Walker's Point is one of the hottest neighborhoods in Milwaukee right now. There's a bounty of on-trend restaurants, new condos are popping up like spring tulips, the future looks bright.
But what happens when a neighborhood moves forward without the people and places that defined it just a few years ago?
For many Latino immigrants coming to Milwaukee in the mid-20th century, Walker's Point was their landing place. Today, many have been priced out, along with their businesses. But one staple of the old neighborhood is still hanging on: Mexican-American owned bars.
Camacho's bar, at 631 S. 6th Street, is one of them.
Rudy Alvarado, 75, came to Milwaukee over 50 years ago, and has been going to Camacho's for over three decades. He says he remembers when the bar first opened.
"Daniel [Camacho] was bartending down the street at 601 and it was his dream to open this bar," Alvarado says. "Now we get to see his son [Jesse] carry this place on."
Camacho's bar officially opened in 1983, and when you walk in you can imagine it not changing much from back then. You'll even find a Camacho behind the bar. Ask around, and without much prodding, everyone in Camacho's had a story about the owner, Jesse.
"He reminds me of his father," says long-time patron Mary Marino Schmidt. "We’re very, very close and when I take off by myself, he’ll always walk me to my car, all the time."
But as the neighborhood changes, taxes go up, and long-time residents continue to stream out of neighborhood, the future of a place like Camacho's feels fragile.
"It means a lot when we see different faces, different cultures, different generations come in," says Wilda Maldonado, who helps run the bar. "They’re here to support us and we treat them con amor, that’s all we can do. Hopefully we can keep going for generations on end."
There's a mural of the patriarch, Daniel Camacho, on the side of the building. He's got a worn look on his face as he seemingly looks over the neighborhood as it changes. Many regulars, even those who couldn't afford to stay in the neighborhood, say they can't imagine the area without Camacho's.
It's more than a bar for them.
Kika Meraz is Jesse Camacho's niece, and granddaughter of Daniel Camacho. She practically grew up in the bar. She says when she grew up here, no one called Walker's Point, Walker's Point — not until gentrification. And while she appreciates new people coming in and supporting the area, she worries about what might get lost.
"[Camacho's] brings in people who’ve been here forever, it brings in new people and it’s a really good reminder of the history of the area," Meraz says. "I feel like it brings a big sense of nostalgia and grounding for the neighborhood."
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