In the weeklies

Some pithy coverage of things local from the CityPaper and Philadelphia Weekly:

• The PW's cover topic spans several articles, looking at the renaissance of West Philly, at least in the "University City" region. Their main story looks at the effects that local institutions have had in their surrounding areas. A second piece looks at the history of the property now controlled by U.Penn and Drexel, much of which was originally residential neighborhoods. A third related piece asks can Temple do for North Philly what Penn did for West Philly? (the revitalization, not the bulldozing...) They don't have the resources, but the existing success story may spur private investors to help move things along.
  
  
• The CP's cover story is a fascinating look at what lies under the city streets in Philadelphia, from subways to wiring and pipes. Interesting to think about generally, and increasingly important for the city to get a handle on; some new technologies are allowing big cities to keep an eye on things before they go wrong. There's also info here about how various utilities and other construction agencies coordinate, the slow painful process of getting centuries of plans into computerized form, and the possibility of "x-raying" sections of ground. You may or may not sleep better after reading this piece . . .
  
  
• Also in the CP: a guide to the fringe festival to see you through the remaining few days' events.