Here’s some exciting news for many local residents in West and Southwest Philadelphia. Rebuild Philadelphia, the City program that invests hundreds of millions of dollars in improving public spaces and community facilities, is expected to break ground on renovation projects at three recreation centers with over $60 million in investments. Public groundbreakings with the participation of local officials and community members, are scheduled to take place from Sept. 19-22 at Kingsessing Recreation Center, F.J. Myers Recreation Center, and Johnny Sample (Cobbs Creek) Recreation Center.

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The Walnut Street repaving project is currently underway between 33rd and 63rd Streets, which will include traffic calming measures and safety improvements for pedestrians and bicyclists. Here’s a chance for community members to weigh in on safety concerns along two other busy West Philly streets where improvements are long overdue.

Thanks to local advocacy, 47th Street between Chestnut and Paschal Avenue and 48th Street between Market and Kingsessing Ave. are being considered for safety improvements. The City’s Office of Transportation, Infrastructure, and Sustainability (OTIS) and Councilmember Jamie Gauthier are hosting two community open house meetings to discuss different safety infrastructure options for the corridor (see the infographic below).

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After a break, SEPTA is set to resume public hearings on Bus Revolution, the comprehensive redesign of its entire bus network. The first hearing is scheduled for tomorrow, Sept. 12 at SEPTA headquarters (1234 Market St.), beginning at 5 p.m.. Then, two virtual hearings are scheduled for Wednesday, Sept. 13 – from 12-2 p.m. and 5-7 p.m. Registration is required for these hearings.

SEPTA will hold more in-person hearings in Philadelphia and other counties in its service area throughout this month. For more details, see the image below. To register for the virtual hearings on Wednesday, visit: https://iseptaphilly.com/blog/busrevpublichearings.

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             Cleo Bagels Instagram photo.

UPDATE (9/12/23): Cleo Bagels officially opened its first brick-and-mortar location at 5013 Baltimore on Saturday, Sept. 9.

Formerly known as Dodo Bagels, Cleo Bagels offers mostly traditional fresh baked bagels, bialys, apple muffins (“applethings”), creatively made sandwiches and more, according to the business’ social media posts.

The store hours are from 9 a.m. – 2 p.m. or until sold out on Saturday and Sunday through Sept. 17. After that, the store will be open on Friday-Sunday through the end of the month (hours on Friday will be 8 a.m.-2 p.m.), then Thursday-Sunday in October. The goal is to “slowly build their weekday service,” according to the owners.

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The repaving of a portion Walnut Street in West Philadelphia is set to begin on September 12th. The milling work is expected to take place during the overnight hours from Tuesday, Sept. 12 to Friday, Sept. 15. During this work, the street will be reduced to one lane between 33rd Street and 63rd Street and motorists should expect delays.

The repaving schedule is as follows, according to PennDOT:

• Through Friday, Sept. 15, from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., there will be a lane closed on Walnut Street between 63rd Street (Cobbs Creek Parkway) and 33rd Street to prepare for milling.
• Milling work will take place during overnight hours.
• Paving is set to begin on or around Tuesday, Sept. 26.
• Travel lanes will be open during the majority of construction. There will be periodic nighttime closures. Follow signs, detours, and parking notices.

The project is part of the City’s Complete Streets project.

The Walnut Street repaving project includes the following street improvement goals:

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The 2023-2024 school year begins Tuesday, Sept. 5. In anticipation of extreme heat conditions next week, with temperatures reaching mid-90’s, the School District of Philadelphia has issued an Extreme Heat Protocol for the public schools without air conditioning or inadequate cooling (see the list below).

These schools will follow the schedule below for Tuesday, Sept. 5 through Thursday, Sept. 7.

• Tuesday, Sept. 5 – Wednesday, Sept. 6: Students will attend schools in the morning and then be released on an early dismissal schedule.

• Thursday, Sept. 7: The District will continue to monitor heat conditions. Any decisions about Thursday or Friday will be announces by 12 p.m. on the day before.

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