Councilwoman Jannie Blackwell has scheduled another community meeting about the future of the former Provident Insurance Co. building at 46th and Market. The previous meeting discussing the proposed sale of the property to local developer Iron Stone Real Estate Partners took place last month, after which Blackwell halted a vote on the sale in City Council. The previous community meeting called for more transparency in the sale process.

The meeting will take place on Tuesday, Jan. 29, from 6 – 8 p.m. at West Philadelphia High School (49th and Chestnut).

The Walnut Hill Community Association also held a community meeting about the proposed development of the property earlier this month. Read more about it here.

West Philadelphia residents are invited  to discuss the proposed development of the former Provident Mutual Life Insurance campus at 46th and Market this Tuesday, Dec. 10, at West Philadelphia High School (49th and Chestnut). The meeting has been organized by Councilwoman Jannie Blackwell, who has expressed her concern over the way the City, which owns the 15-acre property at 4601 Market, is handling the campus’s sale and proposed development.

Iron Stone was named as a future developer of the building a few months ago after a selection process that took approximately a year. The Philadelphia-based real estate company is planning to transform the building and the surrounding land into a public health campus.  Continue Reading

Philadelphia mayor Jim Kenney will be a featured speaker at an upcoming Spruce Hill Community Association’s annual meeting on Tuesday, Nov. 14 at the Penn Alexander School Cafeteria (43rd and Locust). The mayor will address the future of the former Provident Mutual Life Insurance Building at 4601 Market (pictured).

The site was chosen by former mayor Michael Nutter administration for the new police headquarters and has been undergoing renovations since 2014. But, the Kenney administration canceled the plans to relocate the Police Headquarters to the site in the spring of 2017. In August, the city began seeking a new developer for the site.  Continue Reading

West Philly residents have an opportunity to learn more about solar power for their homes at an upcoming Cedar Park Neighbors meeting at the Calvary Center (48th and Baltimore). The meeting will be held on Monday, July 17 from 7 – 8 p.m.

In an effort to make solar power more affordable for all Philadelphians and to provide solar installation training at the School District, a special city-run program, Solarize Philly, has been recently created as part of the Philadelphia Energy Authority. Representatives from Solarize Philly will be at the meeting to explain how the program works and to answer questions.

The program has already been picking up steam in the city, including in West Philadelphia.  Continue Reading

Post Brothers recently purchased Garden Court Plaza at 47th and Pine.

Garden Court Community Association‘s annual meeting will take place on Thursday, June 16, at Mosaic Community Church (123 S. 51st St), and the topic will be development and change within the neighborhood, which stretches from Locust Street to Cedar Avenue and from 45th to 52nd Street. All neighbors are invited.

The meeting will discuss planned rental and retail development in Garden Court, improvements related to the Spruce Street and 52nd Street commercial districts. You can also learn about how Garden Court Community Association (GCCA) participates in the zoning and development process, and how you can get involved in shaping the neighborhood over time.

A panel of speakers will include developers and community and economic development professionals:  Continue Reading

Mantua rezoning proposal.

Community members have a chance to vote on rezoning in the Mantua neighborhood that will protect single-family home ownership, focus commercial zoning along highly-trafficked corridors, and correct zoning for parks, recreation centers, and public-use spaces. The meeting, hosted by Mantua Civic Association and Mt. Vernon Manor CDC, will take place on Thursday, June 2, at Grace Lutheran Church, 3529 Haverford Ave., from 6 – 7 p.m.

About 100 Mantua residents attended last month’s meeting where the neighborhood rezoning proposal was presented. The proposal rezones nearly every parcel in the neighborhood as RSA-5, attached or semi-detached single family homes. Most properties in the neighborhood are currently zoned RM-1, which allows developers to build multi-unit student housing.