Mayor Jim Kenney says scheduled street cleaning will be back in every neighborhood in the city by the time his second term, which began yesterday, ends in 2023. If he follows through, Philadelphia will no longer be the only major U.S. city not to have regular street sweeping.

Budget cuts that began in the 1970s spelled the end of street sweeping across the city by the late 90s. Since then, vocal concerns over neighborhood residents having to move their cars on possible cleaning days have, in part, prevented a sweeping program from coming back.  Continue Reading

Theatre in the X. (Photo by West Philly Local).

Theatre in the X, known for its free summer productions in Malcolm X. Park, is planning something exciting for the upcoming season and wants the community to participate. In addition to their August production in the park, the Afrocentric theatre troupe will present an original play in the summer of 2020. The play will be “created with the West Philadelphia community in mind,” according to a Facebook announcement.

Four public meetings will be held this winter and spring to devise an original theatre piece for Theatre in the X’s new community-based production. Here’s information on the first two meetings:  Continue Reading

Millcreek Tavern, located at 42nd and Chester, was sprayed with graffiti overnight on January 1, according to reports. A few windows were also broken. Owner Jack Gillespie told the Washington Examiner that the damage was estimated at approximately $20,000.  Continue Reading

A second public forum on gentrification is scheduled for Saturday, Jan. 4, at the Kingsessing Library (1201 S. 51st St.).

The first forum held in late November brought together folks from a variety of backgrounds together to talk about everything from policy remedies to neighborliness (saying “hello” on the street, for example). This second meeting, billed as “Continuing the Conversation,” will feature the same facilitators: local parent and sociology professor Christina Jackson, Drick Boyd, a community educator and professor emeritus at Eastern University, and Gregory Benjamin, a Kingsessing native and candidate for the state legislature.

The meeting will run from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. Here is the Facebook page for the event.

Little Baby’s Ice Cream’s Cedar Park location closed after more than six years of operation. Here’s a sign on their door at 4903 Catharine St.

Two adjacent Cedar Park businesses, Little Baby’s Ice Cream and The Bar(n), have closed in the past month or so. Little Baby’s, the artisan scoop shop known for its unusual flavors, closed its doors at 4903 Catharine St. for good at the end of November after more than six years of operation. The Philadelphia-based company went out of business, according to reports. The owners posted the following message on their Instagram page in November:  Continue Reading

If you’re looking for something to do this New Year’s Eve and on New Year’s Day, check out information below on New Year’s Eve fireworks and the 2020 Mummers Parade. If you’re planning to use public transportation for any of these events, check out information on SEPTA’s Holiday service. More events can be found here.

New Year’s Eve Fireworks on the Waterfront

2020 is coming and you can ring it in twice on the Delaware River Waterfront on Tuesday. As always, there will be two firework shows  – at 6 p.m. and midnight, each about 15 minutes long. The best places to watch the fireworks are the Delaware River Waterfront, both Philadelphia and New Jersey sides. On the Philly side, you can get a great view from Penn’s Landing, at the Blue Cross RiverRink WinterFest, near the Battleship New Jersey, and more locations. One of our favorite places to watch New Year’s Eve fireworks is Race Street Pier near Ben Franklin Bridge (check out the map here).  Continue Reading