This holiday season, West Philly restaurant Renata’s Kitchen is helping the local branch of an organization which supports families of seriously ill children. Instead of purchasing more gift cards, Renata’s Kitchen owners Kate and Yasser Aiq are asking guests to donate towards catering orders for the local Ronald McDonald House. The organization has been struggling this year to recruit volunteers to prepare and serve their guest families during the pandemic.

“As a restaurant, we’ve also been struggling with the restrictions in place to keep everyone safe,” says Kate. But they don’t want to ask for support without giving something in return. “Just doesn’t feel right as a business to do,” she adds.  Continue Reading

In addition to the Holiday Gift Card Promotion (running through Dec. 24) and West Philly Forward Fundraising campaign where you can donate directly to local businesses and organizations, University City District has recently launched another campaign supporting West Philly businesses – West Philly Favorites.

The new campaign features a curated series of gift packs filled with handcrafted and locally produced items from small neighborhood businesses, including VIX Emporium, Renata’s Kitchen, Jezabel’s Cafe, Metropolitan Bakery, Snapdragon Flowers, and more. All proceeds from sales of West Philly Favorites packs go to participating businesses.  Continue Reading

The Indego bike station at 44th and Walnut.

Indego, Philly’s bike share program, has announced that it will expand in West Philadelphia and parts of South Philadelphia next year. Indego is planning to install approximately 30 new stations in the city next year, including in the new service area in West Philly, which includes the neighborhoods of Garden Court, Walnut Hill, Cedar Park, and Mill Creek (see map below).

Indego also plans to add more stations to the already existing service area and will introduce 300 electric bikes to its fleet in 2021.  Continue Reading

An artist’s rendering of the proposed apartment building at 48th and Chester, which would be built on the site of a former dog park.

The West Philadelphia nursing home that is proposing to construct an 83-unit apartment building on a former dog park at 48th and Chester introduced its plan to an online community meeting last night.

Owners of the Renaissance Healthcare and Rehabilitation Center seek to combine several land parcels adjacent to the nursing home and are asking the city’s Zoning Board of Adjustment (ZBA) for a blanket zoning designation that would allow them to erect the four-story building. That zoning change requires community input before it goes to the ZBA in a few months.  Continue Reading

Philadelphia has received its first batch of Pfizer COVID-19 vaccines and is expected to begin vaccinations this morning at multiple hospitals across the city, according to Philadelphia Health Commissioner Thomas Farley. Some 13,600 doses will be administered this week and health care workers are first in line to get vaccinated.

The City has outlined a plan of how vaccine doses will be administered, as more Pfizer and Moderna vaccine shipments are expected in the coming weeks and months. The following six tiers of vaccine distribution have been outlined:

1. Health care workers routinely exposed to COVID-19 patients
2. Residents and staff at nursing homes
3. “Critical infrastructure workers” who are routinely exposed to COVID-19 while on the job, such as police officers, firefighters, SEPTA drivers, and sanitation workers.
4. Residents and workers in other congregant settings
5. People with underlying medical conditions
6. The rest of the general public

Continue Reading

City councilmember Jamie Gauthier is teaming up with former councilmember Jannie Blackwell and AHARI, a non-profit organization supporting veterans at-risk, to offer free food and winter gear (hats, scarves, gloves and socks) to anyone in need this Wednesday, Dec. 16 at Malcolm X. Park (52nd and Larchwood). The event is scheduled due to the winter storm expected to hit our area tomorrow afternoon.

The event will begin at 10 a.m. and go on as long as food supplies last. See the flier for more information.

Due to the inclement weather and cold temperatures setting in in the area this week, the City of Philadelphia has declared the first Code Blue of the cold weather season. If you see someone who needs shelter, please call the Philadelphia Homeless Outreach Hotline at 215-232-1984.