East Passyunk Crossing is a neighborhood in South Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Its location is considered to be from Tasker Street to Snyder Avenue and Broad Street to 6th Street.[1]
The address range of southbound and northbound streets is 1600 to 2099, and of eastbound and westbound streets it is 600 to 1399.
The name and boundaries of East Passyunk Crossing originated when the East Passyunk Crossing Civic Association (EPX),[2] a Registered Community Organization of the City of Philadelphia,[3] was formed. The neighborhood is bounded by the neighborhoods of Newbold to its west, Passyunk Square to its north, Dickinson Square West and Greenwich to its east, and Lower Moyamensing to its south.[4]
Demographics
The neighborhood has a population of over 12,000 residents, with the majority being homeowners, and the median age is about 35. The rowhouse is the primary type of home construction, most built over 100 years ago. [5]
The increasing LGBT population in the area, along with LGBT-owned or friendly businesses in the area has led some to name the area the "New Gayborhood".[6][7] Joseph F. Marino, co-chair of the East Passyunk Crossing Civic Association and Town Watch said, "When I was a boy, there were maybe three gay men in the neighborhood. Now there are three on every block."[8]
Shopping district
East Passyunk Avenue Sidewalk Medallion
The East Passyunk Avenue Shopping District encompasses over 150 independently owned businesses, including many restaurants, along Passyunk Avenue from 9th to Broad Streets.
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The City of Philadelphia designated Passyunk Avenue from the south side of Federal Street to the east side of Broad Street as the East Passyunk Avenue Business Improvement District, and collects levies from the approximately 300 commercial properties there, in order to promote the Avenue, for sidewalk sweeping and beautification, economic development, and personnel and general operation expenses.[10]
The Passyunk Avenue Revitalization Corporation, a non-profit real estate development and management company, owns and leases many properties and maintains the public space along the East Passyunk Avenue corridor.[11]
Regularly spaced along the sidewalks of East Passyunk Avenue, from Broad to Tasker Streets, are embedded 88 cast iron medallions, 30 inches (76 cm) round, displaying the name East Passyunk Avenue and the face and headdress of an indigenous person. The logo has been used in promotional materials for the shopping district since around the turn of the 21st century.[12] The design was called out in 2018 for its "casual racism" and inaccurate portrayal of the headdress worn by the Lenni-Lenape people who lived in the area,[13] and in October 2020 the East Passyunk Avenue Business Improvement District began the process to replace the logo.[14]
Major landmarks
East Passyunk Crossing statue honoring former boxing middleweight champion Joey Giardello
The East Passyunk Gateway Park is a landscaped triangle bounded by Passyunk Avenue, McKean and Broad Streets, located at the traffic entrance to the East Passyunk Avenue shopping district.[15]
The Joey Giardello Statue park, situated in the triangle formed by Passyunk Avenue, Mifflin and 13th Streets, is a tree covered relaxation space with tables and benches. It features a statue, installed May 21, 2011, honoring the 1963 world middleweight boxing champion Joey Giardello.[16]
The History of Italian Immigration Museum, 1834 East Passyunk Avenue, celebrates Italian-Americans represented throughout U.S. society, the Supreme Court, sports, show business, politics, science, art, and music.[17]
On the northwestern border of the neighborhood can be found The Singing Fountain, situated in the triangle formed by Passyunk Avenue, Tasker and 11th Streets. Besides being a popular relaxation spot, with tables and benches, and hidden speakers that play music, it is used by the Shopping District for planned events throughout the year. During warmer months the triangle hosts a Farmers Market every Wednesday afternoon.[18]
The East Passyunk Crossing Civic Association and Town Watch, Inc. aims to "advance the civic pride and preserve the historic integrity" of the area. The organization's activities are directed by five standing committees: Beautification (Clean and Green), Public Safety/Town Watch, Zoning/Planning, Community Relations (Marketing and Events) and Membership. Activities include monthly street clean-ups, neighborhood fairs, weekly Town Watch patrols and representation at local Zoning Board Commission hearings.[31]
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