Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker returned to her home turf of Mt. Airy on Monday, Oct. 7, addressing a packed room of residents and business owners at the Mt. Airy Business Improvement District's (BID) annual meeting. Speaking at the historic Cliveden, Parker reaffirmed her commitment to the neighborhood that shaped her political career and vision for the city.

"I committed that if people would give me the chance, I would make Philadelphia the safest, cleanest, greenest, big city in the nation, with access to economic opportunity for all,” she said at the meeting. “I went on a trail for two years, communicating to the people of Philadelphia how, if we use the tenets of that vision, we could surpass any division that would come before us." 

Ken Weinstein, Board Chair of the BID, introduced Parker with a personal anecdote that highlighted her long-standing dedication to commercial corridors. "Cherelle, I remember when you asked me to co-chair your first campaign for state rep back in 2005 and I asked you, 'What would you like me to talk about? What would you like me to cover?' And without hesitating, you said, 'Tell them the importance of commercial corridors,'" Weinstein recalled.

Weinstein, who was part of Parker's 70-member Housing, Planning & Development Subcommittee, greeted her with a hug, and she thanked him for the times they've worked together.

"Sometimes we agree, sometimes we disagree. Ken is my friend, and I fought with him on a whole lot of different projects from time to time, but that's what leadership calls for," Parker said. 

Parker, who represented Northwest Philadelphia in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives from 2005 to 2015 and the ninth district on the Philadelphia City Council until 2022, discussed how people accused her of having a bias for Northwest Philadelphia when she ran for mayor. She countered by saying that those were the areas she represented at the time, and it was her job to do so.

"I did become known for delivering for the people that I serve. Why is that foundation for me extremely important to not share with you?" Parker said.

The mayor also addressed questions about efforts to secure more funding for SEPTA and the Save the Train initiative in Northwest Philadelphia. When asked by Josephine Winter, the executive director of West Mount Airy Neighbors, about ways to help in Harrisburg, Parker discussed the work she's already done to secure more funding and the increased budget from the city.

"Jo, I thought you were gonna stand up and say, well mayor, WMAN wants to officially say thank you to the city of Philadelphia because you had to increase the local share of funding for mass transit in the city," Parker said. "The state share hasn't increased, but we paid what would be contingent upon the state's increase."

Before the mayor's arrival, Janis Risch, the BID's executive director, discussed several projects the organization has been working on. The BID installed bike racks and pumps at four of their pocket parks along Germantown Avenue. She also encouraged attendees and business owners to get to know each other to grow the community that they share.

The new bike infrastructure is spread across four micro-parks along Germantown Avenue, each strategically located near local businesses and intersections. Friendship Park, near Töska Restaurant & Brewery, intersects with East Mt. Pleasant Avenue. Sedgwick Park, across from ACME, intersects with East Sedgwick Street. Trolley Car Park, opposite Malelani Cafe, intersects with Slocum Street. Freedom Park, at the border of Germantown and Mt. Airy, intersects with Washington Lane.

For the pedestrian safety project, the BID secured $1.8 million in state funding for traffic and safety improvements in the Mt. Airy corridor of Germantown Ave. Pedestrian safety on Germantown Avenue has been a point of emphasis for many groups.

The pedestrian safety project continues into 2025, as Weinstein announced on Monday. "We are adding eight crosswalks to Germantown Avenue, and we are also doing traffic-calming bump outs, so we're hoping to slow traffic down on Germantown Avenue and at the same time make sure our pedestrians are safe and can go across Germantown," Weinstein said. "To me, this is why the BID exists, right? We have a nice sized budget, many of you pay into that budget and we appreciate that."

Other projects announced include installing new banners on Germantown Avenue and developing a revolving loan fund to help Germantown Avenue commercial property owners and businesses make facade improvements.

After introducing the new projects, the BID took a vote on open board member positions. Members of the BID passed out ballots to business and property owners while waiting for Parker to arrive. George Drakopoulos from Malelani Cafe, Yvonne Haskins from Ariadne Properties, and Wendy Weinstein from Ground Zero salon were all re-elected to three-year terms. The voters elected Danielle Jowdy from Zsa’s Ice Cream to her first 3-year term.

Parker spoke for around half an hour and then took questions from the audience. After answering questions, she walked around the room greeting people and taking pictures with attendees.

"It was a great meeting. A lot of the attendees told me that they were deeply inspired by the Mayor – both by her personal journey and by the validation that she gave to the role that small businesses serve in keeping neighborhoods vital and creating local jobs," Risch told the Local. "The Mt. Airy BID is honored to have a long history of partnering with her on the goals of 'clean and green.’"