What We Do
The Association’s work is organized around committees of volunteers who help to keep the neighborhood clean, safe, friendly and fun. We sponsor Spruce Hill’s annual May Fair in Clark Park, organize neighbors for block cleanups in spring and fall, encourage responsible development by engaging in the zoning process, and maintain a variety of initiatives that support youth, greening and historic preservation.
SHCA Committees, Initiatives,
Volunteer Information
Bird
Sanctuary
Historic District Application
Block Cleanups
May Fair
Block Improvement Grants
Membership/Outreach
Block Representative Network
Neighborhood Renewal Plan
Communications
Safety
Education, Schools & Youth
Zoning
Bird Sanctuary
With the
help of UC Green a bird sanctuary was crated in the backyards formed by the
houses facing Spruce & Locust, 45th & Melville Streets.
The entrance is next to 233 S. Melville and it is open to the public.
Anne Froehling (a.froehling@gmail.com)
leads the maintenance efforts.
View Photos
Block Cleanups
For the University City Cleanup, UCD will assist University City blocks by
providing trash bags, work gloves, and trash pick up. To sign up for the
University City Cleanup, please contact UCD's Dexter Bryant at
dexter@ucityphila.org or 215-243-0555 x239.
Saturday cleanups take place between 9 a.m. and 2 p.m. If there is light
morning rain, the cleanup is ON. If there is heavy rain or snow, the cleanup
will be CANCELLED.
Your block can schedule a cleanup
ANYTIME. Just contact the
Dexter Bryant at
dexter@ucityphila.org
to let him know which
corner your bags are on for pickup.
Block Improvement Grants
To improve the ‘streetscape’ in our neighborhood, SHCA’s Block Improvement
Grants encourage the planting and maintenance of street trees, the creation
of tree lawns and the installation of front gardens.
Grants up to $500 for a single block and up to $1,200 for cooperating
adjacent blocks require a dollar-for-dollar match of the grant amount
through volunteer “sweat equity,” in-kind materials or services, or by cash
donations. Funds for Spruce Hill’s grant program come from the Association’s
membership dues and fundraising events such as the May Fair. Applications
are due the third Monday in January and June. Contact Steve McCoubrey (smccou@verizon.net).
For project ideas view
sample projects.
For more information download a
grant application.
Block Representative Network
SHCA Block
Representatives are the eyes and ears of our community organization. Block
Reps report to SHCA with concerns or problems in the neighborhood, and they
spread information from the association to neighbors on the block. SHCA
Block Reps also organize neighbors for regularly scheduled block cleanups
and they participate in an annual membership drive. Contact person TBA.
Communications
The communications committee publishes a quarterly newsletter and
maintains the association’s website. To volunteer, contact Marie McCullough
(repopter@gmail.com).
Education, Schools & Youth
The mission of the Spruce Hill Community Association Education Committee is
to support the public education of the children and youth of Spruce Hill.
The education committee promotes and supports academic achievement,
recreational, and cultural activities that enrich the lives of those it
serves. Additionally, the committee is dedicated to addressing the unique
needs of the parents, teachers and students of Spruce Hill area schools. The
Education Committee will carry out its mission by:
• Encouraging and supporting parental involvement in the public schools.
• Encouraging the academic success of students.
• Encouraging volunteerism.
• Supporting the professional development of teachers in Spruce Hill
schools.
• Supporting extracurricular activities that augment the public school
curriculum (i.e. arts programs and after-school programs that provide
informal education opportunities and/or tutoring).
• Keeping the neighborhood aware of issues affecting public schools.
• Serving as an advocate for public education.
To volunteer or get more information, contact Monica Calkins (mcalkins@mail.med.upenn.edu)
Historic District
The Spruce Hill Community Association, along with the
University City Historical Society, is supporting a nomination for
historic district status by the Philadelphia Historical Commission.
From 1850 to 1910, Spruce Hill evolved from an upper-class country retreat
to a middle-class "streetcar suburb" and today's Spruce Hill retains
significant architectural examples from all periods of this early suburban
development.
May Fair
The annual May Fair, held on the Saturday before Mother’s Day in
Clark Park, is the association’s main fundraiser and a neighborhood
tradition.
View Photos from our 2008 May Fair! To volunteer, contact Mark Wagenveld
(ma.wa@verizon.net).
Membership / Outreach
Committee members work to increase the membership of the Spruce Hill
Community Association across our neighborhood both to better serve the
community and to make our organization more effective and representative.
Contact person RichGuffanti@Yahoo.com.
Neighborhood Renewal Plan
In 1994, working with the
Center for Community Partnerships at the University of Pennsylvania, the
Spruce Hill Community Association participated in an extensive analysis of
neighborhood demographics and the real estate market to produce a
comprehensive
community renewal strategy. Over the past decade, that award-winning
strategy has been largely successful in improving quality of life and
invigorating commercial and retail opportunities in Spruce Hill.
SHCA is committed to continuing planning efforts that strengthen the
neighborhood and support renewal in areas surrounding Spruce Hill. We are
exploring the possibility of again working with the Center for Community
Partnerships to update our community renewal strategy.
Safety
We are working toward a safer neighborhood by strengthening relationships
with the Philadelphia Police Department, University City District Safety
Ambassadors, security forces at the University of Pennsylvania and the
University of the Sciences in
Philadelphia,
plus local Town Watch organizations. Contact person EdwardHalligan@aol.com.
Zoning
Spruce Hill’s zoning committee provides a forum for community response
to pending requests for changes in zoning classifications on existing
structures, and to impact new developments that require zoning variances for
land use and/or density. The committee approves guidelines that establish
precedents for the committee to follow in addressing specific kinds of
cases. Zoning represents an indispensable tool for community control over
development within its neighborhood boundaries.
Our primary goal is the retention of single-family housing in Spruce Hill,
and the conversion of existing multi-family housing to owner-occupancy.
Given that so much of Spruce Hill’s population is composed of renters and
transients, the emphasis on retaining and expanding a home-owning base is
critical for the neighborhood’s advancement and progress and stability.
See Spruce Hill Zoning Committee Membership Criteria & Procedures.
Committee Chair: Barry Grossbach (b.grossbach@gmail.com).
Connect with your neighbors:
Join the Spruce Hill email list.
Send an email to
Let us hear from you:
SHCA
257 South 45th Street, 19104
Call: 215-349-7825
NOTARY SERVICE:
New membership benefit!
FREE to SHCA members,
$3.00 donation for non-members
Updated 02/02/12
Webmaster: RichGuffanti@Yahoo.com