Southwest Center City Philadelphia

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Coordinates: 39°56′31″N 75°10′30″W / 39.942°N 75.175°W / 39.942; -75.175
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
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Schuylkill, Philadelphia
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"So So" redirects here. For other uses, see Soso.
Southwest Center City
Graduate Hospital
South of South
Neighborhood of Philadelphia
Naval Square
Naval Square
Southwest Center City Graduate Hospital South of South is located in Philadelphia
Southwest Center City Graduate Hospital South of South
Southwest Center City
Graduate Hospital
South of South
Coordinates: 39°56′31″N 75°10′30″W / 39.942°N 75.175°W / 39.942; -75.175
Country United States of America
State Pennsylvania
County Philadelphia
City Philadelphia
Area
 • Total0.391 sq mi (1.01 km2)
Population
 (2010)
 • Total14,919
 • Density38,130/sq mi (14,720/km2)
ZIP Code
19146

Southwest Center City (SWCC), also known as Graduate Hospital,[1] is a neighborhood that is located in South Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States, bordering Center City Philadelphia. The neighborhood is bordered on the north by South Street, on the south by Washington Avenue, on the west by the Schuylkill River, and on the east by Broad Street.[2][3][4]

It is an area adjacent to the

Point Breeze
to the south, and is home to community service organizations, restaurants, churches, retail establishments, and some light industry.

Names

The neighborhood has many nicknames. The Philadelphia Planning Commission refers to it as Southwest Center City.

Devil's Pocket
.

Composition

The neighborhood consists primarily of nineteenth and twentieth-century

Schuylkill Arsenal
was originally built at the edge of this neighborhood, but has since been demolished.

History

Marian Anderson House on Martin Street

Prior to the

Moyamensing Township. Moyamensing was originally chartered by the Dutch governor Alexander d'Hinoyossa, and in 1684, William Penn confirmed the title.[9]

The neighborhood began taking shape after the Civil War. In 1870, it was predominantly an

African Americans
. It continued to experience significant in-migration from the south prior to, during, and immediately after World War II. It remained a solid working-class neighborhood for most of the first half of the twentieth century.

In the 1960s a crosstown expressway running along South Street was planned. This would have created a barrier between Center City and the neighborhoods to the south. The result was widespread abandonment of properties in SWCC and the decay of the South Street business corridor. The loss of jobs and residents caused the neighborhood to decline as buildings were abandoned and left to deteriorate.

The

Edwin M. Stanton School, and Tindley Temple United Methodist Church are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.[10]

Recent development

In recent years, the area has experienced growth and gentrification. Hundreds of single family homes and condominium units have been built or refurbished. As a result of the neighborhood's proximity to Center City and increasing desirability, a variety of new businesses catering to the increasingly gentrified population have opened. Despite the improvements, the neighborhood still contains some abandoned and dilapidated housing, especially towards the south.

The

Kenneth Gamble founded Universal Companies in Southwest Center City to revitalize the neighborhood. Universal Community Homes, a division of the company, began the Universal Court housing project in the neighborhood in the 1990s. Originally, some tension existed between the company and the local South of South Neighborhood Association, but this was soon resolved as the project was deemed a success.[11]
Universal Companies has since opened several small neighborhood businesses, low-income housing, and a charter school.

Children's Hospital Expansion 2017

The Roberts Center for Pediatric Research is at the right.

The

Battery Park. The plan is for "... three towers, of about 26 stories each, would be lined up along Schuylkill Avenue." The plans unveiled by the city show that Schuylkill Avenue is part of a six region area that also includes University City all the way to the Philadelphia International Airport that is part of a revitalization plan to stimulate the region.[15]

The proposal for three new Schuylkill Avenue towers proposed by the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia is for the towers to take the place of the Springfield Beer Distributor, and the former JFK Vocational School, with each tower being 26 stories high.

  • CHOP plans to build on these 2 properties, with the JFK Vocational School (in the back) and Springfield Beer Distributor in the front.
    CHOP plans to build on these 2 properties, with the JFK Vocational School (in the back) and Springfield Beer Distributor in the front.
  • CHOP prototype of building facade for demonstration
    CHOP prototype of building facade for demonstration
  • The Marine Corps Depot of Supplies, Schuylkill Warehouse
    The Marine Corps Depot of Supplies, Schuylkill Warehouse

Culture

Every year since 1975, the area hosts Philadelphia's

street market catered to African-American interests and the African diaspora. It is derived from the tradition of the Yoruba people of Nigeria
, in celebration of the new year. It is centered at the intersection of Grays Ferry Avenue and South Street.

References

  1. ^ a b Saffron, Inga (July 20, 2018). "Searching for a new identity: Graduate Hospital long gone, but the incongruous name lives on". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved September 12, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  2. ^ Map from UPenn study on the neighborhood
  3. ^ Map of the Southwest Central Redevelopment Area as of 1968
  4. ^ Heavens, Alan J. (December 19, 2008). "Philly's hot, new location". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved September 12, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ^ City Paper article about "G-Ho"
  6. ^ SOSNA - The South of South Neighborhood Association
  7. ^ McCabe, Caitlin (July 23, 2017). "Naming your neighborhood". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved September 12, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ^ Naval Square, a Toll Brothers development that will make up a large part of the neighborhood
  9. ^ Early Moyamensing history from ushistory.com.
  10. ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  11. ISBN 0-8135-2716-3
  12. ^ "CHOP - Schuylkill Avenue Community Meeting - Recap". South of South Neighborhood Association. Retrieved 16 March 2015.
  13. ^ "Schuylkill Avenue Phase 1: Community Meeting 2/25/15" (PDF). Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2015-03-16. Retrieved 2015-03-16. Demolition Complete
  14. ^ "CHOP expansion could bring jobs, traffic".
  15. ^ "Planning to develop lower Schuylkill".

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Southwest Center City, Philadelphia.
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