on the ground : Featured Stories

This multi-faceted organization provides a place for both kids and adults to connect and better themselves, whether that's through a computer lab, youth sports or volunteering. It's a true neighborhood gem in our #OnTheGround home.

Every year, this four-acre plot produces 12,000 pounds of food, welcomes 10,000 school kids, employs 22 high school interns, hosts 45 families in a community garden, distributes 80,000 seedlings, supplies 50 farmstands and welcomes 1500 volunteers. And there's more.

Check out our picks for the week's top events. 

Outdoor drinking venues are popping up all over the city. We've got a full report from three of Philly's most spectacular beer gardens: one in the clouds, one that recalls our industrial past and one always stays on the move.

This historic site is reinventing itself for the 21st century, emphasizing both attracting new visitors -- with help from an ambitious trail project -- and connecting with the surrounding neighborhoods.

Check out our picks for the week's top events. 

Check out our picks for the week's top events. 

Check out our picks for the week's top events. 

Check out our picks for the week's top events.

Last week, the Parkside community came together to officially dedicate "North Star," a colorful mural adjacent to a neighborhood playground. Photographer Richard Barnes was on hand to document the event. #OntheGround

Check out our picks for the week's top events.

Sanctuary is a place of refuge or safety. In urban neighborhoods throughout America, sanctuary is a luxury that can be almost impossible to find. But Michael O'Bryan is working to bring that sense of security to North Philadelphia.

When kids learn and explore outdoors, it has huge behavioral, emotional and educational benefits. This innovative preschool model, which has already been successful in the region, is coming to North Philadelphia. 

Check out our picks for the week's top events. 

This ethnic enclave has beaten the odds and remained a vibrant, beloved, distinct neighborhood. As the forces of development and gentrification encroach, can Philadelphia's Chinatown strike a balance between growth and preservation?