The Chestnut Street Bridge over the Schuylkill River has recently reopened after being closed for reconstruction for more than two years. The 65-year-old bridge closed for repairs in August 2019 to all traffic, causing detours of SEPTA buses 21 and 42. The construction on the bridge had to be paused in 2020 due to the pandemic.

The $103.5 million construction project, carried out by PennDOT, included the repair of the bridge’s steel superstructure and replacement of the deck. The upgrades also include wider sidewalks and a protected bike lane.

Gretchen Elise (right) and funk bassist Marcy Francis (Screenshot from “Thank You” video).

Local singer-songwriter, educator and youth advocate Gretchen Elise is excited to share the news that “from the depths of the pandemic” she is releasing a new, joyful and danceable West Philly-centric single, “Thank You”. The video for the song was filmed in Clark Park, One Art Community Center and other locations in West Philly and features local jazz and arts community members.

The song celebrates arts educator Tim Gibbon, the former director of the Picasso Project, an arts education program in Philadelphia public schools for which she served as director and currently is a teaching artist. Elise solicited words about Gibbon from more than 30 of his colleagues.

“She is different,” shares Leo Gadson, Producers Guild jazz promoter. “She is caring. She is all about lifting other people up. She makes sure that her people connect, different mediums, different demographics.” Continue Reading

The 48th and Woodland Recreation Advisory Council will meet on Thursday, March 24 to discussion efforts to put a trolley stop back at 47th and Woodland Avenue, near the playground there, which had been removed.

This winter, residents and local officials have expressed their concerns with the lack of accessible trolley service and have been calling on SEPTA to bring the stop back. City Councilmember Jamie Gauthier and state Rep. Rick Krajewski will attend the meeting. SEPTA officials will also be at the meeting.

The meeting is scheduled to run from 6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. at the 48th and Woodland Playground at 1414 S. 47th St.

Philadelphia homeowners can now protect themselves from unsolicited offers from real estate brokers or wholesalers. Based on the “homeowner protection law” passed in 2020, which prohibits wholesalers and their agents from soliciting homeowners who don’t wish to be contacted, the City has launched a Do Not Solicit registry.

The types of solicitation may include in-person contact, telephone calls, mailings, digital communications and other written communication, like flyers placed at your door or on your vehicle. By registering in the list, homeowners opt out from receiving any direct offers to purchase their residential property as well as advertisements for “just listed” or sold houses in a neighborhood. Continue Reading

Photo from www.phila.gov

The second phase of Mechanical Street Cleaning, the Streets Department’s pilot program that launched in 2019, is currently underway. The 2022 program is scheduled to begin on April 4th and will include mechanical sweeping on select routes in West and Southwest Philadelphia:

• Parkside to Spring Garden from 52nd to 40th (see map)

• Woodland to Kingsessing from 49th to Cemetery (see map)

Mechanical street cleaning utilizes trucks with mechanical brooms sweeping street debris (see photo). In addition, Streets Department staff will clean some routes with backpack blowers and hand brooms. Sanitation officers may issue sanitation code violations related to litter and dumping as part of this program. Continue Reading

Click to enlarge

Spak Group, the West Philly real estate company behind WADE Flats, a new housing development at the intersection of 53rd St. and Whitby Ave., is sponsoring a new mural in partnership with Mural Arts Philadelphia. The mural will be located on the entirety of the 5300 Whitby Avenue Bridge and Spak Group is inviting all interested neighbors to participate in its creation process, which includes planning, design, production and celebration.

The first step in this process will take place Thursday, March 17, at a community meeting which will be held at the New Testament Church of God at 935 S. 53rd St., beginning at 6:30 p.m. The meeting is open to the public and does not require an RSVP or reservation. Continue Reading