 It was fitting that Mayor Cherelle Parker was the keynote speaker at the BID's 2024 Annual Meeting, held at Cliveden. Parker was key in encouraging and supporting the spread of special service / business improvement districts outside of the Center City District, and BID Chairman Ken Weinstein was a leader in that expansion, working to launch the BID in 2007. 
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Mark your calendar now for the BID's 15th annual meeting: Thursday, October 6th, 6:30 to 8:00 p.m., via Zoom.
The agenda will include:
Nominations for board members may be submitted via e-mail to Executive Director Janis Risch at [email protected]. Nominations will also be accepted at the meeting prior to the vote. The meeting is open to all who care about Mt. Airy and the cleaning, beautification and safety of its commercial corridors. To register for the meeting, go to: https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZcvfuGorTwvEtJaPVNyCP6CsDB9Iy0Gt7RR After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about how to join the meeting. It's a bit of a sore point to the BID that when the Germantown Avenue commercial corridor had a streetscape improvement about a decade ago, the 6400 block was overlooked.
PennDOT improved the commercial corridor heading north from the 6400 block, and the City of Philadelphia improved the 6300 block, heading south, leaving a gap in the BID’s effort to clean, beautify and improve its commercial corridor. The absence of pedestrian scale lamp-posts has not only left the block in the dark, but it's prevented the BID from hanging our award-winning hanging flower baskets.. The issue has taken on greater importance in recent years as both the 6300 and 6500 blocks of Germantown are experiencing significant residential and commercial development. These changes are putting greater demand and pressure on the 6400 block as a gateway between the sister communities of Mt. Airy and Germantown. In 2021, the BID board allocated $20,000 to attract government funding by hiring design professionals who can provide a conceptual layout of lighting design and other improvements and determine estimated construction costs. The consultants launched the project in January 2022 with a public meeting designed to gain community feedback and approval. By filling in this gap, local small businesses and institutions will be more successful, commercial, and mixed-use properties will be more valuable, and residents and visitors can continue to enjoy the benefits of a vibrant community. The proposed improvements include the installation of pedestrian-scale lighting and new sidewalks and amenities such as hanging flower baskets, attractive planters, and new street trees. "Long overdue!" was the reaction of shoppers at the Grocery Outlet on Hortter Street when when they had a chance to study the city's plan to install pedestrian crossings at seven new intersections along Germantown Avenue in Mt. Airy. To see and comment on the designs for the various intersections, stop by any of the following places of business: Ground Zero Salon Senator Haywood's Office Rhino Chiropractic Bella Mosaic Art Malelani Cafe Kim's Trio Delight Brown Eye Care        Mt. Airy BID and the Grocery Outlet Hosted Open House Presentation of Proposed Pedestrian Crossings3/2/2022 Staff from the city's Commerce and Streets departments were on hand at the Grocery Outlet yesterday to share the designs for eight new pedestrian crossings proposed for Germantown Avenue.
To see the sites, click here. To read more about the project, click here. To see a map of all the locations, click here. The Mt. Airy BID will offer an opportunity on for the public to take a look at the preliminary designs for eight potential new crosswalks along Germantown Avenue.
When: March 1st, 4:00 to 7:00 p.m. Where: The lobby of the Grocery Outlet located at Germantown Avenue and Hortter Street (25 W. Hortter). Background: With its iconic cobblestones and trolley tracks, the Germantown Avenue commercial corridor is ready to serve and satisfy, but combined with the insufficient number of safe, controlled pedestrian crossings, along the two-mile stretch in Mt. Airy, it can be a challenge for anyone who isn’t fleet of foot. Between Sedgwick and Phil-Ellena Streets, for instance, there is almost a half-mile gap between controlled crossings. “Making the Avenue safe for pedestrians has long been a priority for the Mt. Airy BID and its business and property owners,” said Ken Weinstein, President of the Mt. Airy Business Improvement District. “We want to do everything we can to make doing business, shopping or dining out as easy and safe as possible for our customers and employees.” Improved pedestrian crossings reached a significant boost at the BID’s 2019 Annual Meeting, when representatives of the city’s Commerce Department committed to support 9 new pedestrian crossings along Germantown Avenue. The Commerce Department subsequently dedicated streetscape funding for the design and engineering phase, which began in March 2020 with a field survey conducted by Gannett Fleming, the transportation engineering firm contracted for this project. A preliminary concept was shared by Gannett Fleming at a June 10th meeting with a community steering committee for review and feedback. Based on that feedback, several revisions were made. Click here to view the presentation. As you will see in the powerpoint presentation, the intersections that are under consideration for new controlled crossings are: Durham, East Gorgas, Carpenter/Meehan, Pelham/Slocum Street, Phil-Ellena, Hortter, and Cliveden. The proposed crossings will include “bump-outs” (see example in the power point presentation) that will increase pedestrian visibility and shorten the length of the street crossing. Installed at the bump-outs will be “Rapid Rectangular Flashing Beacon (RRFB” (also visible in the power point presentation), which can be activated by the pedestrian to create a strobe light flashing pattern to get the attention of motorists. Mt. Airy Community Steering Committee on Pedestrian Crosswalks Linda Bell, East Mt. Airy Neighbors Mike Boyle, Owen’s Antiques Carol Campbell, East Mt. Airy Neighbors Susan Dannenberg, West Mt. Airy Neighbors Libbie Hawes, Cliveden of the National Trust Maisha Jackson, Senator Art Haywood’s Office Brad Maule, Mt. Airy CDC Kathryn McKenzie-Zeigler, West Mt. Airy Neighbors Scott Seibert, Bancroft Green Natalia Serejko, East Mt. Airy Neighbors Ken Weinstein, Mt. Airy Business Improvement District Peggy Zwerver, Earth, Bread and Brewery Wendy Weinstein, owner of Ground Zero Salon at 7119 Germantown Avenue, is the newest property/business owner to join the BID board. Wendy was elected at the October Annual Meeting, along with the re-election of BID board long-timers Yvonne Haskins and Deborah Gary. To see the full roster of board members, click here.
With its iconic cobblestones and trolley tracks, the Germantown Avenue commercial corridor is ready to serve and satisfy, but combined with the insufficient number of safe, controlled pedestrian crossings, along the two-mile stretch in Mt. Airy, it can be a challenge for anyone who isn’t fleet of foot. Between Sedgwick and Phil-Ellena Streets, for instance, there is almost a half-mile gap between controlled crossings.
“Making the Avenue safe for pedestrians has long been a priority for the Mt. Airy BID and its business and property owners,” said Ken Weinstein, President of the Mt. Airy Business Improvement District. “We want to do everything we can to make doing business, shopping or dining out as easy and safe as possible for our customers and employees.” Improved pedestrian crossings reached a significant boost at the BID’s 2019 Annual Meeting, when representatives of the city’s Commerce Department committed to support 9 new pedestrian crossings along Germantown Avenue. The Commerce Department subsequently dedicated streetscape funding for the design and engineering phase, which began in March with a field survey conducted by Gannett Fleming, the transportation engineering firm contracted for this project. A preliminary concept was shared by Gannett Fleming at a June 10th meeting with a community steering committee for review and feedback. Click here to view the presentation. Click here to view the feedback provided by the steering committee. As you will see in the powerpoint presentation, the intersections that are under consideration for new controlled crossings are: Durham, East Gorgas, Carpenter/Meehan, Pelham/Slocum Street, Phil-Ellena, Hortter, and Cliveden. The proposed crossings will include “bump-outs” (see example in the power point presentation) that will increase pedestrian visibility and shorten the length of the street crossing. Installed at the bump-outs will be “Rapid Rectangular Flashing Beacon (RRFB” (also visible in the power point presentation), which can be activated by the pedestrian to create a strobe light flashing pattern to get the attention of motorists. A site tour is scheduled for July 9th, after which the steering committee will reconvene in late summer. For more information about the site tour, or to give feedback on the proposal, contact Janis Risch, executive director of the Mt. Airy Business Improvement, at [email protected]. Mt. Airy Community Steering Committee on Pedestrian Crosswalks Linda Bell, East Mt. Airy Neighbors Mike Boyle, Owen’s Antiques Carol Campbell, East Mt. Airy Neighbors Susan Dannenberg, West Mt. Airy Neighbors Libbie Hawes, Cliveden of the National Trust Maisha Jackson, Senator Art Haywood’s Office Brad Maule, Mt. Airy CDC Kathryn McKenzie-Zeigler, West Mt. Airy Neighbors Scott Seibert, Bancroft Green Natalia Serejko, East Mt. Airy Neighbors Ken Weinstein, Mt. Airy Business Improvement District Peggy Zwerver, Earth, Bread and Brewery Today, the Mt. Airy Business Improvement District (BID) announced a $5,000 matching grant to the Mt. Airy COVID-19 Business Relief Fund established by Mt. Airy Community Development Corporation (CDC). All contributions by area residents and others will be matched by the Mt. Airy BID until $10,000 total is raised.
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