Dear Supporters,
Today (6/23) we have hit 1000 signatures!!! There will be more to come but to hit this many so soon is a true statement. The community has had ENOUGH!
Over the last couple of weeks, there have been 2 things, which have occurred that make this petition to reform the South Street Headhouse District board that more vital!
SHOOTING
On the heels of that disastrous Cinco de Mayo Festival, that wreaked havoc on the surrounding neighborhoods, required a massive response from Law Enforcement and ended up on the news the next day, there was another shooting on South Street about 2 weeks ago. I'm not sure why this did not make the news but the video is very clear:
https://share.icloud.com/photos/03bpxuHBxxWmSuBFqu3t7gzUw
SURVEY
This very detailed study was officially published on 6/15. The name of it should say enough. It's unrelated to this petition but certainly clarifies why change is so desperately needed!
Here is a quick overview:
- Goal: figure out why South Street has hit a 30-year vacancy high, even as neighborhoods surrounding it have gone up in population, home value, and median income
- What it tested: whether the standard explanations (COVID, e-commerce, weak local spending) are the contributing factors.
- How: a 2026 survey of every storefront on South Street (100-1100) compared against East Passyunk (1200-2000), plus historical analysis, demographic changes, and (18) interviews like ours.
Example of a few findings:
- Vacancy is at a 30-year high. South Street is 70% occupied (30% vacant); the emptiest it has been in over three decades, with major distress between the 100 to 400 blocks. The 300 block alone runs 59% vacant.
- Dormant real estate market. South Street has 35 long-term vacant storefronts, against just 2 on East Passyunk. Reinvestment in the corridor has almost completely stalled.
- The mix stopped serving the neighborhood. Arts and culture are down to 4.4% of tenants, the corridor that ran on galleries, music, and comedy is down to two venues, and what is left skews toward takeout, late-night, and smoke shops, with almost no grocery, health services, or fitness options.
- Too little density and no daytime crowd. There are not enough residents and daytime customers within walking distance to keep the storefronts full, resulting in the changing business mix.
Here is how to find your way around the site.
- Home: Where the corridor's problems and the four-part fix get framed + pre-set map filters
- Interactive Map: Every storefront I surveyed along South Street + East Passyunk --> Click and filter.
- Summary: The entire study in one scroll, from problem to proposal.
- Findings: Six findings and the charts behind them, from the field survey.
- Policy Analysis: The four-part fix, from creative overlay to pedestrian plaza (interviewees input largely is found here).
- About: Methods, downloadable datasets, and the full thesis PDF.
NEXT STEPS
We will be going to the press now that we have hit 1000 signatures in an effort to shine an even bigger spotlight on this. Keep up the momentum. Keep sharing this petition.
Thank you for joining the fight and lending your voice to help turn this corridor around!
More to come!
Thank you,
Joe