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 and Initiatives
Block Cleanups
Block Improvement Grants
Block Representative Network
Communications
Education, Schools & Youth
Historic District Application
May Fair
Membership/Outreach
Neighborhood Renewal Plan
Safety
Zoning

Block Cleanups
Four community-wide block cleanups are planned each year; two in spring and two in late fall. Saturday cleanups usually 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.

Contact Rich Guffanti at least one week before a scheduled cleanup. We’ll deliver cleanup supplies on Friday night or Saturday morning of the cleanup, and then pick up equipment on Saturday afternoon.

Your block can schedule a cleanup ANYTIME. Just contact Spruce Hill Cleanup Coordinator Rich Guffanti to arrange for equipment delivery. We have bags, brooms, shovels, leaf rakes, steel rakes and scrapers available. Contact the University City District (215-243-0555) to let them know which corner your bags are on for pickup.

Block Improvement Grants
Dedicated to preventing urban neglect, improving the environment and strengthening the community, SHCA’s Block Improvement Grants encourage the maintenance and renewal of street trees, reduction of storm water runoff, and the creation of tree lawns and front yard gardens.

Grants up to $500 for a single block and up to $1,200 for cooperating adjacent blocks require that receiving blocks match the grant amount dollar-for-dollar through volunteer “sweat equity,” in-kind materials or services, or 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.

The program overview (Warning: this link directs you to an old version of our website: please verify any information that may seem outdated) explains the process and deadlines. Download a grant application for more information.

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.

To volunteer, contact Cindy Roberts

Communications
The communications committee publishes a quarterly newsletter and maintains the association’s website. To volunteer, contact Marie McCullough.

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 Mary Goldman

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. To volunteer, contact Mark Wagenveld.

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 chair Fran Byers


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 Bruce Andersen to get involved.

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. For information, contact Barry Grossbach.