The annual SEPTA trolley tunnel maintenance project, the “Trolley Tunnel Blitz,” is scheduled to begin at 10 p.m. on Friday, Aug. 9 and will continue until Monday, Aug. 19 at 5 a.m., SEPTA has announced. For the duration of the project, which will include trolley track replacement, station upgrades, painting and cleaning, and other maintenance work, Trolley Routes 10, 11, 13, 34 and 36 will not operate in the tunnel.

During the Trolley Tunnel Blitz, all trolleys will divert to 40th and Market Streets where passengers can transfer to the Market-Frankford line at no additional cost for service to/from Center City.  Continue Reading

The Chestnut Street Bridge over the Schuylkill River will close for renovation on Monday, Aug. 5. The bridge will be closed to all traffic – cars, pedestrians and bicycles – for approximately one year.

The closure will result in many changes in traffic pattern, volume and detours in the area, including public transportation. SEPTA buses 21 and 42 are detouring around the bridge to cross the Schuylkill on Market Street. Traffic congestion and travel delays should be anticipated during this time.  Continue Reading

The local theater company Theatre in the X will stage the world premiere of The Beast of Nubia on Sunday, Aug. 4 at 5 p.m. in the center of Malcolm X. Park (51st and Pine). Performances will follow on the next two Sundays, Aug. 11 and 18, also at 5 p.m.

Here’s how they describe The Beast of Nubia, which was written by Jonathan Bethea:

“In the deserts of ancient Nubia there is a magical kingdom guarded by a monstrous beast. When a merchant wrongs the beast his eldest daughter agrees to sacrifice herself in his place. What follows is a grand adventure filled with romance and excitement, as two very different people learn to cope with one another.”  Continue Reading

Restaurants Clarkville and Local 44, which are both owned by the same company, closed earlier this week while the owners “work internally with staff and the community to address what’s going on in a genuine and meaningful way,” according to co-owner Leigh Maida.

Staff members at Clarkville organized a walkout last weekend and protested outside the restaurant, located at 43rd and Baltimore, after one of their co-workers was fired, they believe, unjustly. There were also protests outside of Local 44 claiming bias in the restaurant’s employment practices. Many community members took to social media to express their concern over what has happened.  Continue Reading

Police are searching for two suspects in connection to an armed robbery that took place Thursday morning on the University of Pennsylvania’s campus. Two men, armed with a rifle and a handgun, robbed an armored car guard on the 3500 block of Market Street at around 10 a.m. during a cash delivery to an ATM, according to reports. The men got a hold of two bags of money, but dropped them after the second guard in the armored vehicle opened fire, 6ABC reports.

The suspects fled the scene after the shots were fired at them. One suspect fled on foot eastbound on Market Street, and the other one reportedly fled in a maroon Chevy Trailblazer. Police recovered the stolen bags of money and a gun with an assault weapon clip containing 40 to 50 rounds that the suspects had dropped when fleeing.  Continue Reading

One of the signs posted near the alley accessing 303 S. 51st Street (Photo by West Philly Local).

About 60 people packed into a meeting room at a church at 51st and Spruce on Monday for the first public meeting of Neighbors for Healthy Community Development (NHCD), a group of residents organizing to bring attention to a planned residential development on an oddly located piece of land near Malcolm X. Park.  Continue Reading