David Murrell

Contributing Writer

@davidmurrellv
isaac scott photo
City Life

A Temple Student Photographed Philly’s Summer of Protest. Now He’s Won a National Magazine Award

Isaac Scott, a 30-year-old master’s student at Tyler School of Art, won the award for his images, published in the New Yorker, of the George Floyd protests in Philadelphia.

philadelphia vaccine lottery
City Life

Want a Shot at $50,000? All You Have to Do Is Get Vaccinated

Anyone who’s been vaccinated so far is eligible to win the grand prize in Philadelphia’s new vaccine lottery — and those from zip codes with the lowest vaccination rates have even better odds.

City Life

Permits, Parking and Kiddie Pools: How to Throw a Raging Philly Block Party This Year

As post-pandemic revelry approaches, what better way to celebrate than with the age-old Philly tradition of the block party?

City Life

Poor Philadelphia Neighborhoods Have Worse Access to Public Parks

A report from the Trust for Public Land finds that while 95 percent of Philadelphians live within a 10-minute walk of a park, access to green space in the city is far from equal along racial and economic lines.

City Life

3 Health-Care Experts With Unvaccinated Kids Explain the COVID Precautions They’re Still Taking

The summer is coming and for an increasingly large share of the population, normalcy beckons. Not so much for those with kids under 12, who still aren’t eligible to be vaccinated.

City Life

Philly Announces COVID Restrictions to End on June 11th

All capacity restrictions for businesses and private gatherings will be lifted, though you’ll still need to wear a mask in public.

covid sniffing dogs
City Life

Penn Researchers Need Your Sweaty T-Shirts to Train Their COVID-Sniffing Dogs

The virus-detecting dogs-in-training are learning how to sniff out the coronavirus, but they need your help.

Philly fighting covid andrei doroshin
City Life

The Bizarre, Infuriating Story of Philly Fighting COVID’s Meteoric Rise and Swift Fall

A 20-something student with big ambitions and no medical experience thought he was the best person to lead Philly’s COVID vaccination efforts. The city agreed. What could possibly go wrong?

City Life

Where Are Philadelphians Flying to Now? Florida, Florida and … Florida

Among booked and searched travel, Florida reigns supreme as a preferred destination. Meanwhile, European hot spots like London and Paris are lagging far behind (for now).

City Life

How Will We Know When the Pandemic Is “Over”?

Herd immunity? Lower case counts? Something else? Public health experts say it’s not that simple.

City Life

Touch-Free Toilets and No More Cash: What to Expect as Fans Return to Philly Sports

For fans of the Sixers, Flyers, Phillies and Union, there’s good news: The sports stadiums are open again. But they’ll look a bit different from before.

City Life

The 7 Most Ridiculous Parts of the Pro-Columbus Day Lawsuit Against the City

City Councilmember Mark Squilla is among the plaintiffs suing Mayor Jim Kenney for changing Columbus Day to Indigenous Peoples’ Day.

City Life

An Architecture Critic Ranks the Five Most Interesting Buildings in Philadelphia

No, City Hall and Independence Hall aren’t on the list.

City Life

Vaccinations Are Increasing, But Philly’s COVID-19 Cases Have Stopped Declining. What Gives?

We check in with the pandemic modelers at the CHOP Policy Lab as the coronavirus pandemic enters what is hopefully its final phase.

City Life

Inspector General: City Failed to Properly Vet Philly Fighting COVID

“Simply put, there is no question that the City of Philadelphia should never have been so closely aligned with PFC,” the city inspector general concludes, though he stops short of recommending any disciplinary action.