Dr. Chris Spahr, pictured above, has been the Director of Centennial Parkside CDC and a friend of Parkside for the past seven years. He has offered our community his wisdom, knowledge and experience during his tenure as Director. Over the years he and his growing team have worked diligently to revitalize East Parkside. As he prepares to move on to another Challenge we at the Parkside Journal wish his well.
The following text below are some parting thoughts Dr. Spahr would like to share with our readers.
Dear Friends of the Centennial Parkside CDC,
After seven years as Executive Director of the Centennial Parkside CDC, I have decided to step down in order to take on a new role as the Executive Director of the Dornsife Center for Neighborhood Partnerships at Drexel University. My last day will be March 21, 2024. It has been an honor to work alongside the amazing residents of East Parkside and, as such, a hard decision to leave this organization.
However, I am excited that in my new role I will continue to collaborate with West Philadelphia residents to address some of their most pressing concerns.
At the Centennial Parkside CDC we have set up a team of board members, staff, and outside experts to oversee the transition process. I will continue to serve as an organizational advisor to support our team and to ensure a successful leadership transition until we onboard our next Executive Director.
In the past seven years, we have accomplished so much together as we expanded our staff of one part-time employee to a dedicated staff of 10 full and part-time employees. This team, along with our Board members, partners, and volunteers, have planted over 100 trees and collected over 100 tons of trash from the streets of East Parkside. We have leveraged $5.5 million dollars of investment in our public spaces and $400,000 in direct real estate investments for community space and affordable housing. Our innovative Centennial Solar program helped 40 low to
moderate income households access solar energy. And during a time when the world was turned upside down by a global pandemic, we managed to distribute over 400,000 pounds of produce and provided over $8,500 in utility assistance to the families of East Parkside. We did all this while also creating space for many of our youth to find creative outlets in tumultuous times leading to the founding of our first creative arts space, the Black Urban Theater.
I am so proud of what we have accomplished together and, most days, I feel like we are just getting started. We recently adopted and began implementation of a new strategic plan that will guide our organization through 2028. We have laid a great foundation and there is so much to be excited about as we look forward to the continued success of the Centennial Parkside CDC under new leadership.
Thank you for your consistent support as we continue to achieve our vision of an equitable, revitalized, and growing East Parkside . None of the work we have accomplished would be possible without the support of our funders, partners, and volunteers, and for that we are so
grateful. With sincere gratitude,
Chris Spahr
The Parkside Journal 