The African Diaspora was out in full force to witness the official groundbreaking of Philadelphia Africatown on 55th near Chester Avenue in Southwest Philadelphia. In the planning and development stage for over a decade, the project is moving toward fruition. The African Cultural Alliance of North America Inc. (ACANA) is leading the project in partnership with the African Caribbean Business Council of Greater Philadelphia (ACBC).
State Rep. Jordan Harris and State Sen. Anthony Hardy Williams were there to present ACANA with a check for a $9 million Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program (RACP) grant. The RACP provides funding for the acquisition and construction of regional economic, cultural, civic, recreational, and historical improvement projects. The community development project will cost over $16 million to complete. The boundaries of the project extend from South 47th Street and Baltimore Avenue to South 74th Street and Lindbergh Boulevard and includes the Woodland Avenue business corridor.
According to the Pew Charitable Trusts, the Philadelphia area is home to over 120,000 African and Caribbean immigrants, many who live in Southwest Philadelphia. Just as many cities have Chinatown as tourist attractions, Southwest Philly, now known as Little Africa because of its large African population, is being rebranded as Philadelphia Africatown and a destination for the African Diaspora and other tourists. Philadelphia is also a major tourist destination for African Americans nationwide.
The project will include a medical center, daycare center, performing arts center, low-income housing, and new headquarters for ACANA. The partnership has acquired several properties on the 5400 block of Chester Avenue and is in the process of acquiring a nearby supermarket on Chester Avenue that will be worker-owned.
All of the elected officials that represent the area are in support of the project and have helped raise the funding needed. “We’ve raised about $16 million so far,” said Stan Straughter, chair of ACBC. “I want to thank all of the city and state officials that helped deliver the money for the project and the people in the community that turned out in support. This groundbreaking is for the first phase of the project, which includes the building that will also house the medical center and daycare center. This phase will be complete in about 18 months.”
The second phase of the project is expected to take two years and includes renovating the supermarket, building an office tower, and developing low-income housing.
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