Kern Place

Kern Place is a historic neighborhood on the West side of El Paso, Texas. The neighborhood lies just east of the University of Texas at El Paso, and north of downtown. Kern is part of District 1 in the City of El Paso and currently represented by Peter Svarzbein. The neighborhood was created by Peter E. Kern, and once had an unusual gate marking the entrance. Madeline Park in the center of the neighborhood is named after Kern's daughter. Businesses and a small entertainment district border the eclectic housing featured in the neighborhood.

Kern Place was founded by Peter E. Kern (1860 1937),

In 1913, a paved road was created on Mesa Avenue and leading to the area known as Kern Place. Kern had an engineer, W. I. Rider, help him develop plans for the neighborhood. Kern named the streets after friends and for places he "admired." Kern also did not want commercial properties on his land. In 1915, Kern had 500 trees planted in Madeline Park, located in Kern Place, which he gave to the city of El Paso later that same year. On May 4, 1926, Kern sold the land that made up Kern place. In 1959, Clinton and Hal Dean Jr. bought Kern Place property and build the Kern Village Shopping Center. In the 1970s, Kern Place was used strategically to demonstrate that there was a problem with lead contamination and the nearby ASARCO plant in El Paso. Investigators chose to show that wealthy children from the Kern Place area also had high levels of lead in their blood in order to combat the assertion that only poor, uneducated El Pasoans were being affected by the problem. In 2001, a report was published by the Texas Department of State Health Services (TDSHS) documenting high levels of arsenic and lead in the soil in areas around Kern Place. Any community within 3 miles of the ASARCO plant found high levels of lead. Students who had gone to school in the area showed greater than average rates of developing multiple sclerosis (MS). Individuals in the neighborhood dealt with the health issue by washing hands more often after playing in nearby parks.

In 1916, Kern constructed a gate that formed an archway to the entrance of the neighborhood at the intersection of North Kansas Street and Robinson. The gate was made of iron and stone and cost $2,500. Kern found decedents of the Toltec and hired them to help build the gate. The iron gate contained swastikas, the Kern family crest and 444 electric light globes that illuminated the words "Kern Place" over the center of the gate. The proposed gate is meant to reference the old Kern Place Gate and will be located on Cincinnati Street.

Kern place is bordered by Mesa Street, Boston/Robinson, Piedmont and Mesita. The homes of Kern Place are unique in architecture and some were built by residents themselves.

Richard M. Dudley