Norris Square

The African influence is rich at El Colobó, a garden in the Norris Square neighborhood of Philadelphia. Created by Grupo Motivos, an organization of women of Puerto Rican descent who formed a support network for the affirmation of their identity, El Colobó is the neighborhood’s first African garden. It is a place where community members gather to learn about their African heritage and celebrate the influence of African cultures in Puerto Rico and North America through art, dance, music and agriculture.

The Taking of Bodine is a harrowing glimpse into one of the darker episodes of Philadelphia's urban revitalization saga. In 2002 and 2003, residents of the multi-ethnic Norris Square/West Kensington neighborhood received notices that their homes would be repossessed by the city under the Neighborhood Transformation Initiative, a redevelopment plan. Blight criteria included "economically or socially undesirable land use," allowing developers to make requests to the city repossess land belonging to long-time residents.

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Once a vacant lot, Las Parcelas is now a lush urban garden and community center in Norris Square. Founded in 1990 in this largely Puerto Rican neighborhood in North Philadelphia, the garden is a place where the dedicated women of Grupo Motivos tend a small piece of the island for their community. The garden's verdant vegetable beds "remind me of Puerto Rico," says one gardener, who was unable to travel back to her home on the island for 30 years.