial & Economic Corridor. Marlon Lindsui sits in his car, outside his grandma’s house, near 29th and Auer waiting for his girlfriend. Lindsui, who grew up in the neighborhood, says his childhood wasn’t an easy one. “It’s a struggle,” he says. “You see it; you see all these abandoned houses. It’s a struggle, man.”