The demolition of Charles Drew Elementary School has begun. Photo by Marina Krikorian.

Demolition work has begun on buildings at University City High School site, which was purchased by Drexel University last year. The 14-acre property, which also includes the shuttered Charles Drew Elementary School building (pictured), was acquired from the School District of Philadelphia last summer. Drexel’s nearly $1 billion development plan for the location includes construction of a K-8 public school surrounded by residential, retail, and recreational space. The construction project, led by Drexel University City Development, LLC, is expected to create 4,300 construction jobs, and to house 3,700 employees after its completion.

These days it seems like you can’t walk more than a block or two near Penn and Drexel’s campuses without seeing some sort of major construction project. Cranes are becoming about as common around here as coffee shops.

Some 32 building projects have been or will be completed in the area around the universities between last fall and next summer or so, according to the 2014/2015 State of University City report, which was released by the University City District (UCD) yesterday afternoon during a reception at World Cafe Live (3025 Walnut St.). These include about 1.3 million square feet of new building space dedicated to medical and biomedical research, a key field driving development of this part of the city.

The majority of all new office construction in the city is happening in the patch between 38th street to the west, Market street to the north and the Schuylkill River to the east and south.

All of this building and investment has created what doctor-turned-entrepreneur Keith Leaphart, a lifelong Philadelphia resident, called an “ecosystem for ambition” during yesterday’s reception. Leaphart owns the design and print firm Replica Creative, which opened a café amid all the hubbub last year at 3711 Market St.

Residential space is increasing as well. Two new residential high rises, at 36th and Market and 3737 Chestnut, are slated to open next summer and fall respectively. The UCD is forecasting that the number of new apartments will increase 60 percent by 2016. Many of these are aimed at graduate students and millennials, the fastest growing demographic category in the district.  Continue Reading

Legal services can be costly, so here are some opportunities for West Philly residents to get free legal help.

Cedar Park Neighbors and the Drexel University School of Law are inviting residents to a free will and estate planning workshop next Wednesday, Oct. 1, at 6:30 p.m. The workshop is for those who are seeking help with the following questions:

• If you own your home, do you know what will happen to it after you die?  
• If you get sick and can’t speak for yourself, do your doctors know what your wishes are?
• Do you need a power of attorney to have someone pay your bills and make financial decisions for you?  Continue Reading

Update: Police have confirmed that the man shot was 22-year-old Baron Alexander, son of convicted late-term abortion doctor Kermit Gosnell, whose notorious clinic was a few blocks from the break-in. Alexander changed his name from Gosnell in 2012, The Daily News reported. Alexander lived a couple of houses down from the row home where the break-in occurred, according to police.

A college student shot and critically injured an alleged burglar early this morning at a home on the 3700 block of Brandywine in Mantua, according to reports.

Philly.com is reporting that the shooting happened at just before 7 a.m. in a residence shared by several college students a few blocks from the Drexel campus. The 22-year-old man was shot three times and is in stable condition.

Democratic gubernatorial candidates Rob McCord, Katie McGinty, Allyson Schwartz and Tom Wolf will be at Drexel University tonight to participate in the final debate before the primary election on May 20. The hour-long debate will take place at Drexel’s Mandell Theater (33rd and Chestnut), starting at 7 p.m.

The debate, moderated by news anchor and author Larry Kane, will be broadcast live by local TV stations and there will also be a webcast on the Drexel University website.

The plot that Drexel plans to buy includes University City High School and Drew Elementary School.

Drexel University is set to substantially expand its footprint north of Market Street with the tentative purchase of the 14-acre property where the shuttered University City High School and Drew Elementary School currently stand. Drexel plans to build residential housing, retail space and, most importantly, a K-8 school complex.

Drexel’s plan was outlined in broad terms during a meeting Wednesday night at West Philadelphia High School to announce that the university was the winning bidder on the property, one of seven properties the School District of Philadelphia has for sale. The School Reform Commission is expected to approve the sale during its March 20 meeting.

Drexel’s plan for the site includes an expanded Powel Elementary School, which currently serves students in K-4, and a Science Leadership Academy (SLA) middle school. If approved, the site would be the first middle school for SLA,  the acclaimed magnet school that has a campus in Center City that works closely with the Franklin Institute and a nascent high school program in the Beeber Middle School building in the Overbrook neighborhood.

Officials stressed that the plans are very tentative and are subject to several community meetings and the city zoning process. The terms of the purchase, including a possible price, has not been announced.

About 100 people attended the meeting, including members of the Powelton Village Civic Association and the Mantua Civic Association. The responses to the announcement ranged from relief to indignation.

“The community coming into this was very nervous,” said George Poulin of the Powelton Village Civic Association. “But we are excited about the possibilities of the site.”

The Powelton Village neighborhood would benefit the most from the project, particularly from an expanded Powel School.

Mantua residents, whose children lost their high school when University City High closed, questioned whether the project would help them.

“We don’t know where our community is heading,” said Terry Wrice, a University City High graduate and son of famed city activist Herman Wrice. “Our kids are all over the place.”

High school students from Mantua have been assigned to West Philadelphia High School, where many have experienced confrontations with students from other neighborhoods.

Lucy Kerman, Drexel’s vice provost for University and Community Partnerships, said the university has no plans to include a high school on the site.

“Our commitment has been to support the existing school and that means Powel,” she said during the meeting. “Our vision is in the K-8 space.”

The site will also include residential housing. “It will not be dormitories,” said Bob Francis, Drexel’s vice president of University Facilities.

Francis said the retail would be “small and locally organized.”

“We see ourselves as participating in the recovery of West Philadelphia,” Francis said. “This is about improving the tax base and bringing in jobs.”

Drexel’s push further north into West Philadelphia neighborhoods has increased under president John Fry. Fry, of course, was one of the key architects of the University of Pennsylvania’s initiatives west of 40th Street, including the construction of the Penn Alexander School, while he was executive vice president of Penn from 1995 to 2002.

Residents will have many opportunities to weigh in on the project at different stages. The next chance is the March 20 meeting of the SRC. Click here for information on registering to speak at that meeting. The deadline to register is 4:30 p.m. on March 19.

–Mike Lyons