The Eastwick Bulletin: Week of June 3rd

Serving the residents and neighbors of Eastwick, Southwest Philadelphia, since our founding. The Eastwick Bulletin is published weekly to keep our community informed, connected, and empowered.

Welcome to another week in Eastwick! This week, we are expanding our focus to include critical quality-of-life issues that affect every single resident in our community. While EFNC remains fiercely dedicated to advocating for comprehensive flood resilience, we also recognize that a thriving neighborhood requires safe streets and a clean environment. Traffic safety and illegal dumping are everyday concerns that impact our daily lives, regardless of whether we live in a flood-prone zone. By addressing these shared challenges, we hope to inspire more neighbors to get involved in shaping the future of Eastwick.

POSITIVE UPDATE: City Announces $9.3 Million for Traffic Safety Infrastructure

In a significant step toward safer streets, the City of Philadelphia recently announced $9.3 million in funding for traffic safety infrastructure and education programs across the city. This funding, awarded through the Transportation Alternatives Set-Aside (TASA) program, will support projects designed to protect pedestrians, cyclists, and drivers alike.

The planned improvements include traffic calming measures, new pedestrian crossings, and expanded bike safety programs for elementary students in under-resourced neighborhoods. While these specific initial projects are distributed across various Philadelphia neighborhoods, this major investment demonstrates a clear citywide commitment to the Vision Zero goal of eliminating traffic fatalities.

For Eastwick, this announcement represents a vital opportunity. With the city actively funding safety infrastructure, EFNC is well-positioned to advocate for similar traffic calming measures and pedestrian safety upgrades on our own busy corridors. Safe streets are a fundamental right, and we will continue pushing to ensure Eastwick receives its fair share of these crucial infrastructure investments.

COMMUNITY CONCERN: Tackling Traffic Safety and Illegal Dumping

Beyond the ongoing threat of flooding, Eastwick residents consistently raise two major quality-of-life concerns: dangerous traffic conditions and persistent illegal dumping. These issues demand immediate attention and sustained community action.

Traffic Safety: Philadelphia continues to face a crisis of traffic violence, with a record number of fatalities involving pedestrians and cyclists in recent years. In Southwest Philadelphia, speeding vehicles and reckless driving threaten the safety of our children walking to school and residents navigating our neighborhoods. We need comprehensive traffic calming solutions, better crosswalks, and stricter enforcement of speed limits to protect our community.

Illegal Dumping: The burden of legacy dumping and ongoing illegal trash disposal disproportionately impacts Eastwick. Piles of discarded tires, construction debris, and household waste not only create eyesores but also pose serious environmental and public health hazards. While the city's "One Philly, United City" Illegal Dumping Task Force has stepped up enforcement and proposed funding for additional surveillance cameras, the problem persists.

We encourage all residents to actively report illegal dumping. If you witness dumping in progress or discover new trash piles, please use the Philly311 app or call 311 immediately. Documenting these incidents is crucial for directing city resources to our neighborhood for cleanup and enforcement.

🚨 URGENT NOTICE: Clearview Landfill Cleanup Construction

Beginning the week of June 1, 2026, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will be preparing for and constructing the final feature for the Clearview Landfill cleanup. This feature will be a subsurface landfill gas collection trench that will run along the base of the hill and around the two wetlands at the northern and southern end of the site.

What to Expect:

During this time, there will be periods when the bike path that runs through the Eastwick City Park will be partially or completely closed in different sections due to vehicles and heavy equipment. EPA and its contractors, Environmental Restoration and Tetra Tech, will be responsible for construction and safety management during this work.

Project Timeline:

•Week of June 1 - June 15: Relocation of the deer exclusion fence
•June through September 2026: Construction of the landfill gas collection trench
•September - November 2026: Installation of piping that conveys trench gas to a treatment building on the landfill where the air will be treated and vented to ambient air
•Completion: November 2026

Questions? Contact:

•Josh Barber at [email protected] or 267-541-9558
•Angela Ithier at [email protected] or 215-814-5248

SEND US YOUR PHOTOS: Show the World the Real Eastwick

We see the pictures of Eastwick's flooded streets, sandbags lining garages, and illegal dumping. These images tell an important part of our story, but they are not the whole story. Eastwick is a wonderful community to live in and raise a family, just like so many others across the country. People go to work, kids go to school. Holiday decorations get hung and taken down. Springtime flowers bloom and fall leaves get raked. Kids learn to ride bikes and go off to youth sports.

We have readers of this newsletter who live outside our community and don't see that side of Eastwick. Let's show them the real Eastwick. Send us your photos of daily life, community celebrations, beautiful gardens, neighborhood gatherings, and all the moments that make our community special. Help us tell the complete story of who we are.

How to Submit: Email your photos to [email protected] with a brief caption describing the image. Please include your name and permission to publish your photo in our newsletter and on our social media pages.

FUTURE TOPICS: What Would You Like to Learn About?

We want to make sure The Eastwick Bulletin covers the topics that matter most to you. What issues are you concerned about? What positive developments would you like to celebrate? What resources or information would be helpful for your family and neighbors?

Please send us your suggestions for future newsletter topics. You can reply to this email at [email protected]. Your voice helps shape our coverage and ensures we are addressing the issues that matter most to our community.

EASTWICK FLOOD COLLABORATION PROJECT

The Eastwick Flood Collaboration wants to hear from residents about their recovery experiences from Tropical Storm Isaias. As a follow-up to the Eastwick Unmet Needs Roundtable (EUNR), Lutheran Congregational Services is connecting with disaster survivors to document stories of resilience, community relationships, and local strengths.

UPCOMING EVENTS:  Mark Your Calendar

Here is a look at what is happening in and around Eastwick over the next two weeks:

SHARE THE WORD

Enjoy these updates? Tell your friends and neighbors! They can subscribe to The Eastwick Bulletin here: Subscribe to our newsletter

KNOW YOUR RESOURCES

Whether you need help with flooding, environmental concerns, or connecting to city services, these contacts are here for you:

ABOUT EFNC AND JOIN OUR BOARD

The Eastwick Friends and Neighbors (EFNC) brings together community stakeholders to plan and advocate for an environmentally, economically, and socially just Eastwick. We believe that every resident deserves a safe, healthy, and thriving neighborhood, and we work alongside our neighbors, partner organizations, and city agencies to make that vision a reality.

Join the EFNC Board: We are actively seeking passionate community members to join our Board of Directors. We are particularly looking for volunteers with the following skill sets:

• Social Media and Digital Communications

• Event Planning and Community Organizing

• Computer Skills and Data Management

• Grant Writing and Fundraising

• Communications and Public Relations

• Community Outreach and Engagement

If you are interested in serving on the EFNC Board or would like to learn more about volunteer opportunities, please contact us at [email protected] or visit our website at eastwickfnc.org.

Until next time,
The EFNC Team