By Noah Raven and Francis Raven We filled our backpacks with over a dozen trees: chestnut oaks, black cherries and red mulberries, as well as two shovels, a pair of clippers, two pairs of gloves and several wooden stakes to label each of the seedlings. Our goal was to plant them in a degraded area
MoreOn February 23, 2023, Philadelphia’s Department of Parks & Recreation (PPR) released the Philly Tree Plan: Growing Our Urban Forest. The product of two years of outreach and engagement that gathered input from more than 9,000 people, the plan attempts to chart a course to expand the city’s tree canopy while balancing the benefits of
MoreYou hear birds talking (or at least singing) all the time. Maybe sometimes you have something to say back to a bird, perhaps some select words early in the morning when a house sparrow won’t stop chirping outside your window. For a true dialog, though, visit the Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University through
MoreOn February 23, 2023, Philadelphia’s Department of Parks & Recreation released the Philly Tree Plan. Philadelphia’s trees help clean the air, slow stormwater runoff, soak up carbon dioxide and cool a city suffering from rising temperatures. With these and other benefits of trees in mind, in 2008 Mayor Nutter set a goal of making sure
MoreAnnual campaign finance reports for 2022 dropped last week, and Curtis Jones’s campaign has again benefited from contributions from people and businesses connected with the Cobbs Creek golf course development. In 2022 Grid reported on donations made to the Friends of Curtis Jones Jr., the campaign fundraising body for Councilmember Curtis Jones Jr., from people
MoreThey came dancing, swaying and stomping — humans or ants, waterfowl, purple mushrooms, giant alligators and random salamanders? No matter. They reveled to a rhythmic beat against a backdrop of blue skies and green meadows. But when the vultures with money dripping from inside of their wings swooped in, the earthmovers followed, and the backdrop
MoreA community meeting Thursday night to discuss the future of Philadelphia’s FDR Park turned into a tense and unproductive affair, demonstrating the significant gaps that exist in the City’s efforts to satisfy the disparate groups who use its hundreds of acres to picnic, play and commune with nature. Protesters advocating for civic leaders to save
MoreOn Thursday, January 19, the effort to pass legislation to waive restrictions for clearing trees on steep slopes for the Cobbs Creek golf course passed one hurdle at the Philadelphia City Planning Commission, though final passage will be delayed thanks to amendments introduced by the sponsor, Councilmember Curtis Jones Jr. The bill would create a
MoreI would be lying if I said I’d never snuck in anywhere I wasn’t supposed to. I have gone herping (recreationally searching for reptiles and amphibians) all over Philadelphia, and more than once I have taken a look at a “No Trespassing” sign, glanced over my shoulder to see if anyone was watching and pressed
MoreThe Cobbs Creek Foundation’s creek restoration plans received a $3.5 million boost in state funds from the Redevelopment Assistance Capital Project (RACP) grant program in November. The RACP program funds “the acquisition and construction of regional economic, cultural, civic, recreational, and historical improvement projects,” according to its website. In a minor win for neighborhood advocates
MoreStudents are organizing to oppose the Lower Merion School District’s plans to raze a wooded area — home to towering tulip poplars and red and white oaks — to build practice athletic fields for the nearby Black Rock Middle School. As Grid has reported, the school district acquired the land this year for about $13
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