Forty years ago, the Philadelphia Water Department discontinued use of a reservoir next to the Strawberry Mansion neighborhood. The 37-acre man-made lake located around 33rd and Oxford Streets, is now a nesting place for migratory birds traveling along the eastern seaboard.

Large lake

The National Audubon Society and Outward Bound (OB) have introduced plans to transform the lake and about 13-acres of land that surround its perimeter into the East Park Leadership and Conservation Center, a state of the art educational center. Members of the group met with the Parks and Recreation department this month to discuss pre-lease approvals, according to Katie Newsom Pastuszek, OB’s executive director. The group is on target to present their plans to City Council this spring. A best-case scenario would mean a new $20M LEED certified center by the end of 2015.

Entrance

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Don’t ask why, but we were in the area today and came to the wonderful realization that 21st Street is being paved at last. You may recall, a water main break back in July has closed the 21st & Bainbridge intersection to vehicular traffic, which has created snarled traffic on South Street for months on end.

The hole

In recent weeks, crews have filled in the pit, rebuilt damaged sidewalks, and milled some of the surrounding streets to prepare for paving. And now, after months of waiting and witnessing multiple hilarious outbursts from frustrated neighbors, the repaving is taking place.

Holy smokes

Looking south

Closer look

We spoke to a worker on the site, who told us that the street should be reopening tonight.

Way to go, Streets Department! Way to go, Philadelphia Water Department! Can’t wait to walk, bike, and drive on this intersection once again.

If you got to Bloktoberfest early on Saturday, you may have noticed a hint of panic among the South Street West merchants as they realized that the water had suddenly been shut off, without notice. Well, you also may have noticed a similar phenomenon if you live in most of Center City and tried to say, take a shower around 12:30pm. Rather quickly, word trickled out that many were without water midday on Saturday due to a water main break at 3rd & Walnut.

Image from NBC10

Yesterday

Closer look

Just today, we got word of another water main break, this time on the 4200 block of Market Street. These breaks come on the heels of several water main breaks over the summer, with

The other day, we were walking up 21st Street and noticed the darndest thing: The pit at 21st & Bainbridge, caused by the dramatic water main break back in July, has finally been (mostly) filled in! While the street hasn’t been repaved and there’s still some work to be done, we were able to walk across the intersection, like the opposite of Moses parting the Red Sea.

Looking south

Yes folks, it shouldn’t be long now before this intersection is reopened and the traffic that’s snarled South Street for a couple of months will be mostly relieved. It’s great news for just about everybody, with the notable exception of a special few. Way to go, Philadelphia Water Department!

As you can imagine, we find ourselves at 21st & South on a fairly regular basis. And while we certainly espouse the car-free lifestyle, we confess that we sometimes find ourselves behind the wheel of a small automobile, looking for a place to park. One result of the water main break at 21st & Bainbridge back in July has been the closure of 21st St., between South and Kater, unless you are inclined to move the extremely movable barriers to either drive to your block or park your car. As you can see, the parking spots are very much in use on this block.

Barriers plus cars

Unfortunately, some neighbors have taken it upon themselves to aggressively defend this half-block, believing that the street should be closed except for near residential neighbors. Just the other day, one of these individuals…

Three weeks ago, we gave you the lowdown on a four foot water main break at 21st & Bainbridge that resulted in a river in the Graduate Hospital neighborhood. Impressively, PWD was able to shut off the flow of water down the street and restore water service to almost the entire neighborhood by the next morning. The water department and other utilities have been dealing with the aftermath of the break ever since, as have residents in the homes immediately surrounding the site of the break.

But we have good news- it seems that the long, neighborhood nightmare has nearly come to an end. The hole is shrinking by the day!

From Pemberton

Getting closer

Looking in the hole

According to a missive from the Water Department,…