An assistant to the French-Tunisian artist eL Seed puts the finishing touches on a new mural at the corner of Preston and Market (Photos by Mike Lyons, West Philly Local)

If you’ve been up around 40th and Market in the past few days, you may have noticed a lot of activity near the corner of Market and Preston. The French-Tunisian “calligraffiti” artist el Seed is painting a mural.

eL Seed and two assistants have been working on the mural day and night since Monday and, despite the theft of their paint earlier in the week, the mural will be unveiled officially tomorrow (Saturday, Nov. 18) at 11 a.m. Mural Arts Philadelphia and Al-Bustan Seeds of Culture co-sponsored the piece.  Continue Reading

UC Green, the West Philly-based community greening nonprofit, will plant 46 trees throughout University City and surrounding West Philadelphia neighborhoods on Saturday, Nov. 18, 2017.

UC Green planted this tree in memory Winnie Harris, UC Green Executive Director and community green space advocate who was murdered on February 2, 2017.

“The Greater Philadelphia region has lost millions of trees in recent decades to development, storms, and pests. Replacing our tree canopy is an important goal that will benefit the region for years to come,” reads a press release by the organization. It can take a lifetime for some trees to mature, so planting trees now is very important.

UC Green’s ongoing partnership with the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society supports semi-annual tree planting events like the upcoming planting on November 18th. This Fall 2017 event was funded largely through the recent More Trees Please campaign, with individual donations accruing to exceed the targeted goal of $11,000.

“We are particularly grateful to the UC Green volunteers and sponsors whose generous financial contributions enable us to plant all of the approved trees in our area,” said Edwin Datz, UC Green Board President. He added, “We are eager to continue our work honoring the legacy of our Executive Director Winnie Harris, who was tragically murdered last February. Recent developments in the criminal investigation provide our UC Green family with some closure. Winnie’s memory will drive our community greening efforts for many years to come.” (Editor’s Note: Read more about Winnie Harris’s murder investigation here).

UC Green joins hundreds of PHS Tree Tenders and other volunteers from 60 neighborhoods and communities to jointly plant 400 trees in Philadelphia.

The 2017 Philadelphia Marathon will take place on Sunday, Nov. 19, and the half-marathon on Saturday, Nov. 18. Here’s some important information on road closures, bus detours, and cheer zones.

Marathon Races, Activities, Cheer Zones

Here you can find information on the marathon and here on the half-marathon. Other activities include the  Rothman 8K Run and Kids Fun Run on Saturday. And if you want to cheer on the runners, here’s information on the cheer zones.  Continue Reading

Atiya Ola’s is now open on S. 48th Street next door to 48th Street Grille. (Photo by Rana Fayez)

A few months ago, Atiya Ola’s had no choice but to move out of their Baltimore Ave. location. Community organizations held fundraisers to help them pay rent, but restaurant owner Atiya Ola has not been able to find a suitable location until recently. Atiya Ola’s Spirit First Foods (Facebook page) held a grand opening earlier this month to invite the community into their new, albeit temporary location at Common Table on 48th street between Pine and Spruce. The business has even installed window signage, indicating that the restaurant is here to stay.

The Dorrance H. Hamilton Culinary Center, a division of the Enterprise Center in the Garden Court neighborhood, has a pop-up restaurant space called Common Table. The space is made available to businesses enrolled within the Center’s food industry incubator. As a business owner that has handled change gracefully, Atiya Ola welcomes the new scenery. “The universal laws opened the gateway for me to relocate here,” said Ola.  Continue Reading

November 18th will be exactly 10 years since Cedar Park’s craft and gift shop VIX Emporium opened its doors to customers at 5009 Baltimore Ave. To celebrate the shop’s 10th anniversary, owner Emily Dorn invites everyone to a party this Saturday from 6 – 9 p.m.

It’s also the opening party for two new 2018 wall calendars by two local artists. One features 12 tiny oil paintings of West Philadelphia architecture by Russell Brodie (see image below), and the other, by Loretta Gary of Radical Hearts Print Lab, highlights 12 prominent social and political activists.

Both limited-edition calendars will be available for sale.

And last but not least, you can head start on your holiday shopping at VIX. Your purchase of $50 or more during the party will be 10 percent off. Also, stay tuned for more details about the annual Go West! Holiday Craft Fest, which will take place at The Rotunda on Sunday, Dec. 10.  Continue Reading

Mayor Jim Kenney told the audience gathered for the Spruce Hill Community Association annual meeting last night that the city would likely to have a handful of serious proposals for the old Provident Mutual Insurance building at 4601 Market St. by early January.

His administration cancelled plans in May to move the police headquarters to the building, opting instead for the old Philadelphia Inquirer building at 400 N. Broad St. Those plans were devised during the administration of Michael Nutter.

The city has received several requests for quotation (RFQ) on the property. These are narrative proposals of what would be done with the property. Those proposals range from commercial and retail to medical and educational. All propose a mix of uses for the property. Kenney said the RFQs are private and he could not provide specific details on any of them.  Continue Reading