Penn’s New College House West will be built near 40th and Walnut (Photo by West Philly Local).

It looks like the green space behind the Walnut Street library near 40th and Walnut will not remain open for too much longer. Penn has announced plans to build a new 250,000-square-foot residential building, New College House West, in the space where 40th Street summer concerts are held. The design for the building was approved last week. The University of Pennsylvania Board of Trustees approved the design of the building last week.

View of the New College House West from 40th St and Locust Walk (rendering image by Bohlin Cywinski Jackson Architects)

The new undergraduate college house will occupy a site bounded by Locust Walk, Walnut Street and 40th Street. The new construction will not affect the West Philadelphia branch of the Free Library of Philadelphia, which will remain open.

The new project will serve as a “new western gateway to campus,” according to Penn President Amy Gutmann.

The project is designed by Philadelphia-based Bohlin Cywinski Jackson Architects, the company that recently completed the New College House at Hill Field. The 450-bed residence will include a mix of 6- and 5-bedroom two-bath suites and 4-, 3- and 2-bedroom one-bath suites and will house sophomores, juniors and seniors.

The construction of the $163-million project will begin in Spring 2018 and is expected to be completed by Fall 2021. More information can be found here.

An artist’s rendering of the Trolley Car Station restaurant from plans presented last spring to the Spruce Hill Community Association zoning committee.

Developers will soon break ground on a project that should transform the barren patch of concrete at the 40th Street trolley terminal into a landscaped public space complete with a 125-seat restaurant.

University City District officials promise it will be a more navigable public space for pedestrians. Complete with moveable tables and chairs, enough racks to accommodate 48 bikes and “vegetation everywhere,” the project was well received during public meetings and breezed through zoning approval last spring.

The centerpiece of the project will be the Trolley Car Station restaurant, a two-story restaurant that will be built in the grassy area bordering the portal along Baltimore Avenue. A company owned by real estate developer Ken Weinstein, which runs the Trolley Car Diner in Mount Airy, will operate the restaurant.  Continue Reading

Photo via Universitycity.org

A popular local outdoor music event, 40th Street Summer Series, returns on Saturday, June 18, to the green area behind the Walnut Street West Library. The series, which is co-produced by University City District (UCD), Penn, and The Rotunda, will run monthly through Sept. 17. This summer, the series will feature free, family-friendly concerts and dance performances, plus juggling, face painting, fire dancing, and food and ice cream sampling.

Marc Ribot’s The Young Philadelphians will entertain the crowd this Saturday. They will be joined by Monica “Spirit” McIntyre, a gender non-conforming cellist, vocalist, lyricist, wellness advocate, sound healer, Reiki practitioner, mover and visual artist who promotes empowerment and healing by any medium necessary.

And here’s the concert schedule for the rest of the summer:

July 23: Dendê & Band w/ Openers PaPa Ed Stokes and Kunu Bi
Aug. 20: The Liberian Women’s Chorus for Change w/ Openers Modero Dance Company
Sept. 17: Rennie Harris RHAW w/ Openers Kalamandir Dance Company

The Summer Series begins at 5 p.m. with roaming performances and giveaways, with opening acts beginning at 6 p.m. Don’t forget to bring a blanket or chair.

More information about each performance is available on the UCD website.

When walking down South 40th Street over the weekend, we noticed a new sign in the window next door to The Green Line Cafe. A Taiwanese dessert shop is in the works for 32 S. 40th St., the storefront formerly occupied by Dr. Wyatt’s University Herbs. According to the Office of Licences and Inspections records, work is currently underway on the first floor of the three-story building, still owned by University Herbs, to re-fit the space for the new shop, which will include a non-commercial use kitchen and some seating (less than 20 seats).

The business owner, Xia Yang, lives in Chinatown, according to L & I records. We’ll post more information about this new shop when it becomes available.

And we hope that the store has a lot of this stuff when it opens.

40th Street Artist-in-Residence (AIR), a program that awards West Philly artists free studio space for one year, is currently accepting applications for its 2016-2017 residency. The application deadline has been extended until 11:59 p.m. on Wednesday, May 4, 2016.

40th Street AIR Gallery at 4007 Chestnut St.

Selected artists will be given studio space at either 4007 Chestnut Street or 4013 Chestnut Street starting Sept. 1, 2016 and ending Aug. 15, 2017. During residency, artists will work on developing their own creative work. In exchange, they will be asked to share their talents with West Philadelphia through a minimum of 40 hours of outreach service, which may include a public installation, a workshop or a class.

Applications are accepted from artists who are affiliated with West Philadelphia – you must live, work, volunteer, or create art here in order to apply.

Applications can be submitted online here, but first please visit the 40th Street AIR website for more information.

If you have questions, email: 40th.AIR.app@gmail.com

Before the winter storm hit on Friday, a large sinkhole had opened up on 40th Street between Walnut and Chestnut, closing the block down to traffic (and plows). The weekend storm delayed the sinkhole repairs. Here are a few photos taken today on the block:

And here’s the sinkhole:

According to a West Philly Local reader, who posted a comment on the site, there is a creek that runs under the street and “there used to be a door under the Free Library on the corner (might still be) that you could open and see the creek.” Reportedly, there is a brick arch covering it, but the bricks are more than 100 years old.