The city will be conducting mechanical leaf collection for the area between 38th and 52nd Streets and from Baltimore Avenue to Spruce Street this Friday (Nov. 21), so here’s a reminder of what residents in this area should do.

All leaves should be raked and ready for collection by 7:00 a.m. on Friday. Rake leaves into the street by the curb’s edge (piling is not necessary). If possible, move your vehicle to an off-street parking location on your scheduled collection day, so crews can remove leaves along the curb line. Residents in mechanical areas can also drop-off bagged leaves. After the mechanical collection, please sweep and bag any remaining leaves and place them out for the weekly rubbish collections.

There will be only one mechanical leaf collection for each area this year. For more information regarding the 2014 Philly Leaf Recycling Program, click here.

The city will unveil the locations of the most requested bike share stations tomorrow at 30th Street Station. Swing by during the day from 8:15 a.m. to 6 p.m. in the west side of the main waiting area.

As it has already been reported in city-wide and local media, the city’s first bike share program is expected to launch in the Spring 2015, bringing public bikes available for pick-up and drop-off at around 60 locations in Center City and parts of South, North and West Philadelphia. Recently, the City completed a five-week long survey where the public was asked to provide input on suggested bike share stations across the city. Around 10,000 public comments on 100 potential bike share locations were submitted through an online map, via in-person surveys and text messages and now there is an opportunity to learn more about the results of the survey in West Philly.

The first Bike Share Results Open House took place Tuesday in Center City:

Come learn about Philly #bikeshare for Spring 2015, Today at the Gallery 9th and Market Sts. until 6 PM. pic.twitter.com/acukZh05UB

— PhillyBikeShare (@phillybikeshare) November 18, 2014

Some 16 bike share stations have been proposed in West Philadelphia, most of them on and around the Penn and Drexel campuses. The westernmost location is on Walnut Street between 43rd and 44th. One location is on Baltimore Avenue (at 43rd St), three on or near Lancaster Ave (at 38th, 39th and 40th), four on Market Street (near 30th Street Station, 33rd, 37th, and 41st Streets), four on or near Walnut Street (near 34th, 36th, 40th, and 44th Streets).

These and other stations were considered based on a number of factors, including population density, bike lanes, available space, employment, shopping, cultural and recreational destinations and suggestions from stakeholders and the public.

“Tuba Dan” of West Philadelphia Orchestra playing the accordion for West Philly Music Playgroup at Clark Park. (Photo by Anna Selfridge)

About 30 tots and their caregivers, members of the West Philly Music Playgroup, are desperately seeking indoor space for meet-ups and activities during winter. The group, which started in the spring of 2013, has been steadily adding new members who enjoyed playing together and socializing outdoors during the warmer months. Since last spring the group has been meeting at Clark Park (at the stone courtyard at the corner of 45th and Chester) for some outdoor play, music, and fun. But with winter coming on (and the threat of more polar vortices), indoor space is needed that would accommodate the group’s growing numbers.

The group organizers say that they have looked into some available indoor spaces around the neighborhood, but they all charge over a hundred dollars a month.

“The play group has always been free and that makes it more readily available for people of all incomes and backgrounds to join in on the fun,” writes the group founder Alexandra E. Gunnison. “We would really just need the space from December to March, give or take some time depending on the weather.”

The group is not very formal and organizes mostly through social media. “I’ll post a reminder in different Facebook groups (West Philly Playgroup or the group I started, West Philly Nannies) that play group will be happening on Tuesday morning and sometimes we have parents or nannies with their children join in from the park or the street,” writes Alexandra. The kids and caregivers meet up around 10 a.m., have a bit of free play and talk time and then gather together for songs like Ring Around the Rosie, the alphabet, or the Wheels on the Bus.

The group also had a few “special events”, like a Halloween themed music playgroup at the Woodlands Cemetery with apple cider and muffins and birthday celebrations with goody bag hand-outs.

And check out the impressive list of musicians who have already performed for the group’s tiny members (Alexandra says she’s friends with them):

“Tuba” Dan Nosheny of West Philadelphia Orchestra, Neon and Shy, Polkadelphia and Red Hot Ramblers. Sarah Larsen of Lady Bird and Frankie Velardo of The Downtown Shimmy and Aardvark Felon performed for the group as well.

If you would like to help out or for more information please contact Alexandra by calling 240-460-8572 or emailing: aegunnison[at]gmail.com

Some open resistance to standardized testing has bubbled up around the city over the past couple years, with instances of parents and students opting out of the annual Pennsylvania System of School Assessment (PSSA) tests. The issue will go before the City Council’s Education Committee today from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m.

The PSSAs are given to students in grades 3-8 to measure yearly progress. Opponents, who also include teachers, have argued that elementary and middle school curricula have focused too heavily on preparing students for the exams.

The public is invited to today’s meeting, which was scheduled to hear testimony on a resolution authorizing the committee to “conduct hearings concerning the time and financial cost of standardized testing administered to Philadelphia public school students as well as the effects of testing on teaching and learning.”

The meeting is in the City Council Chambers Room 400. Be sure to bring your photo ID if you plan to attend.

Click to enlarge.

A free storytelling project aimed at youth ages 18-21 is looking for participants interested in sharing their stories while learning skills in live performance, mixed media performance and improvisation.

Project organizers want to reach out to the LGBT community and young adults dealing with poverty, addiction and special needs.

“The general idea is to create a nurturing environment where all participants feel included and safe, as well as given the skills to share about the meaningful experiences in their lives,” according to a flyer for the project.

Project Arts will run the project, which begins on Jan. 7 at The Rotunda and runs every Wednesday evening from 5-8 p.m. for seven weeks, culminating in a live performance.

More information is available at the Project Arts website here. There will be 15 spots available and the deadline to apply is Dec. 15. Decisions will be made by Dec. 20.

The School District of Philadelphia has received 40 applications for new charter schools in the city, including for “Girls’ Latin of Philadelphia Charter School,” two high schools in the 19104 zip code and several others around West Philly.

Released Monday afternoon, the list of applicants includes many organizations, including KIPP Philadelphia Schools and Mastery, that already operate schools in the district. The list includes the proposed school’s name, “the applicant team” or entity, the building zip code, grade configuration and projected total enrollment.

The applications will next go through a vetting process that includes a public hearing on each proposed school.

Independence Charter School is proposing two sites in West Philly, a high school in the 19104 zip code, which includes much of the area around Penn and Drexel, and a K-8 in 19142, which covers an area west of 60th Street and south of Kingsessing and includes the Elmwood Park neighborhood. West Philly Local reported last week that Independence was interested in a school in West Philly in 19139 or 19143. It turns out it could open two, but in neither of those zip codes. Both of these are proposed to start in the 2016-2017 school year.  Continue Reading