Who we are and how we got here...

Southwest Center City is the neighborhood bounded by South Street, Broad Street, Washington Avenue, and the Schuylkill River. It's an area sometimes called South of South or Graduate Hospital.  In a survey conducted by the South of South Neighborhood Association (SOSNA), residents identified the creation of new green space as one of the top priorities for the neighborhood.  A decade long building boom has claimed almost all of the neighborhood's vacant property.  In late 2011, a group of residents started meeting through SOSNA's Clean and Green committee to identify vacant land that could be preserved as green space.  The residents identified the northwest corner of 17th and Carpenter Streets as the last opportunity to create meaningful green space in SWCC.  They named this prospective green space "Carpenter Green."

Carpenter Green Flyer

The Carpenter Green group approached Councilman Kenyatta Johnson with the proposal to preserve the vacant, city-owned lots as green space.  Councilman Johnson threw his support behind the project and he and his staff assisted with negotiations with the Philadelphia Redevelopment Authority for preservation of this land.

Councilman Johnson Carpenter Green Support Letter

As a result of the work of the group of dedicated volunteers and Councilman Johnson and his staff, we anticipate entering an Urban Gardens Agreement for this property to begin the clean-up and improvement process.