The question was posed at the January General Membership meeting: What is the Passyunk Square Civic Association doing about vacant lots and abandoned properties in the neighborhood? Thankfully our area doesn’t have as much trouble with this issue as other neighborhoods. That doesn’t mean we’re completely free of them.

In order to even begin planning what we might do about this issue, we first need to get an idea of the scope of the problem. To do this we want to continue to get an inventory all the boarded up/vacant houses in the neighborhood. This is where you come in!

Some weeks ago we sent around a survey to allow neighbors to report suspected abandoned properties. (Unfortunately, there are some inhabited buildings that only look like they’re vacant.)

If you see a house that is boarded up/vacant  click here to fill out this short form and send us the address and cross streets. This will feed into the inventory we have been keeping.

Thank you for helping to make our neighborhood a better place.

Is See-Click-Fix just not getting it done for you? Are you someone who notices the slightest changes to properties and businesses on the blocks surrounding your house? Have you seen an increase in illegal bandit signs (will they REALLY buy my house in seven seconds?) or dumping? Are you wondering what can be done about it? The answer: Passyunk Square Civic Association Town Watch. And we’re looking for a few dedicated volunteers to take leadership roles on our Town Watch Committee.

Wanted: Two or three outgoing, organized, energetic and vigilant volunteers to share in the task of organizing and leading our monthly neighborhood town watch events. The ideal candidate would have one hour per month (or every other month depending on how many leaders we can get) to lead a group of other like-minded folks for a stroll around the neighborhood to find and report property crimes, dumping, blight, damaged streets and sidewalks, potential illegal construction or non-permitted businesses. The town watch leader for the month will act as a point of contact for other volunteers who want to participate and will choose what section of the neighborhood the group will focus on. In addition to one hour of on-the-street work, the town watch leader will submit the findings of the group to the City through its 3-1-1 system. The Civic Association can be the direct link between the Town Watch leaders and the people at the City who can get things taken care of quickly.

Our next scheduled Town Watch walk is Saturday, January 14 from 11am to noon. We already have a few people who are interested in participating but we’re still looking for some good leaders to guide the group. The Board will provide advice and suggestions for first-time leaders to help them get adjusted to the job. It’s the best thing YOU can do for the neighborhood with the shortest monthly time commitment. Please email us at contact@passyunk.org OR chat with a board member after the general membership meeting on January 3.

Due to conflicts with various events happening tomorrow (including the South Philly Garden Tour) and the fact that we are undergoing some restructuring of our Town Watch program, tomorrow’s Town Watch Walk has been cancelled.

We are currently seeking a volunteer (or a team of volunteers) to take over our Town Watch program. This could be a board-level position but is not required to be. So if you want to help out, and all you want to do is lead Town Watch walks once a month, please email us at contact@passyunk.org for more information. Thanks!