How do I explain this

A not uncommon sight but still worth stopping to watch is the trucker explaining to the police officer how he plans to get out of this mess. He was too high to continue under the El so he turned onto Wakeling and blocked the hospital entrance. He had nowhere to go since Wakeling is one way at the end of that little stretch and he was too long to make a turn onto Griscom. I didn't stay to see how it was resolved.

Vinyl Siding

A few weeks ago I was browsing through Flickr which is the Yahoo service for sharing photographs. There are, of course, a lot of pictures there but I searched for Frankford and found a very good photographer who had posted quite a few of our neighborhood. He had one of my favorite buildings which is at the corner of Penn and Wakeling. It had fallen on what might be kindly called "hard times". Since the photographer had taken his picture the building had been undergoing renovation and this is a picture of it (twin on the right) as of last week.

Whenever you see old buildings being brought back to life you feel a glimmer of hope. What the owner does with it of course will determine whether it is a blight on the community or another milestone on our way upward. My gripe is the vinyl siding. But thanks for rebuilding the porch.

15th District PDAC Meeting

From the Northeast Times:

PDAC vice president Nancy Doerr announced that 200 youths have been brought to the 15th Police District curfew center at Frankford Group Ministry, 4620 Griscom St., since it opened on April 26.
Police bring curfew violators to the center, where they are evaluated by a social worker and parents are called to pick the offenders up.
Doerr also announced that the center, which has been open Thursdays through Sundays from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m., won’t be open seven days a week in July as originally hoped.
According to Doerr, the center is operating with only seven active volunteers and they are not equipped. She called for PDAC members to step up and volunteer.

Read the entire article at: http://www.northeasttimes.com/2007/0628/pdac.html

Northwood Neighbors Association

From the Northeast Times

While the Northwood Civic Association officers and board members fought among themselves last week, the Northwood Neighbors Association discussed some substantive issues two days later.

Read the rest of the story from the Northeast Times here: http://www.northeasttimes.com/2007/0628/northwoodgroup.html

Wake Up Frankford and Juniata Park

This thread on Phillyblog has produced two interesting and thoughtful posts. One by JenRagen discussing the improvements made to public housing in Philadelphia. Another by Kukla65th discussing the importance of Frankford to the health of the Northeast. Interesting that both of these posters are from other areas of the city.

The prosperity of the Northeast is heavily tied to the future success of areas like Juniata and to a larger degree, Frankford. If Frankford begins to move upward, the NE can expect to see more success in farther out sections. I kind of think of Frankford as the downtown of the Northeast. Until this "downtown" prospers again, the rest of the NE will have to work harder to maintain attractive, stable residential character and institutions

Read them here: http://www.phillyblog.com/philly/showthread.php?t=9393

What is this building

I walk all over Frankford and find myself passing one interesting building after another. This one is a puzzlement. It looks almost like it has stood on the Old Kings Highway since the days of the stagecoach from Philadelphia. At present it is on the corner of Church and Frankford Avenue. There are some of what looks like similar construction on Adams avenue. Small stone houses are not all that common in this area and I wonder what story this one might tell us.

New links

I had a very nice email from Megan Forrestal president of the Frankford Business & Professional Association today. She gave me a link to the FBPA web site which I greatly appreciate. She also suggested that I post a link to SPIN. So both of these links are now active. check them out.

Twin Homes at Frankford Creek

This is a link to Phillyblog with an update on the case of the Munoz family against the city for contributing to their bankruptcy in taking their property.

http://www.phillyblog.com/philly/showthread.php?p=516506&posted=1#post516506

East Frankford Civic News

If good people don't step up then the cockroaches will rule the world.

From the Northeast Times:

In other business, it was noted that a vigil will be held on Thursday, June
28, starting at 7 p.m., on the 4600 block of Penn St. to protest violence and
recent shootings in the community, including the May 19 slaying of Miguel
Torres, 21. No arrests have been made.The violence has distressed Peggy Hoch,
president of the East Frankford Civic Association."It’s not acceptable," she
said. "Take your courage and put it on your sleeve. That’s the only way we’re
going to take our neighborhood back."

Security cameras coming to Frankford

McCollum-Nazaria also announced that bids are being sought for the installation of security cameras along Frankford Avenue. The first corner to be outfitted with the electronic crime-busters is Frankford Avenue and Foulkrod Street. Others are slated for the Margaret-Arrott streets intersection at Frankford, Orthodox and Griscom streets.

Read the entire story at: http://www.northeasttimes.com/2007/0621/eastfrankford.html

Frankford Style to Return

Joan Oliveto, owner of the Frankford jazz restaurant mozaic, told the Frankford and Business and Professional Association last week that she plans to spearhead the revival of FrankfordStyle, a community non-profit organization that taught drama, art, music and dance to children and promoted arts and culture in the neighborhood.

Read the rest of the story from the Northeast Times at http://www.northeasttimes.com/2007/0621/frankfordstyle.html

Frankford Creek Greenway

James Donaghy, of the Philadelphia Managing Director’s Office, read a mayoral proclamation stating that June 15, 2007, was Frankford Creek Greenway Day and that the Frankford Creek Greenway Master Plan is officially under way.

Read the rest of the story in the Northeast Times http://www.northeasttimes.com/2007/0621/creek.html

Northwood Civic Association Meeting

I attended the meeting of the Northwood Civic Association tonight as an interested observer. The tension in the room was the result of a dispute between the majority of the board of directors and the president Joseph Menkevich. The board had proposed an agenda for the meeting proposing 2 amendments to the bylaws of the association with the hope of the membership voting on them this evening.

The bylaws were intended to

• reduce the length of time necessary to approve the disbursement of funds from the legal fund used to oppose zoning variances
• Create an impeachment process for the removal of a member of the board of directors

Given the tension between the board and Mr. Menkevich, it was clear he was the target.

The publicity about the meeting resulted in many non members such as myself attending. However the required quorum of members were also present to vote for the change had it come to a vote.

Discussion of the proposal was heated at times and in the end it was decided to delay a vote until a special meeting to be held on July 10th. Several members expressed dismay at the handling of the situation by the board.

The discussion between the board and Mr. Menkevich made it clear that there are more problems here than just this one issue. At it's heart may be the question of the mission of the association and how that might be best accomplished.

The Art Holiday

Well it may be too good to be true but the last few days when I passed by the Art Holiday, at Kensington and Frankford, it was not open. I could never imagine how it survived in this day of VCRs and DVDs but roll along it did. I may be the last person in Frankford to have noticed but let's all say good riddance. Now what can be done with that choice piece of real estate.

Northwood Civic Association Meeting

Tuesday night at 7:00 p.m. at St. James Lutheran Church, Castor Avenue and Pratt Street. There should be some significant developments in the direction of the organization.

Bromley House

I've been building a collection of links to the most important intuitions in Frankford. One of them is the New Frankford Community Y. As I scanned their web page I noticed in the history section a picture that looked familiar. I looked in my box of old post cards and there it was and now here it is.

If you use your imagination you can picture the pool entrance to the left of the building. The side entrance to the house had to be removed when the pool and gym were constructed. The setting of the house is of course very different. You can read about the history of the house on the Y web site.

Tonight At mozaic

The Butch Ballard Trio, featuring Sam Dockery on the Baby Grand, Dylan Taylor on acoustic bass, and Mr. Ballard on drums, will be performing tonight from 7PM - 11PM. Call for reservations - 215-535-5040

mozaic's Specials:

• Shrimp & Corn Chowder
• Cuban Sandwich (so popular it's being added to the menu)
• Surf & Turf
• Walnut Encrusted Talapia
• Homemade Pineapple Upside Down Cake

Peace,Joan Oliveto

mozaic 4524 Frankford AvenuePhiladelphia, PA 19124

215-535-5040

mozaic is a BYOB restaurant/gallery featuring live jazz every Saturday night and wallet-friendly fine dining.

Interesting Photos

Thanks to the folks at The Electric City Trolley Museum Association (linked by RockinRob on Phillyblog) http://www.ectma.org/index.html I am posting a link to an old picture of Oxford Avenue between Penn and Griscom. I would have some trouble dating this shot but the cars in the background look 40ish. The building is the old Bell Telephone office on the corner of Penn and Oxford. The houses behind the trolley are either converted to businesses or in some case gone and replaced by other buildings.

What do you not see in this picture? Trash on the street. That block is littered with paper and empty drink bottles today. Why? Well people are lazy and drop things right where they stand. Don't blame anybody else. It's the people who walk up and down that street.

Northwood Civic

It seems like Phillyblog is the only place to get an idea of what is going on at the Northwood Civic Association. Might be worthwhile attending the meeting on June 19th to see what is going to happen. http://www.phillyblog.com/philly/showthread.php?t=38630

Secrets of Frankford Avenue

The Daily News today published a great piece on Frankford Avenue today with some very nice compliments to Frankford (the Next Great Neighborhood). Read it here while it is still available. Links are in Phillyblog http://www.phillyblog.com/philly/showthread.php?t=38566

Police Districts Community Meetings

Community Engagement Schedule for the 15th police district

Saturday, June 23, 2007 at 8:00 AM
Community Meeting in 15th Police District
Wissinoming United Methodist, 4419 Comly St.

This notice is from:

Ed Schwartz, Institute for the Study of Civic Values,
1218 Chestnut St.,Rm. 702, Philadelphia, Pa. 19107 215-238-1434 edcivic@libertynet. orgISCV

web site: http://www.iscv. orgAlso Check out "Neighborhoods Online" at http://www.neighbor hoodsonline. net.
Or in Philadelphia: http://www.phillyneighborhoods. org"

Citizenship is the American ideal. There may be an army of actualities opposed to that ideal, but there is no ideal opposed to that ideal." --G.K. Chesterton

Northwood Civic

More interesting activity at the Northwood Civic Association seems to be afoot. Looks like a power struggle but I have no direct knowledge so I probably should just shut up. Read about it in the Phillyblog.

http://www.phillyblog.com/philly/showthread.php?t=16717

Harding students earn praise for Holocaust project

From the Northeast Times:

"No pictures, just voices tell the story of the Holocaust — voices of Warren G. Harding Middle School students entwined with the haunting, heart-wrenching voices of the survivors themselves in an award-winning podcast. Eighth-graders Adriel Carrasco, Edward Foley, Lee Martin, Sarina McDuffy and Bria Waters volunteered to work on the podcast (a digital audio broadcast file played back on a computer or MP3 player) when reading teacher Victoria Monacelli told them about the Mordechai Anielewicz Creative Arts Competition."

Read the entire story at: http://www.northeasttimes.com/2007/0607/harding.html

Northwood Civic

Philly blog has noted some interesting goings on at the Northwood Civic Association meetings. This is the link: http://www.phillyblog.com/philly/showthread.php?t=16717

Saturday Night at mozaic

The Dylan Taylor Trio will be performing at mozaic this Saturday, June 9th. from 7PM - 11PM featuring the gifted Bill Schilling on the Baby Grand, Craig McIver on drums, and Dylan Taylor on acoustic bass.mozaic's

Specials:

• Cream of Potato Soup
• Surf & Turf
• Petite Filet with Cucumber RaitaPan
• Seared Scallops Over Farfalle with White Wine Sauce

Peace,

Joan Oliveto

mozaic 4524 Frankford Avenue

Philadelphia, PA 19124

215-535-5040

mozaic is a BYOB restaurant/gallery featuring live jazz every Saturday night and wallet-friendly fine dining.

Links

Along with news and opinions I began creating some links in the blog. A few days ago I thought it might be interesting to see how many Frankford businesses have web sites and include those as a category. That has proven to be interesting and I've posted them in the links section. There is quite a variety from those that are well known like Frankford hospital to the obscure like Mutt Ink. Browse through and take a look sometime at the variety of folks who are making a living here. Yes, some of them are in Northwood but we all know that is Frankford with a deed restriction.

Art grows at Frankford

From the Northeast Times:

By Diane ProkopTimes Staff Writer

Abria Terrell likes to paint butterflies, and her favorite color is pink. At the ripe young age of 5, the little girl will take part in her very first art show. The Children of Frankford Make Art is an exhibit that will be presented from 6 to 9 p.m. on Friday, June 8, at the Frankford Arts Bank Gallery, adjacent to the Third Federal Savings Bank at 4625 Frankford Ave. The space is provided courtesy of Frankford Associates.

Abria is among children who have been receiving fine-art lessons in Frankford from Rufus Standefer, a member of the International Cinematographers Guild, and Richard Harvey, who has a master’s degree in fine arts from the Tyler School of Art and teaches in the City University of New York system. The two have conducted the classes after school at both the Frankford Friends School on Orthodox Street and at the Beacon Center, which operates out of Frankford High School.

"It’s a great, great joy to be able to do this," Standefer said.The fine-arts studio classes are just that, teaching the children about space, color theory and organizing shapes, tones and colors. "We’re not trying to teach them to be creative or paint or make objects recognizable stories. We’re attempting to take skill sets of drawing and painting and show them how," he said. "We teach them to mix paint and tactics for observation — look past things, look around them."

Seven-year-olds Iris Wilson, Najah Fleming and Danaya Dixon, along with Jennifer Honorat, 6, were given the task of drawing one another’s faces. Before they could begin, however, Standefer had them touch the tops of each other’s heads, then their noses. Whether the children realized it or not, Standefer was showing them the spatial relationship between the two."Should we draw our faces?" asked Iris."We can make our neck and shoulders," Danaya replied.

Standefer pointed to a painting."Look at the subtlety. Look not at the objects and look where they collide," he said. Standefer’s enthusiasm for the children’s talent is effusive. "You love them all when you see what they do," he said. Standefer talked about one 11-year-old student who was asked to paint a leaf — without using any shade of green. "While the leaf was actually orange, he somehow managed to have it marvelously feel like a green leaf. He has talent as deep as the ocean," Standefer said.

If you go to the exhibit, look at the children’s artwork with a new eye — not at the object itself, but at how the children translated it in their imagination. The show is free. Light refreshments will be served.

••Reporter Diane Prokop can be reached at 215-354-3036 or dprokop@phillynews.com

Cops investigating vandalism at Frankford Church

Philly.com on June 4, 2007 reports: "A swastika and "666" were painted on the Word of Faith Church, Leiper Street near Orthodox, Frankford, sometime early Saturday, police said, who are investigating."

Not too much you can say about that except that it didn't attract very much publicity. Now I wonder why that would be.

Philadelphia Police Investigate Attack On Teen

This is the link to the story. http://cbs3.com/topstories/local_story_155155805.html

I won't even ask why this kid was out at that time of day, alone in violation of the city curfew laws. She is no less a victim of a crime. On the other hand, what kind of parents or guardians are they who would let a girl that age out at that time of day.

Frankford History

There is a very nice illustrated history of Frankford written in 1912 available on line. Take a look. It is interesting not only for the history but also because it has many period advertisements. http://www.phillyh2o.org/backpages/frankford_1912.htm

Grand Army of the Republic Museum and Library

We have a new link over to the right going to the Grand Army of the Republic Museum and Library web site. Check them out and then write a check for membership to support this great institution.