Two recent articles in the UC Review point out exacly what a confusing array of options are at play for the future of various high schools in West Philadelphia.

West Philly High at 48th and Walnut is being closed and moved (most likely) to a new building at 46th and Market on the old Prudential Insurance building site. It is supposed to be the first of several high schools reorganized by Vallas on the "small schools" model where it will actually be divided into smaller distinct communities within the school. It will also literally be a smaller school - 800 students instead of 1200. Where will the rest go to. Some will apparently attend Microsoft's new High School of Technology in the Parkside not far apparently from the Please Touch Me Museum's new site in Centenial Hall. Others will go to Sayre Middle School at 58th and Walnut which also becoming a High School.

Independent of all this Microsoft and Penn are collaborating to assist the formation a new "International Studies" High School somewhere in UCity which has been described as a "feeder school" for the Penn-assisted Sadie Alexander School. Strangely this new school, the one most likely to further impact education options and property values in at least parts of the neighborhood (like the Sadie Alexander has had on Spruce Hill), is the first one to kick in 2006 and it is the one the least is known about.

Matt Wolfe wrote an opinion piece posing many of these questions.
http://www.philly1.com/story3070605.html

There was alsoa good factual article discussing at tmeeting with Jannie blackwell in Garden Courts discussing the still somewhat tentative plans with West Philly High.
http://www.philly1.com/story6070605.html

if that penn high school gets built, you'll probably see million dollar homes in Spruce Hill

they are not demolilshing that building are they?

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they better not. i wonder if it's fit for conversion.

As the husband of a former Please Touch staff member, I feel compelled to point out what the folks there often do - it's not "Please Touch ME Museum" but "Please Touch Museum."

In a child context "Please Touch Me" would not be a good thing to call a Museum.

Their was some earlier discussion of them converting it to senior housing o rpossibly even condos but who really knows. Blackwell is kind of redevelopment crazy these days it seems.The only definite in the second article from her comments seems to be that she intends to rename the new West Philly High as Lu Blackwell High. Stock up on your West memoribilia now, I guess.

On a vaguely related note I have new West Philadlephia T-shirts at MiaLou I did based on the gothic lettering and Celtic stone friezes as West, partially because I am not 100% sure of the buildings survival.

Sorry about the name mix-up, neil. :shock:

I meant, they aren;t demolishing the prudential building are they?

__________________
"You down wit OPM?"
Fumo: "Yeah, you know me!"

anything in large (preferably large tall). the one time i stopped by there was nothing in my size.

I think so yes. Its confusing. As I understand it you have potentially Lu Blackwell High, the new Youth Guidance Center, and "Enterprise Heights" project of the Enterprise Center all supposedly going on the site. Its hard to imagine them keeping the old Provident (I think I mistyped when I typed Prudential earlier) building up with all that going on there. There is some confusion about the "Enterprise Heights" project but the plans specificaly entailed some of the development directly linking to the El station according to that 3 yr. old Inga Safron article.

You can try calling Jannie's office and see if you can get a straight answer el. I have just about given up on getting a straight answer about her redevelopment plans on my own block, personally.

An actual quote from her chief of staff - "We don't like putting things (redevelopment plans) on paper, it freaks people out". What can I say to that?
http://www.phila.gov/citycouncil/blackwell/