This Week January 22, 2026 | | |
You don’t have to be Oscar the Grouch (or John Waters) to appreciate the significance of trash. Everybody talks about it, but almost nobody does anything about it.
Almost nobody but CCRA, that is. Save the Date for a CCRA Town Hall: Tuesday January 27, 7pm at Trinity Memorial Church (22d & Spruce).
Entitled “Trash on our Sidewalks”, the Town Hall will discuss both causes and solutions, with experts form the Dept of Sanitation and the Clean & Green Initiatives, plus the apps 311 and Glitter.
Be part of the solution!
| | Decision 2026: The 3rd District Primary Forum | | |
On Monday, February 9th, at 7pm, CCRA is proud to co-sponsor a debate among the candidates for the PA 3rd Congressional District (the seat currently held by retiring Congressman Dwight Evans). The May 19th 2026 primary election will determine the candidates vying for your vote in the general election in the fall. Come out and listen to help you determine which candidate will best represent the interests of Center City.
The debate will be held at the Church of the Holy Trinity, Rittenhouse Square (19th and Walnut). See you there!
RSVP requested, but no required.
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On Tuesday, January 27, get ready to Talk Trash with leaders from the Department of Sanitation, the Office of Clean and Green, and Philly311 as we discuss the root issues surrounding litter on our sidewalks and what we can do to work towards a solution. This informative discussion will be moderated by members of CCRA's Let's Talk Trash Committee. Learn about the service Glitter can provide your block and register your home for a blue recycling bin distributed by the Department of Sanitation. (While limited supplies last.)
We hope to see you at 7pm at Trinity Memorial Church on 22nd and Spruce to find out what you can do to help make our Center City West neighborhood clean and litter-free. Pre-register for this FREE event here.
Watch this video to learn more about Glitter.
| | Councilmember Jeffrey Young Jr Message to CCRA Members | | |
At CCRA’s January Board of Directors’ meeting, Councilmember Jeffery Young Jr. outlined his core legislative priorities, including safety, education, trash collection, alley clean-up, affordable housing, and homelessness. Young represents the 5th District, which extends from western Center City to North Philadelphia, and emphasizes balancing residential and commercial needs. He invited CCRA members to contact his office directly with concerns about any of these issues.
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CCRA is participating in the development of the City of Philadelphia's new Citywide Climate Resilience Plan.
In an effort to increase community participation in resilience planning, the City of Philadelphia has identified community-based organizations across Philadelphia's 18 Planning Districts to organize local community engagement workshops and inform the development of a climate resilience toolkit. Each planning district is represented by an Ambassador – our district, District 4 (Central), is represented by CCRA Green Committee member and urban resiliency planning consultant Jacob Miller.
In March, CCRA will host a climate resilience workshop at the Ethical Society, hearing stories and recommendations from across our Planning District about planning for climate impacts in Philadelphia. This workshop will directly provide content for the climate resilience toolkit and ensure that our neighbors' voices are heard as the City plans for future climate impacts.
Email Jacob to learn more about this initiative and other Green Committee work.
| | Correction: Hot Links to Disabled Parking | |
Oops…..Last week, we published an article about how our members could obtain a free disability parking permit or parking space, with an attached PDF. Unfortunately, the links in the PDF that linked to the Parking Space information, were inadvertently removed in the printing process. So, dear readers, here's the PDF, with all the links hot!
Thanks for your patience!
| | A Walk in the Park is Safer Now | |
Thanks to advocacy from Friends of Schuylkill River Park and with support from the Center City Residents’ Association, the CCRA Streets Department has installed a new pedestrian crosswalk with associated safety signage, at 25th and Delancey Place.
This crossing will improve safety for pedestrians crossing to and from beautiful Schuylkill River Park.
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On Saturday January 10th, the Philadelphia Pollinator Pathway groups of Center City West, Southwest Center City, and West and Southwest Philadelphia came together to host their first native seed swap, giveaway and winter sowing event. CCRA’s Green Committee (representing the Center City West Pollinator Pathway) helped organize and run the event.
Over 50 people came out in rainy weather to the Schuylkill River Park Markward Recreation Center to chat about native plants, swap native seeds, and create DIY cold stratification planters out of milk jugs. Attendees planted swamp milkweed seed packets, and learned that many native seeds require a month or more of cold exposure to germinate.
You can support native pollinators by planting native plants in your window boxes or planters, and by avoiding pesticides. Or, consider helping volunteer with your neighborhood pollinator garden! There are many native pollinator gardens in parks throughout the city that need reliable volunteers. For example, Schuylkill River Park has three new pollinator gardens in need of caretakers. If you’re interested in getting involved, please reach out to CCRA Green Committee Chair Susan Kahn.
| | Board Supports PA Monitoring of Native Pollinators | | |
In Pennsylvania, the health of most groups of wild animals and plants is monitored by several dedicated state government agencies. However, perhaps due to being overlooked, native pollinator insects (like butterflies, fireflies, and native bees) are not currently studied or monitored by any state agency. This means, as a state, Pennsylvania has little understanding of the health of these pollinators, despite the fact that they underpin the state's entire ecosystem.
CCRA was asked by PennEnvironment, a citizen-based environmental advocacy organization headquartered in our neighborhood, to sign onto a letter that asks the State government to protect native pollinators by assigning responsibility to monitor their health to the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, which already monitors native plants. The CCRA Board voted in support of this request.
| | CCRA MERCHANT PARTNER FEATURE: | | CCRA’s Merchant Partner program is a true Win-Win: It provides local businesses with complimentary advertising and exposure while giving CCRA members generous deals and discounts. This week we spotlight Rittenhouse culinary legend Di Bruno Bros. | | |
All Roads Lead to Di Bruno’s
Just what would Center City do without Di Bruno’s, anyway? Scary thought, right? Ponder if you will all the stellar dinner parties that would have been subpar minus the killer cuisine of Di Bruno’s. A culinary pioneer for 80 years, Merchant Partner Di Bruno is a full-fledged, European-style marketplace.
You name it, they have it: meat, seafood, wine, beer, produce, chef-prepared meals, homemade desserts, and oh, that cheese crave!
Di Bruno’s has consistently saved the bacon of party-givers in more ways than one, and now you can save – 10%! – by becoming a member of CCRA.
| | The Police are Looking for You | | |
Your voice matters in the formulation of the Philadelphia Police Department’s five-year plan, from 2026-30, as residents’ input is being solicited to improve police services, based on community needs. This first-ever plan will establish priorities and strategies to best serve the city over the next five years.
You can view the draft plan and comment on it up until Feb. 11. Click here to read the plan and submit your comments.
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New $1M Grant Secures Key Link in Philadelphia Trail Network
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Our great bike and hike trails are soon to get united! A nearly $1 million grant from the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation’s Multimodal Transportation Fund will allow the Streets Department to acquire the right-of-way needed for the Wissahickon Gateway Trail.
This critical segment will connect the Schuylkill River Trail and the Wissahickon Valley Park network. Currently, pedestrians and cyclists must navigate a dangerous on-road gap near Ridge Avenue and Main Street. By creating a formal, off-road link, the project aims to improve safety in an area where the crash rate is four times the city average.
The proposed trail will stretch along the river, passing behind the Regal Cinemas and the newly expanded Wissahickon Transit Center. It will also feature a new bridge over the Wissahickon Creek to provide a seamless connection for the more than 20,000 annual users of the Schuylkill River Trail.
While this funding is a major milestone for regional connectivity, the city's next focus is raising the necessary funds for construction. This project remains a priority as Philadelphia prepares to host several major events for America’s 250th anniversary, including the FIFA World Cup and the MLB All-Star Game.
| | Flower Show: February 28 to March 8, 2026 | | Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion | | Celebrate the Chinese Year of the Horse on Wednesday, Jan. 28, at 7 p.m., when those Fabulous Philadelphians, under the baton of conductor Naomi Woo, greet the Lunar New Year in the Kimmel Center’s Marian Anderson Hall. Experience the classical sounds of the erhu (also known as the “Chinese violin”), played by Yu Hongme, and the pipa (a Chinese lute), played by Zhang Hongyan, as the program blends traditional Chinese classics, including the “Spring Festival Overture” with selections from western favorites, such as “Hoe Down” from Aaron Copland’s “Rodeo.” To purchase tickets, and for more information, click here. | | |
Philadelphia’s Transit Equity Day is February 4th this year, and the City is honoring both Rosa Parks and Caroline LeCount. Most everyone is familiar with Rosa Parks, but our readers are also familiar with Ms. LeCount, Philly’s own Rosa, who worked to desegregate public transportation here in Philadelphia.
For several years, our neighborhood fought to change the name of Taney Street to LeCount Street, which the City Council passed, and Mayor Parker approved, in 2024. Two blocks of Taney Street, now known as LeCount Street, appear between 26th and 27th, Pine to South.
The change was motivated by research by our neighbor, Ben Keys, which revealed that Taney Street was named after Roger B. Taney, the Supreme Court Chief Justice who wrote the pro-slavery Dred Scott decision.
CCRA was part of the powerful local coalition which led to the name change, participating in neighborhood forums, and writing letters of support.
Looking for ways to celebrate Transit Equity Day? Support public transit, ride a bus, make room for other riders, and thank your bus driver!
| | Community News and Events | | It's Showtime in the Neighborhood! | | Now that it’s cold outside we cityites don’t want to walk far, we've created a short list of some local theater productions to visit in the coming weeks. Plan a trip to The Drake (302 S. Hicks St) and/or the SideQuest Theatre (2030 Sansom St) and enjoy shows ranging from the witty to the weepy. | | Variety Pack Comedy Festival at The Drake runs Thursday, January 22 through Saturday, January 31, and showcases comedy, improv, storytelling, day in the life…weep and laugh with the stars and the audience. | | Plantation Black also showing at The Drake, opens Friday, February 6 and runs through Sunday, March 1. Two hundred years after an ambiguous Civil War–era agreement bound a plantation family to the people they enslaved, the white and Black descendants must finally decide who holds the rightful claim. | |
Objection! Premiers at SideQuest Theatre Friday, February 6 and runs through Sunday, March 1. This show is an unscripted courtroom comedy taking suggestions from the audience. Saturday, February 28th the show will feature a special performance titled Objection: Subpoena Colada, a 21+ version with drinking games.
| | Marsha Blovotnick and the Marvelous Magical Chicken Soup at The Drake, with a run from Thursday, March 12 through Friday, March 27. The play follows Marsha Blovotnick (played by Janis Dardaris), a "leftist, Jewish lesbian" who is harboring immense anger toward her family and the world. Her life takes a fantastical turn on Shabbat when she is visited by a mysterious Ancient Jewish ancestor, carrying a pot of magical chicken soup. The story explores whether this "Jewish penicillin" can mend strained relationships and heal both personal and global wounds. | | Who needs Florida to get through this winter! | | Romeo and Juliet, with a Twist: A Night at the Opera or Pointes of Passion? | | |
Shakespeare’s classic, Romeo and Juliet, will be performed twice this spring in Philadelphia, from March 5 -April 5 at the Arden Theater and from April 30 - May 10 by the Philadelphia Ballet at the Academy of Music. Both productions promise “bold reimagining” (Arden) and a “reinterpretation” (Ballet Philadelphia) of the classic.
In the Arden production, Barrymore Award winner Amina Robinson (Once on This Island), “draws on the traditions of early oral storytelling and old-school theater magic” to tell the tale, while Ballet resident choreographer Juliano Nunes “focuses in psychological depth rather than just poses” in his reinterpretation of the story.
| | Economic Impact of Historic Preservation in Phila | | Lunar Meditations at Calder Gardens | |
There’s something very meditative and poignant about moonlight, and Calder Gardens gets it, as witness their “Moon Alignment Series.”
They explain: “The full and new moons occur when the sun and moon align—first in opposition for the full moon, then in conjunction, when they share the same area of the sky. This rhythmic alignment of full light and shadow marks unique opportunities to contemplate motion and stillness in relationship with our closest celestial neighbors.”
Here is the schedule:
- Full Moon, Sunday, February 1, 5 – 6:30pm
- New Moon, Thursday, February 19, 5 – 6:30pm
- Full Moon, Monday, March 2, 5 – 6:30pm
Land here for details; land there for tickets.
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Hear from your favorite authors at Barnes & Noble at 1708 Chestnut Street through virtual and in-person events.
Among other authors at various other times and dates, on Thursday, February 19 at 6 pm author Ann Packer will be visiting the store in-person to discuss her most recent work Some Bright Nowhere, an Oprah’s Book Club Pick of 2025.
Tickets are free and guarantee entrance into the event for the discussion and the signing. There is a limited quantity so get your ticket here. And visit Barnes & Noble website to learn more about other in-person and virtual author events.
| | A New Chapter: Karla Kaufman Joins City Institute Library as Head Librarian | |
A big welcome to Karla Kaufman, the new Supervising Librarian at PCI Library. Karla is a veteran librarian who has worked in public libraries, medical libraries and special libraries. She is a multi-talented person with an extensive background in library work and a love for reading and creating programs and exhibitions. She loves being outdoors and is a licensed scuba diver and has enjoyed skydiving twice.
Kaufman is looking forward to the challenge of working in the Philadelphia City Institute Library on Rittenhouse Square, the busiest library in the Philadelphia Free Library system, and getting to know the neighborhood people. She looks forward to creating programs such as a Spanish language class, a nonfiction reading group, and a new book club in which people would read a book of their choice and discuss it with the group.
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Open Call for Art on the Parkway Deadline: Thursday, March 5
Art on the Parkway is a juried open call organized by the Association for Public Art (aPA) in partnership with e Parkway Council and Philadelphia Parks & Recreation (PPR) for proposals for a temporary public art installation in Maja Park on Philadelphia’s Benjamin Franklin Parkway. This year’s project will be commissioned in recognition of the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence and America’s Semiquincentennial celebrations that will take place in Philadelphia during the summer of 2026.
The winning entry will be displayed from late June-October 2026 and will receive a commission of $20,000. Past winning entries include Bar None, Nicolo Gentile (July - October 2025), a winding line of steel barricades with colored acrylic panels etched with historic images that rose and sank wavelike into the earth along the Parkway creating a path-like structure that invited viewers to walk alongside it, to both observe and to move through history and The Weight of Our Living, Rachel Hsu (August 1 - October 27, 2024) which, inspired by Taiwanese reflexology footpaths, invited visitors to remove their shoes and walk a surface of rounded stones embedded in a six-foot-diameter circular platform. An adjacent curved bench created a space for reflection and an escape from the pace of urban life.
Interested in competing? Get your questions answered here.
| | Remembering Eugene Dichter | | Eugene Dichter, age 102, died January 3, 2026. He was born and raised in Philadelphia. He loved his connection with CCRA and was very proud to serve as the president years ago. He continued his connections to CCRA for many years, and will be missed by his community, family and friends. | | Merchant Partners "Deals and Discounts" Program | | Please support our local merchants and save money too. These local merchants will provide a deal or discount to any member who shows a current CCRA membership card and personal identification. | | CCRA assumes no responsibility, and makes no representations or warranties, regarding any product and/or services sold by any Merchant Partner. | | | | |
