In a neighborhood struggling to jump-start itself, rain-soaked mattresses and battered children?s toys litter streets dotted with broken bottles, cigarette butts and fast-food wrappers.
For Rick Zeskind, when he took the family business over from his grandfather in 1971, the neighborhood was full of promise.
Zeskind?s Hardware has been in business for 112 years ? a pillar of the once-proud Westside commercial district.
But the sign in the front window tells of dramatically changing times: “Welcome to Zeskind?s Hardware. Please unload weapons and remove ski masks before entering. Thank you.”
In a cramped side of a row house on South Payson Street, a block south of West Pratt Street, Zeskind?s store is a blast from the past.
Full of old fashion friendly service and free advice, there is no walking around for 20 minutes trying to find a “store associate.”
“We help people, and it?s really what I enjoy doing,” Zeskind said. “If someone has a problem, I try to tell them how to fix it.”
Although many local businesses are aging well, the community is not.
Boarded-up houses and the usual problems that follow drugs and poverty have taken their toll.
Located in the SouthDistrict of Baltimore City, the cluster of West Pratt Street businesses has seen the homicide rate in its neighborhood increase.
As few as nine murders were reported in the district in 1990, but that came on the heels of 37 murders in 1989. Last year, the South District reported 28 of Baltimore?s 269 killings.
Part of the third generation to have a hand in the family store, Zeskind is a rarity.
Only about 30 percent of family-owned businesses survive into the second generation, with only 12 percent remaining viable into the third generation.
Only about 3 percent of all family businesses operate into the fourth generation or beyond, according to the Family Business Institute.
“People have a strong emotional attachment to companies,” said Wayne Rivers, president of the Family Business Institute.
“But it may be that either implicitly or explicitly, keeping the doors open is not in the best interest of the family anymore.”
But Zeskind keeps the faith and said he hopes the recent uptick in business and development is a trend, not a fluke.
“There is a lot of rehab going on,” Zeskind said. “If it brings more customers, I?ll be happy.”
