2020

As each signee entered the balloon-filled room at Bartram Village Community Center, Franklin, the 76ers mascot, greeted each individually amid the cheers of a handful of socially distanced Sixer and PHA staff. Hoopla abided by CDC guidelines, including those related to mask-wearing and social distancing.  The 76ers and The GIANT Company hosted the event.

(Philadelphia – Dec. 2, 2020) – Two of the Philadelphia Housing Authority (PHA) communities for older adults – Nellie Reynolds Garden and Gladys B. Jacobs Manor – have captured coveted  Best of Apartment Living Awards from the Pennsylvania Apartment Association (PAA).

“We greatly appreciate it when our colleagues in the leased housing industry recognize the work that PHA is doing to create quality, affordable housing throughout Philadelphia,” said PHA President and CEO Kelvin A. Jeremiah. “PHA holds its property management team to a high standard. We want our developments to improve the communities where they are located.  I want to thank the residents and the PHA employees working together to ensure these developments are able to achieve excellence.”

Nellie Gardens and Gladys B. Jacobs won gold awards for overall community excellence; Sharswood Tower and Plymouth Hall received platinum awards for overall excellence while Sharswood took home a gold award for maintenance care as well. In the award for overall excellence, communities are judged based upon the community’s overall appearance and amenities.  In the maintenance category, the community’s overall level of care is evaluated during a scheduled tour of common areas and a vacant-ready apartment.

Residents of Nellie Reynolds Gardens live in a state-of-the-art development that is PHA’s first totally “green building.” Located at 25th & Glenwood in North Philadelphia, the site has a 20,000 square foot “green roof” that retains heat in the winter and has a cooling effect in the summer. Apartment dwellers can enjoy the sun-drenched 3,000 square-foot community room that features an indoor garden and charming glass atrium.

The Gladys B. Jacobs Manor, at 1100 Fairmount Avenue, is an older adult mid-rise with 80 units that provides a community setting and offers community care for older adults just outside of Center City. Plymouth Hall, a 55-unit development at 2207 Venango Street, is a newly renovated, energy efficient building with a green roof to help reduce energy costs and a picturesque roof deck.

The already award-winning Sharswood Tower, a 13-story, newly renovated high-rise, has a new community room, offices, elevators, kitchens, bathrooms, mechanical systems, heating, hot water, central air conditioning, entrance and lobby, parking lot and driveway. It is the only building left standing after the demolition of the rest of the Blumberg Apartments and serves as the anchor in the latest stage of the Choice Neighborhood Transformation Plan for the Sharswood/Blumberg community.

Any apartment owner member of PAA, including those catering to senior living, student housing, low-income, and conventional apartment communities, can enter.  The competition, which attracted had more than 800 participants this year, acknowledges excellence within the multifamily industry.  Silver, Gold and Platinum awards are given to the top three apartment communities within the category, by the number of apartments and year the property was built.