Brewerytown: Residents Adapting Alongside New Developments, Businesses
Brewerytown is an attractive neighborhood to people looking for the cool, new hot spot to live. Its accessibility by public transportation and its proximity to Center City and Fairmount Park have made it an enticing area for developers and new residents. It’s no question that Brewerytown has seen changes in recent years. New apartment buildings […]
Olney: Best for PHL, Philly Unite And More This Week
Looking to find out what’s going on in Olney this week? Our calendar round-up lets you know what’s happening in your neighborhood. Bop & Cha-cha– Monday, Aug. 21, 6-7:30 p.m., Greater Olney Library – Community Meeting Room, (5501 N. Fifth St.) Best for PHL Challenge Workshop– Tuesday, Aug. 22, 3-5 p.m., Greater Olney Library – Community […]
How To: Start A Registered Community Organization (RCO)
A few years ago, City Council established new qualifications for community organizations that wish to be part of development decisions in their area. Registered Community Organizations (RCO) are formal groups of community members that weigh in on the physical development of their neighborhood, from community gardens to zoning issues. When a developer wants to build […]
Mount Airy: Redevelopment Projects Look to Eliminate Blight, Improve Livelihood of Historic Neighborhood
Dating back to the 1680s, when it was a just small part of Germantown, the neighborhood of Mount Airy has a rich history that has shaped the diverse and tight-knit community that it is today. In 1750, William Allen, a chief justice for the province of Pennsylvania, built an estate at the corner of modern-day […]
Chinatown: Officials Weigh Competing Proposals for Development at Parking Lot Site
Cecilia Yep has served the Chinatown community for decades. As one of the founders of the Philadelphia Chinatown Development Corp., she has fought what she considers intrusive development, including a proposed stadium near the Vine Street Expressway and Chinatown’s northern border. And on March 6, in a overflowing meeting room at 1234 Market St., Yep […]
Point Breeze: Community Organization Seeks Neighborhood Engagement
Alice Shockley has lived in Point Breeze for the past 79 years and has no plans of leaving. The 85-year-old retired nurse has been an active member of Neighbors in Action for the past 10 years, where she currently serves as vice president. Shockley has witnessed the largely residential Point Breeze community undergo demographic shifts affecting […]
Brewerytown: Girard-Dream Garden An Attempt To Integrate Bordering Neighborhoods
In 2011, the Brewerytown CDC and the Fairmount CDC collaborated to turn an abandoned lot into a space the two neighborhoods could put to use, creating the foundation for the community run Girard-Dream Garden. With the help of a grant from the Preservation Alliance for Greater Philadelphia, the Fairmount CDC was able to select and […]
Strawberry Mansion: Tyrone Williams of NAC Teaches Community To Use Its Voice
Now the head of community engagement at the Strawberry Mansion Neighborhood Action Center, Tyrone Williams has worked his whole life trying to better his community. From a young age, Williams took an active interest in reaching out to people. He estimated his history in community outreach went back to when he was 11-years old and a […]
Logan Square: “Like Living and Having a Classroom Outside of The Classroom”
The Logan Square Neighborhood Association is an all-volunteer community organization comprised of residents and organizations in the Logan Square area who hope to keep the area a beautiful and safe place to live and visit. In order for the organization to run smoothly, it needs strong leaders who can recognize the needs of the community. […]
Manayunk: Kevin Smith Fights for Development that Makes Sense
Kevin Smith is president of the Manayunk Neighborhood Council, a not-for-profit civic association dedicated to promoting a unified and sustainable community in Manayunk. Smith, who was raised in Southern California and moved to Manayunk about 20 years ago, sat down at Volo Coffeehouse on Main Street to discuss some of the issues and projects the […]