Please join The Frankford CDC, Health Partners, and Aria Health on June 1st!

Good design is a crucial part of a successful business and a thriving business district. That is why we were thrilled to bring design and architecture expert Kathleen Lambert directly to our business corridor this past Tuesday. Ms. Lambert, who has over 20 years of experience in architecture and planning, spent an hour with each participating business, discussing everything from interior design guaranteed to bring more customers in to the shop to facade changes intended to create a safer, more welcoming main street.

Ms. Lambert’s visit is just another in our on-going series of business development events. Over the past year, the Frankford CDC has held individualized counseling sessions with SCORE, Third Federal Bank, and the Small Business Administration, and we have ever intention of continuing to bring the experts right here to our community. The CDC believes that facilitating these opportunities for our business owners, and bringing resources right here to Frankford, is a critical part of our job.

We hope that Ms. Lambert will join us again, though we realize that the CDC and our partners on the Avenue now have the hard job: following up on all of her excellent recommendations!

If you’re interested in making an appointment with Ms. Lambert, please contact the CDC at 215-743-6580.

Dear Frankford,

We have been so honored to spend the past 6-9 months with you, hearing
your stories and learning about the neighborhood- its past and the
hopes you have for it.

You can now go online to catch a glimpse of what you have shared with
us: http://www.youtube.com/user/imaginingfrankford

Thank you for being so welcoming and generous! We hope that you will
share these videos with your fellow community members. Because there
were so many, it is going to take us a moment to edit all of them. As
they are completed they will be added to the website.

In the meantime, Cesar is working hard to design the 5 corridor
murals. Please check your in-boxes in June for news about this process
and how you can participate in the final mural design meetings.

Thanks for your support,

Netanel and Cesar
http://muralarts.org/explore/projects/imagining-frankford

Netanel Portier
Project Manager
City of Philadelphia Mural Arts Program
The Lincoln Financial Mural Arts Center
at the Thomas Eakins House
1727-29 Mount Vernon Street
Philadelphia, PA 19130
215-685-0725 (office)
856-906-0078 (cell)
215-685-0757 (fax)

Make your donation to the Mural Arts Program today! Visit muralarts.org/support

This is the third segment of the interview we did back in November with Tracy O’Drain and Michelle Feldman of the Frankford CDC.  What does Michelle’s job encompass.

Almost a year ago, the Gazette published a guest post from the Frankford CDC detailing our efforts and future plans. A lot has happened since the writing of that piece, and so much of it has been positive.

We have also launched several new programs in the last few months, including a partnership with Aria Health to spotlight the businesses along the Avenue and an initiative with NorthEast Treatment Centers to keep the Avenue clean. We’ve also partnered with Frankford High School to organize a roundtable with some of our community’s best food entrepreneurs – bringing business owners in direct contact with budding ones.

In addition, FCDC has markedly stepped up our communications efforts, to great success we believe. Our facebook and twitter accounts are updated constantly, aimed at creating buzz about Frankford. We also consistently post videos on our YouTube channel, and recently created a Pinterest page to again highlight Frankford’s many assets. We firmly believe we have generated interest in our community through our marketing campaign, and will have some exciting partnerships to announce before the end of the summer.

The CDC is also in the midst of planning its special events for the coming summer and fall: a community health fair with Aria Health and Health Partners, a re-reading of the Declaration of Independence at Womrath Park, another series of Second Saturday arts festivals, and an even more haunting Haunted History Tour. Stay tuned for dates, times and locations. We’d love your input as we plan these events, and we’d love to hear ideas for future ones!

Even as we expand our scope of services, we are still focused on small business development and attraction. Over the last year we have brought two new businesses to Frankford, and are working strategically to bring several more. Our increased media presence is intended in part to help bring shoppers and new business owners to the Avenue, and we believe we are having an effect.

We at the Frankford CDC love what we do, from working with wonderful small business owners to planning events and forging larger development projects. And we love talking to as many people as possible about Frankford and our plans. So don’t hesitate to contact us at 215-743-6580, or to stop by our offices at 4900 Griscom Street.

A better Frankford, and a better Philadelphia, will not come about unless we all get involved.