Photos by Rana Fayez

It’s Saturday morning and the weather’s beautiful so you have your windows open. You’re rolling out of bed and you hear music coming in from the streets. It’s a lazy morning but you walk outside anyway because the weather’s perfect. You notice scattered clusters of crowds listening to music around a porch here and a porch there. A man comes out of his house with a pastry and a coffee, he’s sitting on his porch while enjoying a live band playing on his neighbor’s porch. It’s that time of year again, it’s West Philly Porchfest. Even though the official start time was at noon, some started warming up before.  Continue Reading

Photo by Sasha Aleiner

Last year, West Philly witnessed its very first Porchfest, a concept that was introduced into the neighborhood by musicians Owen Lyman-Schmidt and Ross Hoffman (Liana Moskowitz, Abram Taber and Bobby Szafranski also helped organize last year’s festival). This year, Lyman-Schmidt and Hoffman are joined by new organizers, and West Philly Porchfest (WPPF) is back for year two.

New organizers include Carmen Greenwood, Morgan Melissa Robinson, and Ciara Chaly.

“I think it was a really wonderful sort of proof of concept that we could bring this to West Philly and it was embraced so quickly within the first year. I wouldn’t want to say that we were surprised at the turnout, but it was certainly validating to have seen it somewhere else and think this could work in our community and then have folks agree with us,” said co-organizer Lyman-Schmidt.  Continue Reading

A great summer tradition is still alive in Cedar Park! Summer live jazz series is returning on Friday, June 2, according to Cedar Park Neighbors. Bobby Zankel and the Warriors of the Wonderful Sound Six will kick off the series this Friday. West Philly musician Gretchen Elise will perform next Friday, June 9.

2017 Live Jazz Fridays in Cedar Park will be held every Friday at 49th and Baltimore, 6 – 8 p.m., weather permitting, through July 28th (see the flier for the full lineup). Don’t forget to bring your kids and your neighbors, as well as chairs or a blanket.

Stay tuned for more announcements about live jazz in West Philly – at Malcolm X Park and the annual Lancaster Avenue Jazz Festival. Continue Reading

The 40th Street free summer concert series will return to the green space behind the Walnut Street West Library on Saturday, May 20 with a performance by the Sun Ra Arkestra. This marks the third time Sun Ra, which presents a unique combination of big band swing, outer-space jazz, Afro-pageantry, dancing, singing, and chanting, has performed on the Summer Series stage near 40th and Walnut. The opening act for Saturday’s concert will be RU Bhangra who will present traditional Bhangra dancing.

Earlier this week, the University City District, one of the organizers of this popular, family-friendly summer event, revealed more dates and performers for the series, which will be held once a month through September 16:  Continue Reading

UPDATE: University City Garden Club will hold their annual plant sale on Sunday, May 14, 12-4 p.m. at the gates of the Woodlands Cemetery (40th & Woodland Ave.). Many herb, vegetable and flower choices will be available for sale.

We’re sad to report that the 59th annual Spruce Hill May Fair scheduled for Saturday, May 13 has been canceled due to bad weather in the forecast (a lot of rain and wind).

“This was an extremely difficult decision for us, as May Fair is our flagship annual event and our only fundraiser,” Spruce Hill Community Association (SHCA) president Eric Santoro wrote in an email. “The entire SHCA Board regrets that we are unable to host this wonderful annual tradition in 2017!”

But here’s some good news: some activities will still take place indoors. The annual $1 book sale will continue. Residents are invited to an Open House at the Spruce Hill Community Association Center at 257 S. 45th Street this Saturday from 10 a.m.-4 p.m.. Hundreds of new and used books of all genres will be available for $1 or less; food and beverages will be served; raffle tickets will be sold; and there may even be some live music. Everyone is welcome to come by!  Continue Reading

The University City District (UCD) has announced that they will bring back several popular events this summer, including Baltimore Avenue Dollar Stroll, University City Dining Days, and the 40th Street Summer Series. Here’s the UCD sponsored event schedule for Summer 2017 with some more details.

The Baltimore Avenue Dollar Stroll, presented in association with the Baltimore Avenue Business Association (BABA), will be held twice this year – on Thursday, June 15 and Thursday, Sept. 7, both from 5:30-8:30 p.m. As always, neighborhood businesses will present $1 bargains and samples, now between 43rd and 52nd Streets. Stay tuned for more information about each upcoming Dollar Stroll.

University City Dining Days will be held from July 13 through July 23. Now in its 13th year, Dining Days is the “3 courses, 3 prices” promotion at many of the area’s most popular dining destinations. Over 30 restaurants will participate in the event this year, including first-timers CO-OP, Dim Sum House, and Clarkville. A kick-off party for the event will take place at The Porch at 30th on Thursday, July 13. Visit the Dining Days website for updates on restaurants, events, and surprises.  Continue Reading