$3.5B Schuylkill Yards makes progress; How D.C.’s arena got built; Weekly gun violence brief | Morning roundup

The $3.5B West Philly development called Schuylkill Yards

A 14-acre neighborhood of glassy skyscrapers and manicured green spaces is slowly rising behind 30th Street Station. Dubbed Schuylkill Yards, it’s a partnership between Drexel University and Brandywine Realty Trust. So far it’s completed one new tower, the creation of a public park, and the repurposing of the former Bulletin Building.

As a second tower marks a construction milestone this week, Meir Rinde looks at what to expect, and why developers say it won’t crush surrounding neighborhoods like Penn’s expansion last century. Continue reading…

The lament of the Philadelphia sports fan

The Phillies came so close to giving their season a storybook finish with a return to the World Series. But they didn’t, failing to bring home the hits in Game 7 and turning over the NLCS to the Arizona Diamondbacks. The dashed hopes leave a familiar feeling lingering in the air.

Yes, this is what it feels like to be a Philly sports fan. In hopes that a collective catharsis will help, we’ve collected some laments. There’s always next year. Continue reading…

RECAP: What else happened?

$ = paywalled

• Outgoing Register of Wills Tracey Gordon, who lost in the primary, faces a slew of lawsuits by former employees who say they were fired for declining to donate to her reelection campaign. [Billy Penn/Axios]
  
• Ever since the Sixers announced plans to build a downtown arena, people have drawn comparisons to the Capital One Arena in D.C. Though the situations differ, it can be useful to understand the process behind how the Wizards’ new home got built. [Billy Penn]
  
• There’s a community meeting tonight to prepare for a developer presentation on the former Germantown High School, which has been sitting vacant since 2013 and is now in the midst of a somewhat opaque reconstruction. [POWER/BP 2019/Chestnut Hill Local$]
  
• The project previously known as Broke in Philly has relaunched as the Philadelphia Journalism Collaborative, a partnership of 29 local newsrooms (including BP) focusing on issues that affect daily life in the city. [Resolve Philly]
  
• The NYT showcases 25 “best” restaurants in Philadelphia, with everything from high end dining spot Ambra to pizza/sandwich joint Angelo’s to Vietnamese food and coffee destination Càphê Roasters. [NYT$]

Weekly brief on gun violence prevention (with PCGVR)

We publish this report each week in partnership with the Philadelphia Center for Gun Violence Reporting.• As Philadelphia struggles to deal with police understaffing, more city businesses are turning to private armed guards, including revived cheesesteak spot Jim’s West. [Trace/Billy Penn]

• Through a partnership with Atlanta’s SAVE Institute, dozens of middle and high school boys traveled to Philadelphia to support a new vocational studies and entrepreneurship program to reduce violence and poverty among Philly kids. [WHYY]

• Are you a journalist who wants to be certified in gun violence prevention reporting? Apply to the new fellowship from PCGVR and you may be selected for a training workshop next month. [PCGVR]

• About 60% of Americans who carry loaded firearms in public on a regular basis said it was very or extremely likely that they would arm themselves for a political cause. [WHYY]

By the numbers in Philadelphia

• 20: Shooting victims recorded last week, vs. 28 the week prior. [PCGVR]
• 1,433: Shooting victims this year so far, down 27% vs. this time last year. [PCGVR]
• 351: Year-to-date homicides, down 20% vs. last year’s pace; up 30% vs. five years ago [Philly Police]

MAYOR WATCH

Mayor Kenney heads to D.C. for a state dinner. His office didn’t specify what it was, but per the White House, tonight’s event is with the prime minister of Australia and will focus on technology and cooperation between the two countries. Potential connections for a post-mayoral job?

ON THE CALENDAR

🌍 Join the artists for a tour of Mural Arts’ new “Afromation Avenue,” a series of street signs paying homage to Black and African American communities in West Philly. (11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 26)

📖 Four poets read their works at the next Spoken Word event at Frieda, the Old City cafe and intimate event venue. Free but RSVP required. (4 to 5:30 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 28)