The annual Lancaster Avenue Jazz Festival returns on Saturday, July 16 to Powelton Village. This year’s festival, which runs from noon to 7 p.m. in Penn Presbyterian Saunders Park Greene (39th and Powelton), celebrates women in jazz and features a mix of dynamite artists.

A renowned pianist and composer with Philadelphia roots, Sumi Tonooka, will headline the festival and will also present a master class performance with local youth on Friday (see more info below). Also performing on the Lancaster Avenue Jazz & Arts Festival stage are saxophonist Nzinga Banks, poet and vocalist Pheralyn Dove, vocalist Laurin Talese, trumpeter Dr. Diane Lyle-Smith, guitarist Monnette Sudler, 12 year old Alesandra Pollack, a vocal artist and pianist, and the popular jazz, R&B and soul-spirited Charlene Holloway Band. The Universal African Dance and Drum Ensemble will also be back by popular demand.

Sumi Tonooka

The Lancaster Avenue Jazz & Arts Festival is a FREE family-friendly event showcasing the best of Philadelphia: it features some of the best musicians, a diverse gathering of people, a view of the city and a chance to enjoy a neighborhood that is rich in arts and culture. The festival has grown from a few hundred attendees to more than 3,000!

Artisans and vendors along with a variety of specialty food trucks will be on site. Activities such as a moon bounce, face painting, community resources and digital pop-up computer lab will be available for everyone’s enjoyment. Free parking is available one block away at Penn Presbyterian’s lot at Powelton Avenue and State Street.  Continue Reading

UPDATE (July 15, 2016): The meeting turned out to be anticlimactic as the developer did not show up. The developer is seeking a zoning variance to build the apartment building. The land is zoned for single-family homes only. Those present at the meeting voted overwhelmingly against the variance.

University City’s hot real estate market is putting another community garden under pressure. A public meeting has been scheduled for Thursday, July 14 to discuss a proposed apartment building on one of the parcels that make up the Holly Street Neighbors Community Garden.

The garden is located on four small parcels along 41st Street between Baring and Powelton in the West Powelton neighborhood. A proposal to build a 6-unit apartment building at 320 N. 41st St. is scheduled to go before the Zoning Board of Adjustment in September. One of the four parcels that the garden sits on was up for Sheriff’s sale in May, but was taken off at the last minute. Another parcel is owned by a real estate company and a third parcel has recently been claimed as part of an inheritance.

The Holly Street property has officially been a community garden for about 12 years, but nearby residents have been planting on the vacant lots for decades.

“People have gardened here for years and years and years,” Winnie Harris, who has been managing the garden since it began, told Plan Philly in May. “We wanted the land before anyone else wanted it. And now just because University City is a hot real estate market, you want to build in every open space? I don’t think that’s right. I think the people that were there first should get preference.”

The meeting begins at 7 p.m. at the Mount Zion Church at 4110 Haverford Ave.

          Photos via japanesehouse.org

Parks on Tap is a cool new program by Philadelphia Parks & Rec and Fairmount Park Conservancy that brings a traveling beer garden from park to park for 14 weeks, including a stop at Clark Park during Shakespeare in Park.

From July 8 to July 10, the program will make a stop at the beautiful Shofuso Japanese House and Garden in West Fairmount Park at Landsdowne and Horticultural Drives. Guests can enjoy craft beer, delicious food, and family-friendly activities all weekend long. There will also be FREE admission to the garden and a special $5 admission price into the house.

Parks on Tap will also offer Maha Yoga on Saturday and coincide with Family Tanabata weekend and Japanese Tea ceremonies on Sunday. The Tea Ceremony is an additional $30 and requires a reservation. Hours of operation are Friday and Saturday 1 to 11 p.m. and Sunday 12 to 10 p.m.  Continue Reading

Students at Samuel Powel school design sashes inspired by North African tile patterns in a partnership with University City Arts League (Photo by Gudmund Iversen).

Thirteen Philadelphia groups that offer youth arts enrichment programs have recently received recognition and some financial boost from the city, and it’s great to see some West Philly arts organizations on the list.

The Philadelphia Cultural Fund announced the 2016 Youth Arts Enrichment Grant recipients, which include well-known West Philly-based organizations: Al-Bustan Seeds of Culture, University City Arts League, and Spiral Q Puppet Theater. Grants are ranging from $10,000 to $20,000.

The Youth Arts Enrichment (YAE) Grant Program supports specific programming that uses the arts to enrich the lives of Philadelphia’s young people both in and out of school. YAE grants provide project support for programs that occur between July 1, 2016 and December 31, 2017 and will deliver high quality arts instruction, training, and participatory experiences to young people (aged 5 to 18) who are least likely to access cultural enrichment through other avenues. This includes programming in Philadelphia’s most underserved, impoverished communities.

Besides the YAE grants, the Philadelphia Cultural Fund has awarded general operating grants to dozens of local arts and culture organizations. See the full list of recipients here.

The University City Historical Society (UCHS) is waging a legal battle to stop the demolition of the buildings at 4046-48 Chestnut Street and the construction of an apartment building in its place. These properties, along with the rest of the block date to the 1870s and are currently nominated to the Philadelphia Register of Historic Places. Due to their nomination, the validity of the demolition permits are in question.

“We currently have a stay on them,” writes Kelly Wiles, a UCHS Board member, and tomorrow (Thursday, June 23) at 11 a.m., a hearing is scheduled in Room 232 of City Hall to determine their fate. The public is welcome and encouraged to attend.

“We welcome community support and involvement by those who are interested in maintaining the character and preservation of West Philadelphia’s built environment as well as those who are concerned with the changing patterns of large-scale development, poorly-constructed  and out of place building stock, zoning issues, the displacement of non-student residents,” writes Wiles.  Continue Reading

Another great chance to spend time outdoors and enjoy nature is coming up this Friday (June 24) when The Woodlands kicks off its Nature Nights series with a Firefly Night.

Pack your picnic and flashlights and come to The Woodlands (40th and Woodland) from 6-9 p.m. for a chance to spend some after-dark time inside the gates, which usually close at dusk, and learn more about urban ecosystem and the creatures who call it home.

Tangle Movement Arts is performing a free firefly inspired show, and University City Arts League will be back again this year with fun crafts for families. Lil’ Pop Shop will also be back with their colorful truck and sweet treats.

The event is free and open to the public. More details are available on the The Woodlands’ website and Facebook.

Also, check out these Nature Nights scheduled for this summer:

Bat Night – Go on a bat walk after hours on Thursday, July 28, 6-9 p.m.

Moth Night – Look for moths after dark at The Woodlands on Thursday, Aug. 25, 7-10 p.m.