Michael DonPailin lives and works in Kensington.As part of his job with the area nonprofit Impact Services, he supervises street cleaning in the neighborhood.“This is the bottom of the barrel — there’s no part of the city that looks as bad as Kensington,” he said.The people who live in Upper Kensington, the area around Kensington and Allegheny, are among the poorest in the city. The neighborhood has the highest drug overdose rate in Philadelphia, the highest rate of unemployment, and its residents collectively report more health problems than people in any other part of the city, according...…Michael DonPailin lives and works in Kensington.As part of his job with the area nonprofit Impact Services, he supervises street cleaning in the neighborhood.“This is the bottom of the barrel — there’s no part of the city that looks as bad as Kensington,” he said.The people who live in Upper Kensington, the area around Kensington and Allegheny, are among the poorest in the city. The neighborhood has the highest drug overdose rate in Philadelphia, the highest rate of unemployment, and its residents collectively report more health problems than people in any other part of the city, according...WW…

Hilco Redevelopment Partners, the company approved to buy the Philadelphia Energy Solutions refinery complex in South Philadelphia out of bankruptcy, projects that its multibillion development will take about a decade to complete and create 8,000 union construction jobs and 10,000 permanent jobs.A Hilco executive presented part of the company’s plan for the 1,300-acre site at a City Council hearing Monday. The council’s finance committee advanced a bill introduced by Councilmember Kenyatta Johnson that would extend the refinery’s Keystone Opportunity Zone status, first granted in 2014 but...…Hilco Redevelopment Partners, the company approved to buy the Philadelphia Energy Solutions refinery complex in South Philadelphia out of bankruptcy, projects that its multibillion development will take about a decade to complete and create 8,000 union construction jobs and 10,000 permanent jobs.A Hilco executive presented part of the company’s plan for the 1,300-acre site at a City Council hearing Monday. The council’s finance committee advanced a bill introduced by Councilmember Kenyatta Johnson that would extend the refinery’s Keystone Opportunity Zone status, first granted in 2014 but...WW…

Exactly 50 years ago today, 20 million Americans gathered in public parks, streets and on college campuses to protest environmental destruction.April 22, 1970 — the first Earth Day — marks the birth of the environmental movement responsible for getting lead out of our homes, raw sewage out of our drinking water and toxins out of our air.The annual celebration and political action it inspired helped Philadelphia become a city where it’s possible to run on the river without choking on smog and drink tap water without fear. But what many people don’t know is that without the work of...…Exactly 50 years ago today, 20 million Americans gathered in public parks, streets and on college campuses to protest environmental destruction.April 22, 1970 — the first Earth Day — marks the birth of the environmental movement responsible for getting lead out of our homes, raw sewage out of our drinking water and toxins out of our air.The annual celebration and political action it inspired helped Philadelphia become a city where it’s possible to run on the river without choking on smog and drink tap water without fear. But what many people don’t know is that without the work of...WW…

Gloria and Hugo Nievas, 83 and 91, had a plan for weathering the extreme heat that’s afflicted the city over the last week: Hunker down in their Hunting Park home and turn on their five fans.The couple, who count several health conditions between them, including asthma, live in one of the city’s hottest areas where temperatures can climb 22 degrees Fahrenheit And like many of their neighbors in the predominantly Black and Latino neighborhood, they haven’t had air conditioning.“We couldn’t afford it,” said Gloria in Spanish, referring to air conditioning.But last week’s heat put them on the...…Gloria and Hugo Nievas, 83 and 91, had a plan for weathering the extreme heat that’s afflicted the city over the last week: Hunker down in their Hunting Park home and turn on their five fans.The couple, who count several health conditions between them, including asthma, live in one of the city’s hottest areas where temperatures can climb 22 degrees Fahrenheit And like many of their neighbors in the predominantly Black and Latino neighborhood, they haven’t had air conditioning.“We couldn’t afford it,” said Gloria in Spanish, referring to air conditioning.But last week’s heat put them on the...WW…

Are you on the front lines of the coronavirus?Roslyn Myers lives on a treeless block in one of the hottest areas of the city — Cobbs Creek. Her block is one of many in the West Philadelphia neighborhood with no trees. So on a hot day like Monday, with a high of 89 degrees, there’s no escape from the heat.For years, Myers, who is 58 and has two grown kids, has voluntarily taken over the job of keeping the children in her block cool and entertained through the city’s Playstreets program. Every weekday, at 9 a.m., she fills three to five inflatable pools in front of her house. And says she...…Are you on the front lines of the coronavirus?Roslyn Myers lives on a treeless block in one of the hottest areas of the city — Cobbs Creek. Her block is one of many in the West Philadelphia neighborhood with no trees. So on a hot day like Monday, with a high of 89 degrees, there’s no escape from the heat.For years, Myers, who is 58 and has two grown kids, has voluntarily taken over the job of keeping the children in her block cool and entertained through the city’s Playstreets program. Every weekday, at 9 a.m., she fills three to five inflatable pools in front of her house. And says she...WW…

Join and City, State and Federal officials for the Eastwick Disaster Relief Virtual Town Hall on Monday, August 17 starting at 6 p.m.To participate in the virtual meeting, go directly to on Monday, August 17.— Kenyatta Johnson (@CouncilmemberKJ)The low-lying community built alongside a toxic landfill has dealt with floods for decades and residents are used to fighting for protection.WHYY is among more than 20 news organizations producing Broke in Philly, a collaborative reporting project on solutions to poverty and the city’s push towards economic justice. Follow us at...…Join and City, State and Federal officials for the Eastwick Disaster Relief Virtual Town Hall on Monday, August 17 starting at 6 p.m.To participate in the virtual meeting, go directly to on Monday, August 17.— Kenyatta Johnson (@CouncilmemberKJ)The low-lying community built alongside a toxic landfill has dealt with floods for decades and residents are used to fighting for protection.WHYY is among more than 20 news organizations producing Broke in Philly, a collaborative reporting project on solutions to poverty and the city’s push towards economic justice. Follow us at...WW…

Roberto Diaz, a 65-year-old Vietnam veteran, has lived on the corner of Water and Ontario streets in Fairhill for 15 years.He regularly sweeps up litter on his block but said that never before has the windswept bags, wrappers and debris accumulated quite like the mess of recent days.“Look at all this! Look at all this street!” Diaz said, pointing at piles of trash bags on the sidewalks. “And everyone is acting as if it’s OK. It’s not OK!”“This place looks like dirt, man,” he added. “How much longer are we going to have to put up with this?”Trash and recycling have been piling up all across...…Roberto Diaz, a 65-year-old Vietnam veteran, has lived on the corner of Water and Ontario streets in Fairhill for 15 years.He regularly sweeps up litter on his block but said that never before has the windswept bags, wrappers and debris accumulated quite like the mess of recent days.“Look at all this! Look at all this street!” Diaz said, pointing at piles of trash bags on the sidewalks. “And everyone is acting as if it’s OK. It’s not OK!”“This place looks like dirt, man,” he added. “How much longer are we going to have to put up with this?”Trash and recycling have been piling up all across...WW…

Lora-Lee Contreras has started every summer weekday for the past roughly 15 years exactly the same way: by placing an orange cone at the entrance of her block of Hope Street, in North Philadelphia, and closing it to traffic.A few minutes later, she takes toys and a couple of tables out to her closed-to-traffic street and receives, at her door, a delivery of boxes filled with lunches and snacks. The food, served at noon, comes from the city.The veritable block party that ensues? That comes from the kids who, with the street closed off Monday to Friday, until 4 pm, play ball, dance,...…Lora-Lee Contreras has started every summer weekday for the past roughly 15 years exactly the same way: by placing an orange cone at the entrance of her block of Hope Street, in North Philadelphia, and closing it to traffic.A few minutes later, she takes toys and a couple of tables out to her closed-to-traffic street and receives, at her door, a delivery of boxes filled with lunches and snacks. The food, served at noon, comes from the city.The veritable block party that ensues? That comes from the kids who, with the street closed off Monday to Friday, until 4 pm, play ball, dance,...WW…

A study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that state-issued mask mandates were associated with significant decreases in daily COVID-19 case and death growth rates. Yet some conservative outlets and social media users falsely claim the study shows mask mandates have a negligible impact on COVID-19 outcomes.What evidence supports the use of face masks against the coronavirus?of evidence back the use of face masks to limit the spread of the coronavirus.Lab tests, for example, show that masks can partially block exhaled respiratory droplets, which are thought to be the...…A study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that state-issued mask mandates were associated with significant decreases in daily COVID-19 case and death growth rates. Yet some conservative outlets and social media users falsely claim the study shows mask mandates have a negligible impact on COVID-19 outcomes.What evidence supports the use of face masks against the coronavirus?of evidence back the use of face masks to limit the spread of the coronavirus.Lab tests, for example, show that masks can partially block exhaled respiratory droplets, which are thought to be the...WW…

The lobby of the Nationalities Service Center, on the fourth floor of a building near the Reading Terminal Market in Center City, is a boring place to wait.Some 5,000 people from 130 different countries — complete families — come into the agency’s office each year for classes, legal and employment assistance, health services and even for a farmer’s market. But only a mural and a few other objects in that lobby represent the rich cultures and over 30 languages they carry. Time gets wasted as the children and adults pass the minutes without much to hold their attention.“There’s really not...…The lobby of the Nationalities Service Center, on the fourth floor of a building near the Reading Terminal Market in Center City, is a boring place to wait.Some 5,000 people from 130 different countries — complete families — come into the agency’s office each year for classes, legal and employment assistance, health services and even for a farmer’s market. But only a mural and a few other objects in that lobby represent the rich cultures and over 30 languages they carry. Time gets wasted as the children and adults pass the minutes without much to hold their attention.“There’s really not...WW…