Second Fridays on Lancaster Avenue returns this week, and in addition to live music, art shows, film screenings, and community events will now also include a market! Join your friends and neighbors on Friday, Jan. 12, from 4-8 p.m. at The Bank (3750 Lancaster Ave) for the West Side Market featuring a dozen of local food, beverage and craft vendors, music, and Friday night fun. The market will return to The Bank every second Friday.

For more information and updates, check out the Lancaster Avenue Philly website and Facebook page.

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day is on Monday, Jan. 15. Here’s a list of events and Day of Service opportunities for local residents. Visit mlkdayofservice.org/volunteer for more volunteer opportunities in Philadelphia.

• MLK Events at Penn

Penn’s MLK Day of Service activities begin with a breakfast for volunteers, and includes a college fair, sprucing up various locations around West Philadelphia, recording audio books to promote literacy and more. It concludes with a candlelight vigil. More details can be found here.

The Day of Service kicks off Penn’s Annual MLK Symposium for Social Change, two weeks worth of events and activities (from panel discussions to film screenings to performances and lectures) that are centered around social justice. For more information, go here.  Continue Reading

UPDATE (1:40 p.m.): Both meetings have been canceled due to freezing rain in the forecast for late Monday afternoon/evening. The Spruce Hill Zoning Committee meeting will be rescheduled at the earliest possible date, according to Zoning Committee chair Garry Grossbach. The Fair Districts PA meeting will be rescheduled for February. Stay tuned for more updates.

Residents are invited to get more information about development projects in Spruce Hill and how to get involved with nonpartisan group Fair Districts PA at two community meetings on Monday, Jan. 8.

4508-10 Walnut Street (Google Street View image).

A Spruce Hill Zoning Committee meeting will take place at the Spruce Hill Center (257 S. 45th St) and will inform neighborhood residents about two proposals: Conversion of three-unit building to five units at 424 S. 45th St. and conversion of nine existing apartments into 18 at 4508-10 Walnut St.

The 9,251 square feet building at 4508-10 Walnut Street is owned by Safdan Partners LLC. Eighteen units are proposed from partially on the first floor to the fourth floor of the building, which also houses two storefronts currently occupied by LULU Cafe and Hunter Gatherer Tattoo.

The meeting will begin at 7 p.m.  Continue Reading

In the next couple of weeks both the City programs and local organizations are offering Christmas tree recycling opportunities to residents.

The City’s Residential Christmas Tree Recycling Program will run from Tuesday, Jan. 2 through Saturday, Jan. 13. The 29-year old program, developed by the Streets Department’s Sanitation Division, provides citizens with an environmentally beneficial alternative for the disposal of used trees.

Residents who wish to drop off their trees to be recycled may take them to the Streets Department Sanitation Convenience Centers open 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. from Monday through Saturday.  Continue Reading

On New Year’s Eve (Sunday, Dec. 31), neighbors and guests are invited to the Philadelphia Episcopal Cathedral (38th and Chestnut) for “Watch Night for Racial Justice” – an evening of jazz that will benefit interfaith organization P.O.W.E.R. (Philadelphians Organized to Witness, Empower, and Rebuild).

The event is in response to the alarming increase in racist violence and injustice over the past year. It celebrates the tradition of “Watch Night” which began on New Year’s Eve 1863 in black churches throughout the nation awaiting the announcement of the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1864.  Continue Reading

This holiday season, some West Philly-based community organizations and churches make sure that children from low-income communities have a chance to celebrate and receive gifts.

The Walnut Hill Community Association (WHCA), in partnership with The Enterprise Center Community Development Corporation (TEC-CDC) and other organizations and businesses will host the 4th annual Walnut Hill Holiday Extravaganza on Tuesday afternoon, 3-5 p.m.. This holiday event is held at the Max Paul Park (4610 Market St.), and this year, over 300 neighborhood children are expected to attend.

Walnut Hill families, neighbors and friends have also been invited. A beautifully decorated 10ft Christmas tree will stand tall amidst the festivity. There will be carolers, music, lights, photos, life-size gingerbread house, Santa and gifts for everyone.  Continue Reading