Suburbanites help in Philadelphia

Mayor Nutter often speaks of the need for partnerships between Philadelphia and the outlying suburbs.

Yesterday, he got to see one with his own eyes.

Nutter spoke at the dedication of a community garden built over a vacant lot at 57th and Cherry Streets - just eight or nine blocks, he said, from his childhood home.

The construction of the garden was a collaborative effort between church youth groups inside and outside Philadelphia, community residents, and local activists.

The goal was to take a lot that had been abandoned for 15 years and transform it into something the community could embrace.

"It's almost exhilarating," said the Rev. William P. Henry of Mount Carmel Baptist Church in West Philadelphia, one of three churches involved in the project. "Seeing what was here and what is here now, knowing in the inner city we can transform corners like this."

In addition to Mount Carmel (of which Nutter is a member), youth groups from Trinity Episcopal Church in Solebury, Bucks County, and the African Episcopal Church of St. Thomas in West Philadelphia also helped lead the construction.

The Urban Tree Connection, a local nonprofit that specializes in urban greening, helped oversee the work.

The youths - roughly 50 of them - spent Monday and Tuesday clearing the garbage-strewn lot and planting coneflowers, liriope, and Christmas ferns, among other varieties.

Installing the split-rail fence was the hardest part, said Kathleen Davie, a Trinity youth supervisor.

"[For] each post hole, we had to break through a layer of brick," said Davie, 23. "It was a lot of back-breaking work. The kids were tired."

Added Trinity youth member Marvin Johnson, 16: "Looking in the beginning of the day that there was nothing and then this fence just came up, I don't know how we could have done it that quickly."

Over time, nearby residents wandered over to assist the youths.

Alice Dixon was one of them.

Dixon, 52, said she was happy to see the lot transformed after many years of neglect.

"It was like this for 15 years," Dixon said. "But this is good now, with the flowers."

With the construction complete, the youth groups hope the community members will maintain the garden.

Joyce Riley, who lives a few blocks away, said she and her neighbors were up to the task.

"For years, we've been hoping someone would come and clean [the lot] up," she said. "It looks beautiful. We want to keep it that way."

Nutter said the synergy between the residents and the outsiders was exactly the kind of cooperation he has been talking about.

"This is a great example," Nutter said. "Southeastern Pennsylvania is an incredibly powerful and rich area in so many different ways, but we have to work in partnership with each other."

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