The Philadelphia Marathon, an annual event drawing thousands of guests to the City of Brotherly Love, is returning this weekend, with races happening on Saturday and Sunday (Nov. 19-20).

The Half Marathon will be held on Saturday from 7:00-11:30 a.m. The main Marathon event will take place Sunday, beginning at 7 a.m. Both races begin and end at 22nd St. and Benjamin Franklin Parkway, near the Philadelphia Museum of Art.

As always during both races, many roads along the course will be closed to accommodate the runners. Also, “No Parking” signs will be posted in the Parkway area and along the race course.

Street closures will be in effect for the Philadelphia Half Marathon and the Rothman Orthopaedics 8K on Saturday, from 2 a.m. until 3 p.m. Continue Reading

It’s General Election Eve and here are a few logistical things to keep in mind about the big day tomorrow.

Those who haven’t voted early, there are dozens of polling places around West Philadelphia; to find your polling place, go here. Polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. An ID is not required to vote unless you are voting for the first time or have recently moved. As long as you are in line by 8 p.m., you can vote.

Check your voter registration status here.

If you still plan to vote by mail, you can. Just drop off your ballot at one of the mail-in voting centers until 8 p.m. tomorrow. Here’s the info for that. Keep in mind that it’s too late to apply for a mail-in ballot and please note that polling places are not for dropping off your mail or absentee ballot. Continue Reading

The annual Leaf Recycling Program, held by the Philadelphia Department of Streets, is scheduled to begin on Monday, Nov. 7 and will run through Saturday, Dec. 17. The program helps reduce the amount of waste that goes to landfill. Recycled leaves are used for composting.

During the six-week program, mechanical leaf collection will be provided in areas known to have a heavy accumulation of leaves. Mechanical leaf collection crews will concentrate their efforts in designated boundaries each week. All leaves should be raked and ready for collection by 7:00 a.m. the day of mechanical collection. Leaves should be raked into the street by the curb’s edge (piling is not necessary). Continue Reading

The Philadelphia City Commissioners is holding mobile staffed ballot drop-off events at various Philadelphia Free Library branches ahead of the November 8th General Election. Personnel from the Board of Elections will be on hand to collect voted Absentee and Mail-in ballots.

Here’s the schedule of such events in West and Southwest Philadelphia:

• Tuesday, Oct. 25 and Nov. 1, 10 a.m.-12 p.m. & 1 p.m.-4 p.m.:

Overbrook Park Library, 7422 Haverford Ave

• Wednesday, Oct. 26 and Nov. 2, 11 a.m.-12 p.m. & 1 p.m.-4 p.m.: Continue Reading

Job seekers looking for employment in the nonprofit sector are invited this Thursday, Oct. 13, to a Nonprofit Job Fair organized by Free Library of Philadelphia. The job fair will take place from from 3:00 to 5:00 p.m. at the Parkway Central Library.

The job fair is an opportunity to meet with many local organizations and agencies planning to grow their teams.

Participating employers and community resources at the Nonprofit Job Fair include: Continue Reading

Complaining about SEPTA has been a Philly pastime for generations (they may never live down “We’re Getting There“). Buses that never show; ones that blow by you at a stop because they’re full; that long wait on a cold winter morning only for three buses to show up at once. Most of us have been there.

Well, transit planners at last night’s public unveiling of a proposed overhaul of SEPTA’s bus system say they are making changes – from shorter wait times to more consistent schedules and “straighter” routes.

“If we were building it from scratch, what would it look like?” SEPTA transit planner Dan Nemiroff asked during the online meeting to release the proposed route changes as part of SEPTA’s Bus Revolution project. Continue Reading