GAMP is located in South Philadelphia in what seems to be a cross-section between two different neighborhoods. To the north and east of GAMP the neighborhood is composed primarily of African Americans, to the southwest the residents are mostly of European and Asian descent. Visually, this divide can be felt in terms of litter: to the north and east of GAMP, the streets are full of it. If one walks southwest, however, the amount of litter lining the streets subsides. Besides the large shopping plaza to the east, standing on what used to be Girard college, GAMP is surrounded by residential homes. During the day, the neighborhood seems quite, with small groups of children playing together here and there as a mother or grandmother sits on the patio watching.
GAMP is surrounded by a variety of retailers, including major clothing discount chains, a supermarket, several banks, two gyms, and many fast food outlets. The majority of these businesses are franchises and there are not many independent retailors in the neighborhood. However, the few independent retailers around are very popular. They include Phillip’s Steaks (a sandwich shop that serves cheesesteaks, burgers and hoagies), a truck that sells barbequed hot dogs, and a vendor of fresh crabs who’s been in the same location for nearly 50 years!
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We think that the heart of the neighborhood is Stephen Girard Park, a lovely 4-acre public park that was established in 1953 on land donated by Stephen Girard. This park includes a house formerly owned by the Girard family where two tenants currently reside. The park is very popular with locals from all over the neighborhood. The ample trees in the park provide shade and coolness on hot summer days. In the daytime, parents bring young children to play, in the evenings, dogs and their human companions frolic on the grassy meadows. In this little oasis, squirrels lacking timidity approach the young and old who sit on benches that line the park’s pathways, as if to inquire whether any tasty morsel has been brought to share.