Last summer, we told you about Philly Live!, the entertainment complex being built down by the stadiums, next to where the Spectrum once stood. At the time, construction had just begun, and the anticipated completion date was April 5th, opening day for our beloved Phillies.

Last June

Amazingly, the construction process for this project, since renamed Xfinity Live!, has gone Xtremely smoothly. It’s set to open next week, a full week before it was supposed to open.

Recent shot

On March 28th and 29th, Xfinity Live! will be open Xclusively to people holding tickets to the Bruce Springsteen shows at the Wells Fargo Center. On the 30th, Xfinity Live! will open to the general public, and will highlight the evening with a free concert by Third Eye…

Back in July, when the birds were chirping, the sun was shining, and we were all dreaming of a Phillies parade, we wrote about the commencement of construction on the Schuylkill River Park Connector bridge. Amazing how much progress takes place when you ignore a massive public works project for several months. We’re happy to report that things seem to be moving along nicely at the site, with some parts of the bridge already visible, and dog owners finding a way to live with a smaller dog run.

Happy pooches. And a connector bridge, in the background.

A closer look, over by the community garden

Rendering of what it'll look like, eventually

And just for kicks, here's a site plan

We don’t know…

Philadelphia’s Mural Arts Program, the largest public art program in the country, has produced over 3,500 murals since its inception in 1984. Last week, in conjunction with the Phillies, the Mural Arts Program unveiled The Phillies Mural, a work of public art honoring our Boys of Summer that will rise eight stories on the side of a building on Walnut St., facing the Schuylkill river and I-76. That building currently looks like this:

In the coming year, thousands of fans and members of the community will participate in paint days to contribute to the mural designed by David McShane, who has also created two other baseball themed murals in other parts of the city. The Phillies Mural will honor current and former players, current and former stadiums, beloved announcers and of course the Phillie Phanatic. Fans will have the opportunity…

Rendering of Philly Live! from 2008. We’re not sure it’s gonna look quite like this. Image from Arnold Imaging

Philly Live!, a 300K plus sqft. entertainment complex, will sit on the site of the former Spectrum, between Citizens Bank Park and the Wells Fargo Center. It was first announced over three years ago, when the above rendering was produced, without a clear start-time or expected completion date. As we watched the Spectrum come down in the beginning of this year, we figured that construction would start any day, and wouldn’t ya know it, the time has come.

View of site looking west on Pattison Ave., toward 11th St.

The first phase of the construction, according to an article from the Daily News and confirmed by our sources, will measure about 50K sqft., will contain several restaurants…