PHILADELPHIA (May 2017) – A grand opening celebration for the new PHS Pop Up Garden at uCity Square will be held Wednesday, May 31, beginning at 5:30 p.m. (Rain date: Thursday, June 1, 5:30 p.m.)
The Pennsylvania Horticultural Society is transforming a space at 36th and Filbert Streets into an open-air, European-style garden in the dynamic uCity Square community, surrounded by top-tier universities, research and medical centers, growing start-ups, established companies, historic neighborhoods, and verdant community gardens.
“We look forward to bringing the beauty and energy of the PHS Pop Up Gardens to the exciting community of uCity Square,” said PHS President Matt Rader. “The garden will be a great place for workers, students, neighbors, and shoppers to connect with each other and with horticulture. Our guests will also be supporting the work of PHS – planting trees, creating community gardens, transforming vacant land -- throughout West Philadelphia and the region.”
Jet Wine Bar will operate the garden and offer delicious dishes created by Executive Chef Justin Swain, featuring a Tex-Mex menu that combines influences from Café Ynez and Rex 1516. The cuisine will include BBQ sandwiches, tacos, tortilla salad, nachos, tater tots, pimento cheese and crackers, and chips and salsa. The drink menu will offer a selection of wines and draft beers, sangria, frozen margaritas, hurricanes, and other special cocktails. Constellation Brands will feature its top beer labels Corona, Modelo Especial and Pacifico imported from Mexico. Philadelphia Distilling will feature cocktails made with Bluecoat Gin and Penn 1681 Vodka. Special events in the garden will include Mardi Gras Mondays, Taco Tuesdays, Wine Wednesdays, and Thursday Yappy Hours for canines and their companions.
Rows of apple trees will create the ambiance of an urban orchard beneath a canopy of vines filled with flowers and edibles. The entire garden will glow with creative lighting over long communal seating and café tables for more intimate parties.
Drexel University provided the space at the corner of 36th and Filbert Streets. The location is part of a larger 14-acre site which is currently under development by Drexel, Wexford Science + Technology, and the University City Science Center. Plans for the site include over 3.3 million square feet of new retail, residential, clinical, office, academic, and laboratory space.
Sponsors of the Pop Up Garden at uCity Square are Univest Bank and Trust Co., Wexford Science + Technology, the University City Science Center, Modelo Especial, and Philadelphia Distilling.
“Univest is proud to support PHS in its mission to transform the City of Philadelphia through horticulture and the creation of green spaces,” said Annette D. Szygiel, Executive Vice President and Chief Experience Officer for Univest Corporation. “As we build on our 140-year history and grow our physical presence with new financial centers in various neighborhoods throughout Philadelphia, we are simultaneously investing in local nonprofit partnerships to benefit the greater community. A perfect example is our partnership to bring the new PHS Pop Up Garden to University City, located just down the block from Univest’s newest financial center at 3601 Market Street. We are excited to be a part of this vibrant community, and the garden will be a wonderful addition where people can enjoy the beauty of a dynamic green space.”
Science Center President and CEO Stephen S. Tang, Ph.D, MBA, added: “We are delighted that PHS chose uCity Square for its newest Pop Up Garden – and its first one in West Philadelphia. Not only will this space give our resident entrepreneurs and innovators a new place to socialize, but it will also help convene the wider community surrounding uCity Square. We look forward to partnering with PHS to develop programming that will draw people to this new urban oasis.”
PHS Pop Up Programs
PHS Pop Up Gardens transform underutilized or vacant urban spaces into imaginative, temporary gardens. Showcasing innovative horticulture and landscape architecture, the gardens create lively community assets in neighborhoods throughout the city.
The garden at uCity Square will host a range of creative programs and events designed by PHS and its partners, including dorm room makeovers, an herbal cocktail emporium, succulent wreath-making, a Community Gardens Day celebration, and other horticultural activities.
Hours of the PHS Pop Up Garden at uCity Square are:
Monday to Thursday, 4 p.m. to 9 p.m.
Friday and Saturday, 2 p.m. to midnight
Sunday, noon to 10 p.m.
Follow activities all season at the PHS Pop Up Garden at uCity Square and the PHS Pop Up Garden at South Street on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and the PHS Blog; share with #PHSPopUpGarden.
About PHS
The Pennsylvania Horticultural Society is a not-for-profit organization, founded in 1827, whose programs connect people to horticulture and collaboratively creates beautiful, healthy and sustainable communities. PHS’s best known activities include the Philadelphia Flower Show, street tree planting and maintenance, community gardening, public beautification, and the PHS Pop Up Gardens. PHS is supported by individual members and supporters, foundations, partners and government grants. PHS programs bring together people from diverse backgrounds to engage in horticultural projects that advance social equity, environmental sustainability, and urban livability. For information or to support our work, visit PHSonline.org.
About Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania
Univest Corporation of Pennsylvania (UVSP), including its wholly-owned subsidiary, Univest Bank and Trust Co., Member FDIC, has approximately $4.2 billion in assets and $3.2 billion in assets under management and supervision through its Wealth Management lines of business. Headquartered in Souderton, Pa., and founded in 1876, the Corporation and its subsidiaries provide a full range of financial solutions for individuals, businesses, municipalities and nonprofit organizations in the Mid-Atlantic Region. Univest delivers these services through a network of more than 50 offices in southeastern Pennsylvania extending to the Lehigh Valley and Lancaster, as well as in New Jersey and Maryland and online at www.univest.net.
About uCity Square
Located in Philadelphia’s University City neighborhood, uCity Square is a 6.5 million-square-foot mixed-use community consisting of office, laboratory, clinical, residential, and retail space. Surrounded by top-tier colleges and universities, independent research institutions, world-renowned hospitals, hundreds of restaurants and shops, and home to thousands of jobs, uCity Square is the center of connectivity for residents, students, professionals, and entrepreneurs alike. Boasting over 9,000 employees and 90+ companies in the medical, life sciences and technology fields, uCity Square is driving Philadelphia’s innovation economy through collaborations between the private sector and top-tier research institutions such as the University of Pennsylvania and Drexel University. The project is a joint development of Wexford Science + Technology, the University City Science Center and Ventas. For more info: www.ucitysquare.com
About Wexford Science + Technology
Wexford Science + Technology is a real estate company exclusively focused on partnering with universities, academic medical centers and research companies to develop vibrant, mixed-use communities. Wexford’s communities are built on a foundation of discovery, innovation and entrepreneurial activity that creates visible outcomes in the form of substantial economic growth, new and diverse jobs and community transformation. Wexford targets strategic opportunities with top-tier research universities that are directly on or contiguous to dense, urban campuses. Presently Wexford has developed twelve Knowledge Communities across the United States. For more information about Wexford, visit www.wexfordscitech.com.
About the University City Science Center
Located in the heart of uCity Square, the University City Science Center is a mission-driven nonprofit organization that catalyzes and connects innovation to entrepreneurship and technology commercialization. For 50+ years, the Science Center has supported startups, research, and economic development in the life sciences, healthcare, physical sciences, and emerging technology sectors. As a result, graduate firms and current residents of the Science Center drive $13 billion in economic activity in the region annually. By providing resources and programming for any stage of a business’s lifecycle, the Science Center helps scientists, entrepreneurs and innovators take their concepts from idea to IPO – and beyond. For more information about the Science Center, go to www.sciencecenter.org
About Sojourn Philly
Sojourn Philly is a hospitality group located in the Graduate Hospital area of Philadelphia. Restaurants within this group include Jet Wine Bar, Rex 1516, and Cafe Ynez. At Sojourn Philly, our goal is to present our guests and community with high-quality dining experiences in an immersive and comfortable environment. We strive to provide exemplary culinary, cocktail, and wine experiences in Philadelphia. In addition to our commitment to quality dining, we are also committed to the communities we serve, playing an active role in local business associations and charitable initiatives. More info: sojournphilly.com
MEDIA CONTACTS:
Alan Jaffe, PHS Senior Director of Communications & Media, 215.988.8833, ajaffe@pennhort.org
Marion McParland, PHS Communications Specialist, 215.988.8815, mmcparland@pennhort.org
