What Philadelphians want Santa Claus to bring the city this Christmas

Turkeys are about to start getting roasted and Philadelphia City Hall’s Christmas Village will soon be packing up. But the magic of the holiday season is never complete without a letter to Santa.

With Christmas Day around the corner, we asked Philadelphians if they could ask Santa for anything on behalf of the city what would it be? (Spoiler alert: Mr. Claus might need to talk with SEPTA.)

Here’s what we heard:

Sharon Wood, 68, and Alexis Rollins, 46, were all smiles and warmth, collecting donations for the Salvation Army at City Hall. But when it came time to ask Santa for a gift, things got serious.

Wood, a North Philly resident, took one look around before declaring: “More housing for the homeless. … Everyone deserves help.”

Despite Philly recently leaving behind its title as the “poorest big city in America,” the number of unsheltered people increased by 20% compared with 2024, a reality Wood said can be felt citywide.

Mayor Cherelle L. Parker announced Friday in her State of the City speech that 1,000 new beds will be added to the existing shelter system by Jan. 31. But to Wood, more needs to be done.

“There are so many buildings [in Center City] and they could use those spaces,” Wood said. “But it’s so much work and [Parker] is only one person — give her some grace, help her. And that falls on City Council.”

Rollins, on the other hand, set aside the power struggles for Santa. Instead, she asked for St. Nick to soften the Philadelphia Parking Authority’s heart.

“No more ticketing: That’s my wish,” Rollins said. “Pricing is too much and people need a break in this economy.”

Halfway through 2025, Philly hit its lowest homicide rate in recent history. But to healthcare worker Paulette Franklin, 56, reducing homicides is only one leg of a table that could also benefit from providing access to mental healthcare and aiding unsheltered people, she said.

A few months ago, one of her coworkers was chased by an unsheltered man outside a subway station on the Market-Frankford Line, Franklin said. The situation left the South Philly resident wondering if one day she too would have to run for her life.

“You don’t know what can happen and I feel like I always have to be alert. I would like for everyone to be safe; we need safety and they need help.” Franklin said. “Since COVID things got worse and it hasn’t gotten better, helping them would benefit the city.”

Franklin isn’t the only one asking Santa for crime reduction this year. Her grandson Nathan Dockett may only be 10 years old, but hearing his mom and grandma talk about the safety of the city has already made him ask Santa for the end of gun violence in Philadelphia.

“Too many people get killed or hurt around the city, it makes me frightened,” the fifth grader said. “I just want Santa to make all peace around the world.”

For J.van Kuilenburg, 25, who survived SEPTA cuts in August that left many Philadelphians scrambling, it was a no-brainer what to ask Santa for.

“Santa, please fund SEPTA, give us clean trains, and let our operators be paid a living wage,” Kuilenburg said.

Public transportation was one of the main reasons the museum curator moved to Philly from central Pennsylvania in 2023.

“I hope that we can get funding so we don’t have to keep wondering every two years what’s going to happen to our transportation,” Kuilenburg said.

For his friend Nush Agarwal, 24, the gift would be a more accessible city for people using wheelchairs.

“Philadelphia is more accessible than other places I have been to. It’s easier to roll, most of the subway stops have elevators, but there is still a lot I can’t do that I would love to do,” Agarwal said, pointing out how even going inside a Christmas Village stall is impossible for him due to the lack of ramps.

He would ask Santa for a city grant or program to help with the installation of ramps to have a Philadelphia everyone can better enjoy.

“It’s really important because that’s how you include people: It gives social and mental happiness,” Agarwal said.

Being teenagers Raphael Wimmer, 15, and Ayden Devine, 14, aren’t really into Santa these days. Nevertheless, they would be happy to believe if Santa were to help them stop getting in trouble at school due to SEPTA delays.

The pair have trouble getting from North Philly and Mount Airy, respectively, to school in South Philadelphia, and SEPTA delays affect their attendance.

“We have a science teacher that grades you zero if you are not on time,” Wimmer said. “It makes our grades go down for something we can’t control. School should give kids that take SEPTA a grace period,” Devine pitched.

Playing Christmas carols on the North side of City Hall, a white-bearded man dressed in red, hat and all, was surprised to hear our request.

“I can’t answer that: I’m Santa Claus,” Matthew Anthony, 59, said as he laughed like Santa himself. “But I will ask for the state to fund SEPTA’s horrible infrastructure.”

The musician feels like the lack of a budget is not only affecting public transportation access, but also the safety of riders.

“Every time you walk inside the system is a nightmare, there is no feeling safe there, but prices are going up,” Anthony said. “We gotta get money from the state to help. Until then, go Birds!”