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Community Rises Up Against Crime

Lt. Derrick Wood met with concerned residents, business owners and civic leaders Friday night at the PSA1 meeting to deal with the never ending problem of violent drug dealers at Frankford Avenue and Foulkrod Street.  Shootings, violence, threats  and intimidation have become the norm in the last few months as drug wars have spilled over into the streets.  The Frankford Deli harbors the dealers during the day making the intersection ground zero for a quick high or a stray bullet. Video below is of the location after a recent shooting on the morning of March 19th.

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Lt. Wood made it known that this problem is a priority for the PSA and the problem is being addressed.

 

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Frankford Business & Professional Association Meet and Greet

Globe Dye Works was hopping last night, as the industrial complex turned artists lofts hosted the Frankford Business & Professional Association’s first event of 2012, a meet and greet. We were so pleased to have over 40 guests take part in a great Frankford event – and for many, it was their first Frankford event! Our special thanks to Globe Dye Works, Pappajohn Woodworking, Yards Beer, Holiday Thriftway, Aria Health, 4 Every Occasion, Gilbert’s Upholstery, and Third Federal Bank!

For those of you who missed it, enjoy the pictures below!

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Coming Up in Frankford 3/31 to 4/27/2012

  • Northeast EPIC mini summit
    When – Sat, March 31, 10am – 1pm
    Where – Sankofa Freedom Academy Charter School, 4256 Paul Street (map)  Description – The 2012 Northeast Health and Economic Development Summit was formed out of a partnership between three of our Faith Based Organizations (Campbell AME Church, Second Baptist Church, and Faith Assembly of God), and our representatives from our elected official offices, (Councilwoman Maria D. Quinones Sanchez and State Representative Tony Payton Jr.) to address the issues of hunger, health and economic opportunities in our neighborhood. CORA’s Northeast EPIC Stakeholder group was awarded a grant to feed the hungry. The grant will be distributed amongst the three faith based groups to provide groceries to families in our area. Pastor Richard Smith, will be our keynote speaker and will be addressing the issues of hunger in our community and the supply demand for our local pantries. A representative from Councilwoman Sanchez’ office will be speaking about local economic opportunities on Frankford Avenue and throughout the neighborhood.
  • Grand Army of the Republic Museum Open House
    When – Sun, April 1, 12pm – 5pm
    Where – 4278 Griscom Street, Philadelphia, PA 19124 (map)
    Description – Presentation at 1:30 PM: The Gettysburg Conspiracy by Will Hutchinson
  • Community Planning Meeting
    When – Tue, April 3, 6pm – 8pm
    Where – Friends Hospital (map)
    Description – Philadelphia2035
  • Friends of Overington Park
    When – Wed, April 4, 7pm – 8pm
    Where – Historical Society of Frankford, 1507 Orthodox St. (map)
    Description – Come out and discuss our park and what we an do to make it a safe and pleasant place for everyone.
  • Frankford Civic Association Meeting
    When – Thu, April 5, 7pm – 8pm
    Where – 2nd floor conference room, Aria Health, 4900 Frankford Avenue, Philadelphia, PA 19124 (map)
  • Historical Society of Frankford program
    When – Tue, April 10, 7:30pm – 9:00pm
    Where – 1507 Orthodox St., Philadelphia, PA 19124 (map)
    Description – K & A’s SECOND STORY MEN Allen M Hornblum Author “Confessions of a Second Story Man – Junior Kripplebauer and the K & A Gang” The legendary Kensington & Allegheny “second story” men of the 1950-70’s were nationally known for their “art of burglary” – from Boca Raton to Bar Harbor. NE Philly’s own Allen M Hornblum reveals the challenges that come with writing a book about these notorious Kensingtonians.
  • Town Hall Meeting
    When – Thu, April 12, 7pm – 8pm
    Where – Aria Health, 4900 Frankford Avenue (map)
    Description – 15th District Police Captain Frank Bachmayer
  • Mayors cleanup in Overington Park
    When – Sat, April 14, 10am – 1pm
    Where – Overington Park, Lieper and Orthodox Sts. (map)
    Description – We will be getting our flower beds in order, cleaning up any graffiti, leaf trash, etc. We can use all the help we can get, so tell everyone to come out and help us get ready for the summer season. We will also be honoring the Frankford High JROTC that day.
  • Mayor’s 5th Annual Spring Cleanup
    When – Sat, April 14, 10am – 1pm
    Where – Kickoff at 2nd Baptist Church, 1800 Meadow Street (map)
  • Frankford Business and Professional Association Meeting
    When – Tue, April 17, 8:30am – 10:00am
    Where – Aria Health, 2nd floor conference room (map)
  • Northwood Civic Association Meeting
    When – Tue, April 17, 7pm – 8pm
    Where – St. James Lutheran Church, at Castor Avenue and Pratt Street. (map)
  • Celebration of Haitian Culture through literacy, music and art
    When – Fri, April 20, 10am – 11am
    Where – Henry R. Edmunds School (map)
  • Northeast Philadelphia EPIC Stakeholders Group
    When – Thu, April 26, 5:30pm – 7:30pm
    Where – Aria Hospital’s Frankford Campus (4900 Frankford Avenue) in the 2nd floor meeting room. Philadelphia, PA 19124 (map)
    Description – The ultimate goal is to create a process that enhances the community’s ability to solve issues surrounding truancy, domestic violence, child safety and substance abuse.
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Living on the Edge in Frankford

City Paper has a good story by Daniel Denvir about drug rehabs and the effect Governor Corbett’s new budget will have on their survival.  As noted in the piece, Frankford has a large number of these houses.  Why do we have so many and what is the alternative if they all were to close.  Read it here to get a very balanced picture of the problem. Read it here.

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Bills in City Council

Vacant and abandoned property in Philadelphia is a plague on all of us, dragging down property values and leading to more flight from the city year after year.  I am linking to Philly.com to a story on two bills recently introduced to City Council.  The Land Bank bill and Tax Delinquency bill.   Councilwoman Maria Quinones-Sanchez was the primary sponsor of the Land Bank bill and cosponsored the Tax bill.  Both of these bills are a  long overdue acknowledgement of the obvious, something isn’t right in Philadelphia.

The story by Patrick Kerkstra in the Inky lays out all the pros and cons and there are a ton of them but the big story is that someone has stepped up to try to do something about it.

Last month, a pair of laws were introduced in City Council that would upend the city’s approach to vacant land and tax delinquencies. If adopted, the bills would create a powerful agency, a land bank, and give it the authority to snap up tax-delinquent properties as it chooses.

The measures would also compel the city  to foreclose on or seize tax-delinquent property within one year. That change alone would have a massive effect on the city’s real estate market, as there are more than 100,000 tax-delinquent properties in Philadelphia, or roughly 19 percent of all parcels in the city. Philadelphia has the worst property-tax-collection record of any big city in America, as detailed last year in an Inquirer/PlanPhilly investigation.

The objective is eliminate the huge number of tax delinquent properties. Either the taxes are paid or the property is foreclosed on promptly.  Letting the property sit for a decade with no movement one way or the other does not work.  The Land Bank is a separate issue in which the city will have the option of taking property and collecting it in a land bank for future development.  I see all sorts of issues there.  The city does not take care of the property it owns now so something has to change before it add thousands of new parcels to its collection.

Hopefully this will be a step in the right direction.  Thank you Maria.  The full bills are linked above.