Good morning, Philly! 👋 Thanks for starting your week with The Inquirer. Let’s get into it.
Read more Hayden Panettiere, who starred in the television series ‘Heroes’ and ‘Nashville,’ dies at 36
Thirty SEPTA bus routes are set to change at the end of August. The public transit agency launched its bus network redesign efforts after ridership declined, and this will be the first phase of changes.
And on a more serious note, an off-duty Philadelphia police officer was shot and killed on Sunday outside an after-hours lounge in Southwest Philadelphia, police said. Another person was also left in critical condition.
Plus, the president’s confidence in Stacy Garrity has become a critical question in the final stretch of the Pennsylvania governor’s race, and more news of the day.
— Sam Stewart ([email protected])
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SEPTA’s big changes
The first phase of SEPTA’s bus network overhaul begins Aug. 23, when 30 routes will be affected in some way. Some routes with low ridership or that duplicate nearby service will be eliminated. Others will be extended or run more frequently, and two new routes will be added.
🚍 What routes will change? New and expanded routes include Route 72, a new crosstown bus running along Cheltenham Avenue, and the new Route 76 bus from Columbus Commons to Rising Sun and Olney. Route 45 will be extended to provide service to the Navy Yard, and Route 79 will be extended from South Philadelphia into University City.
🚍 What routes will be eliminated? Routes 35, 47M, 62, 78, 80, 89, and 106 will be cut, officials say.
🚍 What areas are most impacted? South Philadelphia, Kensington/Juniata, the Cheltenham Avenue Corridor, the Lancaster Avenue Corridor, and Roxborough.
The Inquirer’s Thomas Fitzgerald and Erica Palan have the details.
‘We continue to pray for his family’
An off-duty Philadelphia police officer died after being shot early Sunday morning in Southwest Philadelphia, police said.
The shooting occurred near a property neighbors and police have called an after-hours lounge. A social media account linked the address to a nightclub called “Nipsey’s Hookah Lounge.”
Responding officers found the off-duty officer and another gunshot-wound victim at the scene, police said. Both victims were taken to Penn Presbyterian Medical Center, where the police officer was pronounced dead around 8 a.m., police said. The other victim was in critical condition when he arrived at the hospital, said police spokesperson Sgt. Eric Gripp.
The 29-year-old officer had been with the Police Department for two years, police said, and was assigned to the 12th District, in Southwest Philadelphia.
What you should know today
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The United States and Canada are moving closer to a deal to avert the imposition of punitive 50% tariffs on such Canadian products as hockey sticks, wine, and cement, according to officials.
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Pennsylvania’s GOP nominee for governor, Stacy Garrity, is looking for help from President Donald Trump and national Republicans.
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No matter what they’re seeking treatment for, teenagers who come to the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia emergency department are handed a 10-minute health survey with questions about anxiety, depression, and self harm. About one in three have reported symptoms of depression or suicidal thoughts that may otherwise have gone unnoticed.
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A Gladwyne-based senior services organization is planning to build an independent living community on an estate in Radnor Township, a move the group says is necessary as demand for senior living services rises in the region.
Read more Ex-Philly Fed chair is back at Wharton and on a quest to save the world financial system
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A man who police say burglarized nearly 30 stores in Philadelphia was arrested last week in Florida. Ravon Service, was arrested at a resort hotel in Kissimmee, Florida, about 20 miles southwest of Orlando, according to the U.S. Marshals Service in Philadelphia.
Quote of the day
When Samantha Paige Rosen quit her job and moved in with her parents at age 29, she thought it “wasn’t what adults were supposed to do.” But she’s glad she did it anyway. Her anthology, Living, Together: Reimagining Community in the Age of Disconnection, offers a window into the experience of living outside of a traditional nuclear family arrangement.
🧠Trivia time
What is the name of the sports apparel company that was once based in the Philly suburbs and had been known for its trash talk-inspired T-shirts?
A) AND1
B) Mitchell & Ness
C) Philly Phaithful
D) Phillygoat
Think you know? Check your answer.
What (and whom) we’re…
🛍️ Shopping for: Art and antiques at Gargoyles gallery and vintage shop, which just returned to South Street with all its treasures.
🚢 Impressed by: Philadelphia’s official tall ship, the Gazela,which at 125 years old isn’t done riding the waves.
🚴 Admiring: City bike messengers. They race through shifting dispatches, tight deadlines, and city traffic while pushing to reclaim streets and make cycling safer.
👀 Watching: LeBron James’ new YouTube channel. Surprisingly, it’s not a basketball thing.
🧩 Unscramble the anagram
Hint: ⚽ Home to Philly’s Union
AKA BUR SPUR
Email us if you know the answer. We’ll select a reader at random to shout out here.
Cheers to Rosemary Hering who correctly guessed Sunday’s answer: Ridley Park. Seamus Coffey, 8, caught a piranha in the borough’s lake. Now, he’s a budding fishing influencer.
Photo of the day
📬 Your ‘only in Philly’ story
Think back to the night that changed your life that could only happen in Philly, a true example of the Philly spirit, the time you finally felt like you belonged in Philly if you’re not a lifer, something that made you fall in love with Philly all over again — or proud to be from here if you are. Then email it to us for a chance to be featured in the Monday edition of this newsletter.
This “only in Philly” story comes from reader David Theriault, who describes a delightful Uber ride in the city:
It happened one night about a month ago, we had friends in town and had a reservation for dinner so we called an Uber.
We all jump in the Prius and I can hear Fleetwood Mac playing softly on the stereo. So I ask the driver, as we all pile on top of one another, “Do you like Fleetwood Mac?”
At that point, the driver cranks the stereo up to level 11 and he reaches between the seats on the ceiling and gets an LED dome light flashing. He starts singing “Go Your Own Way” at the top of his lungs and then reaches for a full sized gold microphone and continues to drive and sing into the mic for the rest of the trip.
Of course he got a good tip and we all had a great conversation over dinner.
P.S. He was a pretty good singer!
👋 Have a good day, every one!
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Read more More Americans are picking communal living over nuclear families. Including this Penn Valley author.