Jane’s Walk, a global movement of free, locally led walking tours inspired by the legacy of writer and urban activist Jane Jacobs, returns to Philadelphia May 3-5 with more than 30 walks planned! Five of those walks will be held in West and Southwest Philadelphia. Here are more details:

Friday, May 3:

2:30 p.m.: The Penn Campus and Its Perimeter: Old and New Architecture
Meet walk leader David Hollenberg (UPenn/architect) at 40th and Locust streets  Continue Reading

Jane’s Walk, the annual festival of free, citizen-led walking tours inspired by the American-Canadian journalist, author and activist Jane Jacobs, returns to Philadelphia on May 4-6 with 27 walks around the city! Three walks will be held in West Philly and University City – all on Friday, May 4th and all new. Here are more details:

• 3 – 5 p.m.: The Gardens of West Philadelphia walk and conversation with Jeff Barg of Pennsylvania Horticultural Society will begin and end at UCity Square PHS Pop-Up Garden (3601 Filbert St.). Join PHS on a walking tour of one of Philadelphia’s most garden-rich neighborhoods. This two-hour walking tour will explore the gardens of Powelton Village and West Powelton, some of which boast decades of history. Kids, dogs and bicycles are welcome. Event Facebook page.  Continue Reading

PlanPhilly is once again presenting Jane’s Walk, a series of free, citizen-led walking tours inspired by writer and urban activist Jane Jacobs. The walks are geared at getting people engaged with their city and connecting with one another. Last year, there were more than 800 walks in more than 200 cities around the world. This year the walks will celebrate Jacobs’ 100th birthday (May 4).

Twelve walks have been scheduled this year for May 6-8 in Philadelphia, including two walks in West Philly:

Friday, May 6: Tactical Urbanism on the Eastern Edge of University City, with Nate Hommel

Join Nate Hommel of University City District (UCD) on a tour of public spaces popping up on formerly underutilized spaces, including: the Market Street Bridge, The Porch at 30th Street Station, and others. The walk begins at The Porch at 5 p.m. Registration is not required but you can RSVP here.

Sunday, May 8: Baltimore Avenue: A Place for People, with Daniel Wolf

On this walk down Baltimore Avenue, you’ll learn about a few recent and upcoming projects initiated by UCD to enhance the pedestrian environment. The walk will begin at 40th Street Portal at 5 p.m. and will conclude in Cedar Park and there will be a couple of surprises. More info is here.

For information on other walks taking place this weekend in Philadelphia, visit: http://janeswalk.org/united-states/philadelphia/

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Here’s a great opportunity to learn more about your neighborhood. This weekend, PlanPhilly is organizing free walks in the city as part of Jane’s Walk, a global movement of free, locally-led walking tours inspired by the urbanist and writer Jane Jacobs. The goal of the tours is to get people engaged with their city and one another and to talk about walkability, neighborhood corridors, hidden histories, public spaces, and more.

There will be two walks in West Philly on Friday, May 1. The first one, titled “Breaking the University City HS Superblock,” will be led by James Wright of People’s Emergency Center (PEC). The walk will begin at 4 p.m. at 40th and Market and travel north (see map). All you need to do is show up at the starting point and come up to James, who will be holding a sign. Check out this page for more information.

Starting at 5:30 p.m. on Friday, Daniel Wolf of the University City District will lead a tour down Baltimore Avenue, called “Making Baltimore Ave a Place for People.” This tour will begin at the 40th Street Trolley Portal and end in Cedar Park. Click here for more info.

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This weekend there’s an awesome chance to learn more about the city’s commercial corridors on the rise, hidden neighborhood histories and stroll around some great public spaces – all thanks to Jane’s Walk, a free series of neighborhood walks presented by PlanPhilly.

There will be seven walks all together taking place on Friday through Sunday, May 2-4 (learn more about each walk here). But of particular interest to West Philly folks may be a walk organized on Friday on Lancaster Avenue, “Uncovering Historic Buildings on Lancaster Avenue.” Two people from the People’s Emergency Center, James Wright and Stephanie Wall, will be leading this tour of a few blocks of Lancaster Ave to talk about work to improve and reuse significant historic properties along the corridor.

Jane’s Walk is a global movement of free, locally-led walking tours inspired by the urbanist and writer Jane Jacobs. The walks are roving conversations geared at getting people engaged with their city and connecting with one another. This is the first year Philadelphia has formally participated in the festival, which takes place in more than 100 cities.

The Lancaster Avenue walk begins at 4 p.m.