Ferentari

Ferentari [fe.renˈtarʲ] is a neighbourhood located in the 5th Sector of Bucharest, Romania.

The word "Ferentari" comes from the Latin word "Ferentarius" meaning "soldier in the old pedestrian army".

It is located in the South-South-West of Bucharest at a distance of 2.5 to 5 km from the city center. Connections to the city center are relatively poor, because of the limited public transport available (see below) and because of the need to cross areas subject to frequent traffic jams like Chirigiu Square.

The borough stretches along Ferentarilor Avenue (Calea Ferentarilor) and the main boundaries are: Salaj Road (Șoseaua Sălaj) and sometimes Rahovei Avenue (Calea Rahovei) to the South West, the industrial area, the railway and partially Progresului Road (to the South-East and East), and Salaj Road (to the West). It is bordered by the Rahova, Pieptănări and Giurgiului boroughs. These boundaries, being totally unofficial, are subject to individual interpretation.

Ferentari was the first modern industrial area of Bucharest developed in the middle of 19th century, when new industrial plants were built in the area and especially after the first railway in Romania was built (opened in 1869 and connecting Bucharest - via Filaret station - to Giurgiu).

The population of the neighbourhood is around 90,000. It has been assigned the lowest quota on local taxes (at the beginning of Calea Ferentarilor: B zone, the middle area: C zone, the rest: D zone).

It has a bad reputation - as being the worst borough in Bucharest as the base of drug dealers, prostitution and mob operations in Bucharest. This is confirmed by the arrests of the Cămătaru mob clan, and police raids done in the Zabrăuți section of the borough after some drug-related incidents. As such, it is the center of drug dealing in Bucharest (for example, 45 dealers have been arrested in one police action) and has been the stage of a riot, a unique event in a city with very low crime rate.

However, Ferentari has a lower crime rate in terms of burglaries in relation to much of the city - possibly because of the poverty in the area. Areas such as Vadul Nou, Zăbrăuți, Prelungirea Ferentari, La Maici are notorious for squatting, and resorting to violence when they are served with eviction notices. Furthermore, when questioned about adequate responses to evictions, or to the police severing illegal connections to the mains, inhabitants of the neighbourhood consider violence as their main weapon, according to a sociological study by SNSPA .

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Wikipedia