The Spring edition of Go West! Craft Fest is returning on Saturday, April 30 to the green space of the historic Woodlands cemetery grounds (40th and Woodland), and it looks like it’s going to be a great show.

Over 100 vendors will present their beautiful handmade items, so it’s a great opportunity to shop for something unique. At the fest, you can find locally made jewelry, pottery, stationery, prints and original artwork, clothing, bags, candles, bath & body products, children’s items, and much more (check out the event’s Pinterest board).

And here’s the schedule for free live music and entertainment for the whole family:

11 a.m. – Sing along with Ann from the Green Tambourine, Baltimore Avenue’s children’s music studio
11:45 a.m. – The Daisy Pickers, folksy, rootsy, joyful Americana
12:30 p.m. – Philadelphia Women’s Slavic Ensemble will present choral music from eastern Europe
1 p.m. – Jay Sand of All Around This World, a musical exploration of world cultures for children
1:45 p.m. – River Bones, Philly-style bluegrass (with Sean Dorn on bass)
2:30 p.m. – Evan Cory Levine makes great-grandpa’s jazz sound brand new
3:15 p.m. – Tinycircus, aerial flights of fancy by Tangle Movement Arts
4:15 p.m. – Shakey Lyman, blues legend  Continue Reading

Two important community meetings are scheduled for tomorrow in the Mantua neighborhood – on re-zoning and gentrification issues. Residents are encouraged to attend.

Councilwoman Jannie Blackwell has scheduled a Mantua community re-zoning meeting for Thursday, April 28 after hundreds of Mantua residents participated in a mass letter-writing campaign to her office. The meeting will take place at Grace Lutheran Church (3529 Haverford Ave.), from 6-7:30 p.m.

At this meeting, residents can share their voice about how development occurs in their community and finalize re-zoning based on priorities that:

1. Promote and protect single family homeownership
2. Focus commercial zoning along highly trafficked corridors
3. Correct zoning for parks, recreation centers, and public-use spaces

The meeting is hosted by the Mantua Civic Association and Mt. Vernon Manor CDC.  Continue Reading

It’s hard to imagine West Philly’s Clark Park without Uhuru Flea Markets. After a six-month break the popular event is returning on Sunday, April 24 (postponed from Saturday, Apr 23 due to rain). The Uhuru Health Festival & Flea Market will kick off the 2016 Flea Market season, with the powerful theme of Black Health Matters. The festival will feature local health practitioners, fitness workshops, free health screenings, live entertainment, and two important keynote speakers: APEDF President Ona Zene Yeshitela, and John Thomas, Manager of the Tyron Lewis Community Gym.

The Uhuru Health Festival & Flea Market is an economic development project of the African People’s Education and Defense Fund (APEDF). As a national non-profit organization, APEDF is dedicated to raising resources and developing programming to overturn the grave disparities in health, education, and economic development within the African community. The Health Festival is only one part of the important work to carry out APEDF’s mission of developing self-determination for Africans and all oppressed peoples.

Little Marrakesh Bazaar will be there, too! (Facebook photo)

The festival will also feature free health resources and information from a large number of local health and wellness organizations, including Philadelphia FIGHT, Refugee Health Partners, music by Coco Sol & the Chillettes, and much more.

The festival will be held from 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. at 43rd and Chester.

This year, Uhuru Flea Markets are scheduled for April 23 (Facebook page), May 21, June 18, Aug. 20, Sept. 24 (Book Fair), and Oct. 22. Visit uhuruhealthfest.blogspot.com for more information.

Soil Kitchen will be at The Dirt Factory on Saturday, Apr. 23 from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m., which means you can bring some of the soil from your garden to be tested for lead and other poisonous elements. While there, you can also pick up some high-quality organic compost. The Dirt Factory will be distributing up to 10 gallons per person of screened compost produced from University City’s fallen leaves and food scraps.

All this is part of the Dirt Day activities to be held at The Dirt Factory. All participants will receive a consultation on their test results, and free soup! See the infographic below on how to prepare a soil sample for testing.

The Dirt Factory is located at 4308 Market Street. For more information about the site, click here. And here is the event’s Facebook page (please RSVP if you’re planning to attend).

Philadelphia Science Festival at Clark Park (Photo via  www.philasciencefestival.org)

The annual Philadelphia Science Festival returns on April 22 – 30. A lot of cool and FREE events will be happening in West and Southwest Philadelphia, from Astronomy Night for families to a discussion of the brewing process and beer sampling for adults. Here are some of them (for more events, visit: www.philasciencefestival.org):

Saturday, April 23

Astronomy Night (rescheduled from Friday, Apr. 22)

7:30 – 10:30 p.m.

Join local astronomers for some stargazing and participate in other cool projects. Several locations will be hosting this event, so pick one: Drexel University’s Dornsife Center (3509 Spring Garden St.), The African Episcopal Church of Saint Thomas (6361 Lancaster Ave), CHOP Karabots Pediatric Care Center (4865 Market St.), Schuylkill Banks (Schuylkill Banks Trail at Walnut St.), USFWS John Heinz National Wildlife Refuge at Tinicum (8601 Lindbergh Blvd.).  Continue Reading

The University City District has announced the return of their signature and super popular summer events – the Baltimore Avenue Dollar Stroll, University City Dining Days, 40th Street Summer Concert Series, and Movies in Clark Park.

Only one Baltimore Avenue Dollar Stroll has been scheduled for this summer – Thursday, Sept. 8, from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. As always, local businesses will present $1 bargains from 43rd to 52nd Street. And there will be some new businesses participating in the event this summer. Stay tuned for more information.

                              Photo courtesy UCD

University City Dining Days will run from Thursday, July 14 to Sunday, July 24. Now in its 12th year, Dining Days is a 3 courses, 3 prices promotion at some of University City’s most popular dining destinations, from exceptional craft beer bars to celebrity chef restaurants to cozy BYOBs. This event is also a great opportunity to explore the diverse international cuisine in the area, including Indian, Ethiopian, Chinese, Vietnamese, Japanese, Mexican, Italian, and more. For more information, check out: www.ucdiningdays.com.  Continue Reading