The Walnut Street ramp to I-76 East at 30th Street will close tonight at 7 p.m. for 25 days of construction, according to an announcement by PennDOT. Motorists will be redirected west on Walnut Street, left on 38th Street to University Avenue, and then south on 34th Street to access the ramp to eastbound I-76. The ramp is scheduled to reopen on Friday, June 14 (weather permitting).

The ramp repairs are part of PennDOT’s $103.6 million project to rehabilitate the Chestnut Street bridge over the Schuylkill River and seven other nearby structures, including the westbound I-76 ramp to 30th Street and the Walnut Street on-ramp to eastbound I-76 at 30th Street. The Chestnut Street bridge over the Schuylkill River is scheduled to close for approximately one year beginning in mid-June for major rehabilitation — including steel repairs, repainting and re-decking.

For more information about the project, visit chestnutstreetbridges.com.

Primaries for registered Democrats and Republicans around the city are Tuesday, May 21 in an election that could reshape city politics for years to come.

Polls are open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. tomorrow. You can find your polling place by going here.

The mayor’s seat and all 17 City Council seats (10 district and 7 at-large) are up for election this year. And in Philadelphia, where Democrats dominate local politics, most races are decided in the primaries.

Instead of providing an exhaustive list of candidates, we have decided to provide links to folks who have compiled a variety of perspectives.  Continue Reading

The Spruce Hill Community Association (SHCA) zoning committee will have its monthly meeting on Monday, May 20, where more details will be revealed about the mixed-use complex proposed on the site of the demolished Memorial Christ Church at 43rd and Chestnut. The property was sold to Alterra Property Group for $17 million earlier this year.

The proposed complex will reportedly include 278 residential units, ground-floor retail, below-grade accessory parking for 54 vehicles, and 109 bicycle spots. The property is in a CMX-4 Commercial Mixed-Use Zoning District, so this proposal complies with the existing zoning code and already has conditional approval. However, due to the size of the project, it must go before the City Planning Commission’s “civic design review” process. An early step in that process is a presentation to the appropriate coordinating RCO (Registered Community Organization), which is the SHCA Zoning Committee.  Continue Reading

4224 Baltimore Avenue project rendering (via U3Ventures.com).

After more than six years of planning, building permits were recently issued for the 132-unit residential/commercial complex on the vacant lot across from Clark Park at 4224 Baltimore Avenue.

Permit for the construction of the six-story building was issued on May 7, according to the City’s Department of Licences and Inspections.  Continue Reading

There has been an uptick in thefts from cars in the area, according to police, with the most recent cases reported in the area of 41st and Market and 40th and Ludlow Streets. Thieves got entry inside cars by breaking windows, according to police.

In a recent tweet, Matthew Gillespie, the Commanding Officer of the 18th Police District, which covers West Philadelphia neighborhoods south of Market Street, reminded area residents and visitors who park their cars on the streets to take all their belongings from their vehicle:  Continue Reading

The spring semester has come to an end at the University of Pennsylvania, and its students will be moving out from their dorms this week. Due to the move-out, the university has announced the following street closures:

Spruce Street will be closed to all traffic except emergency vehicles from 34th to 40th Streets, in both directions, on Tuesday, May 14 and Wednesday, May 15 from 6:30 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.

Please note that bikes will need to be walked on Spruce Street while it is closed to traffic.

Septa Routes 40 and 42 will be re-routed during the street closure (visit septa.org for information on each bus route).