North Philadelphia: Promoting Literacy To Parents And Children In Unlikely Places
A shave, a haircut … and a good book? A North Philadelphia barber shop is part of a program to help increase literacy and help strengthen the community. Jasmond Schoolfield, better known as “Jazz the Barber,” owns Creative Image Unisex Hair Salon at 2737 W. Cecil B. Moore Ave. Putting down his hair cutting tools, he takes […]
Kensington: Esperanza To Spend $14.5M To Transform Vacant Building Into Health Center
The new Esperanza Health Center in Kensington is expected to benefit the entire neighborhood by expanding access to much needed medical services in a state-of-the-art facility, said Juan Perez, operations director at Esperanza Health Center. “We may have been one of three in the city that received this grant from the state,” said Perez (pictured […]
Immigration: The Welcoming Center For New Pennsylvanians Assists Those New To Philadelphia
The Welcoming Center for New Pennsylvanians is a Philadelphia-based nonprofit that seeks to help those in need, including immigrants and refugees, with improving their lives and socioeconomic status. Philadelphians who are foreign born often find themselves at a disadvantage in the job market and require additional assistance in getting the education, language skills and connections […]
Latinx: Hispanic-Owned Businesses Continue To Grow in the Greater Philadelphia Region
On a national level, the Latinx baby boom is expected to increase the population by 167% in the next thirty years. With an ever growing population of about 1.6 million residents, the Latinx community in Philadelphia brings vitality not only culturally but economically. Concentrated in Hispanic-populated areas, these businesses are multiplying just as fast as […]
Hunting Park: Bodegas and Bodyshops Revive The Economy of North 5th Street
Specks of sawdust shimmered in the sunlight as the shrill of power tools echoed throughout the skeleton of a body shop. The sight is no longer uncommon along the 5th Street Corridor of North Philadelphia, between Luzerne and Wyoming streets, but rather serves as evidence to the recent economic influx of Hunting Park. “I’ve been […]
Strawberry Mansion: Shoe Drive Campaign Makes Environmental and Economic Impact
Irvin B. Shannon, executive director of the Harmonious Volunteer Center (HVC), walked into Wash-n-Dry Laundromat at 26th Street and Cecil B. Moore Avenue on Wednesday, Dec. 2. He greeted the laundry attendant, opened the lid of a large trash bin, and reached his arm all the way to the bottom. This particular trash bin wasn’t […]
Manayunk: Cigar Shop Owner Takes Unique Path to Success
Kosta Fotiadis moved to Philadelphia in 2002 to chase his dream job, working for Lockheed Martin. Now, just 13 years later, Fotiadis is the proud owner of award winning cigar and hookah lounge Smoke, a totally different dream job. “Owning your own business, making your own hours, being your own boss, that’s the real dream job. It’s […]
West Kensington: Weathering an Economic Storm
Kensington Avenue, once the area’s centralized strip of commercial business, is still bustling to this day. New faces, new businesses and new wares are sold up and down the avenue. The first mile of Kensington Avenue, which spans from York Street to Allegheny Avenue, echoes the emptiness left behind by those who have left the […]
Mantua: “Promising” a Supermarket in Mantua
Twenty two years ago, Mantua’s only grocery store, located on 34th Street, burned to the ground. Since then, the neighborhood has never had a grocery store to call its own, forcing those living there to take two bus lines to two different supermarkets on Columbus Boulevard or to the more expensive option of shopping at […]
Al Dia: Five Places You Should Know
“Welcome to the center of gold” as the mural reads, or in this case the heart of Philadelphia’s Fairhill section, located at the intersection of 5th Street and Lehigh Avenue. Fairhill has the highest concentration of Latino residents of any neighborhood in Philadelphia, but it is just one of many Latino hotspots located throughout the […]