Mayor Cherelle L. Parker’s commitment to a safer, cleaner, greener city helps support outdoor environments and activities that promote quality of life, including good health. As part of this commitment, the Health Department partners with Clean Air Council – Feet First Philly to identify and fund community-led strategies to improve public space.
Feet First Philly and the Health Department recently awarded mini grants to 10 projects across Philadelphia that improve safety and walkability.
More than 70 community-based organizations, businesses, and people submitted applications for funding, all with worthy project ideas. A committee made up of past funding recipients, pedestrian advocates, professionals in public space improvements, and City planners and designers selected the 10 highest-scoring projects.
Improving public spaces
The mini grants, with awards of up to $2,000 per project, will help improve public spaces and make them more accessible to residents.
The grants will support:
- Greening projects.
- Infrastructure and cleaning projects.
- Programming and public art projects.
- Lighting and security projects.
All of the funded projects are in communities with high rates of chronic disease and violence and where residents have identified a need for better public spaces.
The projects selected for funding are:
- ACHIEVEability will implement Impact Day 2025, which will mobilize volunteers to engage in revitalization efforts in West Philadelphia. These efforts include porch painting, litter removal, storefront improvements, tree planting, community gardening, and more.
- Nicetown-Tioga Improvement Team RCO will engage in phase three of a repair and revitalization process for their Healing and Unity Gardens in North Philadelphia. This project will include workshops on garden maintenance and stormwater management. It will also add raised planter beds to the gardens.
- Norris Square Tabletop Project will create regular community gatherings for tabletop games at Norris Square Park in North Philadelphia. This project aims to help residents gather and build community with each other.
- LA21 will initiate a project called the Container Village Lighting Enhancement. It will add outdoor lighting to an outdoor retail, recreational, and community hub that was once a vacant and blighted lot in Parkside in West Philadelphia.
- Face to Face’s Price Street Improvement project in Germantown will improve a portion of sidewalk by replacing broken sidewalk blocks and removing weeds and other debris.
- SEAMAAC Heat Reduction Project on South 7th Street Commercial Corridor will install trees along the entry of the commercial corridor and planter boxes to continue the beautification efforts along the corridor.
- Urban Creators’ Beautification and Safety Project aims to enhance the safety, accessibility, and overall experience of their urban farm. These improvements include signage, outdoor lighting, and additional irrigation equipment.
- Empowered CDC aims to maintain their Cecil Street Garden by adding new planters along the sidewalk and fixing broken sidewalks along the garden.
- Mantua Civic Association will implement the third phase of their Pollinator and Tulip Planter Tribute Project. This project aims to add planters on Mantua Avenue with the mantra “Bulbs Not Bullets” to add beauty to the area along with spreading an anti-violence message.
- Little Memorial Temple Church will replace broken sidewalks on West Norris Street in North Philadelphia to improve safety.
Congratulations to all the awardees. Thank you for helping make Philly a safer, cleaner, greener city.
