The Porch, the outdoor space at 30th Street Station, is adding a few new things for the summer.

The University City District (UCD) recently received a $375,000 grant from ArtPlace to fund a permanent art piece at The Porch. Prema Katari Gupta, UCD’s Director of Planning and Economic Development said: “We will invite exceptional artists to engage creatively with our site, with our audience, and within our neighborhood context. Art will bring beauty, reflection, and delight to The Porch, as the site continues its evolution.”

One new fun activity to look out for at The Porch is a free nine hole mini golf course open every day in July from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. All you need to bring is a photo ID. A second new project is the opening of a beer garden with German and craft beers, bratwurst, sauerkraut, and Italian sausage sandwiches by Bridgewater’s Pub. The beer garden will include live music and is open July 12 (4-8pm), July 13 (noon-8pm), and July 14 (noon-5pm).

The Porch will exhibit two new visual art works. The first is a representational and experiential exhibit by Pew Fellow Nami Yamamoto. She is installing a Hakoniwa, Japanese for miniature garden as well as a form of psychotherapy called “sandplay therapy.” The therapy method involves subjects who order and design items within a sandbox. Nami’s art will recreate this form of therapy across the concrete of the porch.

Also, Justin Duerr’s Anaesthasia Emeralda Lucian piano, designed for UCD’s Heart and Soul piano project will be on display and ready for play at The Porch.

– Erica Kimmel

Folks who work, study or live in the area near 30th Street Station will soon have a convenient opportunity to buy fresh produce and healthy foods from local farmers. The Porch, a public space that opened near the station last fall, will have its own Farmer’s Market every Wednesday, beginning May 16. The market will be open from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Here’s a list of participating vendors:

Brulee Bakery
Brulee Bakery serves bread, brownies, gluten-free treats, quiches, muffins and scones.

Frecon Farms
Frecon Farms sells fresh fruit, fruit butter, cider and cut flowers.

FreshaPeel Hummus
A fresh approach to hummus infused with natural ingredients and with flavors such as lemon kale, jalapeno, tomato basil, pumpkin, and spicy black bean.

John & Kira’s
Gourmet, artisan chocolate gifts and handmade confections.

McCann’s Farm
A third generation farming family from Elk Township, NJ with a full line of farm fresh produce, fruits and herbs.

Mompops
Homemade gourmet popsicles such as chocolate banana, strawberry cream, cantaloupe, mango, lemon-lime, strawberry basil, and peaches and cream.

MyHouse Cookies
Old fashioned, hand-crafted cookies, pies and quiches baked in small batches.

Spruce Hill Farm
Spruce Hill Farm features a variety of seasonal vegetables, herbs and cut flowers.

There will also be some supplemental programming for the first twelve weeks of the market, with Give and Take Jugglers and Citywide Specials musical ensemble entertaining the shoppers.

The Porch Farmer’s Market is produced by University City District in partnership with Farm to City.

The Porch, a recently opened public space near the 30th Street Station, already has a busy schedule of music, entertainment and recreational events until the end of this year. French swing accordion music by Dallas Vietty is at lunchtime on Tuesdays. There’s a Farmer’s Market on Wednesdays and traditional and original Eastern European and Balkan music by West Philadelphia Orchestra on Thursdays.

Apart from music, West Philly residents and visitors are invited to participate in fitness sessions organized by Drexel University’s Recreational Athletics staff. On Fridays, Nov. 18 and Dec. 16, from 12:30 – 1:30 p.m. there will be a lunchtime boot camp featuring an intense 60-minute session of cardio, strength and agility drills. On Dec. 2 and 9 don’t miss cardio kickboxing workouts accompanied by high energy music (think about going back to work re-energized after those).

What about kids? There is something for them to do too. The Give and Take Jugglers and their Little Circus are there on Fridays from 4 – 6 p.m.

Finally, this Saturday, Nov. 19 don’t miss the Fall Festival from 11:00 a.m. – 1 p.m. There will be live music by West Philly’s Citywide Specials, a cooking demonstration and honey, food and apple cider tasting with Milk & Honey, Urban Apiaries, The Restaurant School and Bartram’s Garden, street puppetry from Geppetta, circus performances, and a homespun merry-go-round. The first 100 people will get free S’More’s kits! For more information go here.

In the area on Market St. between 30th Street Station and the site of the former US Post Office building community members gathered to celebrate the opening of a new public space yesterday – “The Porch” at 30th Street Station.

Spearheaded by the University City District,  project has been in development for eight years as part of a larger conversation between the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, Brandywine Realty Trust, Amtrak and the UCD about the revitalization of this central transit hub of Philadelphia.The name of the new space was chosen from some 500 entries submitted by the general pubic.

Once a dangerous walkway outside of the one of the nation’s largest train stations, The Porch is now a 40-foot-wide space complete with tables and chairs, umbrellas and foliage. The project cost about $300,000 and was paid for with the help of a grant from the William Penn Foundation.

The Porch is part of an incentive to make this area more pedestrian-friendly by including farmers’ markets and community programming like weekly yoga and kickboxing classes led by Drexel Unversity Recreational Athletics staff as well as weekly circus events presented by the Little Circus. The Porch is also part of a more “capital intensive” vision for this area of the city. Over the next decade Brandywine Realty Trust (responsible for the Cira Centre) will be redeveloping the old US Post Office building for commercial use.

A fall festival at the space is coming up, including a Milk & Honey-sponsored honey tasting with Urban Apiaries and an apple cider history event presented by Bartram’s Garden.

– Jane