Here's Why Prince Albert of Monaco Is Visiting Philadelphia This Week

Prince Albert of Monaco is in the U.S. this week paying a special visit to Philadelphia, the hometown of his late mother, actress Grace Kelly. While in town, the prince is appearing for a number of events supporting causes he cares about as well as paying homage to his family history in the city.

On Wednesday, he visited areas of Philadelphia that are in need of environmental improvements, and is later scheduled to appear at a tree planting ceremony to mark a $130,000 grant that's been given toward the Philly Tree Plan, a project aimed at planting trees in urban areas of the city, according to NBC Philadelphia. For the project, Albert's charitable foundation is working in conjunction with the city's parks department to help create more tree cover in underserved areas of the metropolis in an attempt to combat effects of climate change.

He'll also be visiting the Philadelphia Zoo to discuss his foundation's contributions to the zoo's education programs, and participating in a ceremony honoring his Olympiad relatives—rowers John B. Kelly Sr., Albert's maternal grandfather, John Kelly Jr., and a cousin, Paul Costello, per People.

While Albert, of course, grew up in Monaco, he's long had a special connection to the city of Philadelphia, where his mother was born and raised. In 2016, he purchased the famed starlet's childhood home in Philadelphia’s East Falls neighborhood for $755,000. At the time, it was reported that he would use the restored home would be used as the offices for the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation and as an events space The Princess Grace Foundation-USA as well as a private place for the royal family to stay while in town.

"I think after talking to some of my cousins about this, we didn't want to see it disappear or see it transformed in any way by future owners," Prince Albert told Hoda Kotb on NBC's TODAY in 2018. "It's a big part of our family's history."

Albert does not appear to have been joined on this trip by Princess Charlene or their children.

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