Category: Features

Posted on by — 3 Comments

Friends of Overington Park Needs Your Help

We try to cover the activities at our parks because they can significantly improve the quality of life in the neighborhood.  I’ve seen Overington park change over the last several years and it is entirely the work of the Friends of Overington park (FOOP).  I will not name the names but it is a small core group of people who have done this work.  The city stands by and waits for a group like this to come along and then they offer some assistance but if it were not for the Friends of Overington park, that park would be a blight on the community.  Yes it does still have some problems but they would be far worse without the FOOP watching over it.

There has been a plan in place for the Department of Recreation to build a tool shed for the tools and supplies the group uses for maintenance.  It would be on a concrete foundation and have a brick exterior.  It would be secured naturally and make it a lot easier to maintain the park.  A few residents of homes in the area have raised objections to its construction.  Now the Department of Recreation wants to take another look at the issue.

We would never stand in the way of people making their opinion known but we want to make sure everybody gets a fair chance to do so.  We have set up an online petition to approve the construction of the tool shed and move ahead with the project.  It is directed at Barbara McCabe, the Parks Coordinator, for the City.  In addition, it also goes to councilwoman Sanchez office.

If you support what the Friends of Overington park has done over the years to make the neighborhood better, follow this link and sign the petition.

 

Posted on by

Frankford Civic Approves the Fence for Karr-Parts

Pete McElroy

At the meeting on Tuesday, December 6th, the board of the Frankford Civic voted to support a zoning variance for an 8 foot tall fence to enclose the lot at 1709 Gillingham Street. The lot will be used by Karr-Parts for storage of its vehicles.  The business has been a long time resident of the neighborhood and there were no objections to the fence. The variance is required for an 8 foot fence since it is outside of the standard for the code.  A 6 foot fence would require no variance but would not provide the owner with the necessary security.

20 residents attended the meeting which also featured:

Peter McElroy from Philadelphia School Partnership  made a presentation on the new web site www.greatphillyschools.org.  The site provides a source of information for families to compare schools when making a choice for their child.  It is user friendly and has information for comparing public, charter and parochial schools.

Kathy Cruz

Kathy Kruz, Citizen’s Engagement Coordinator at Philly311, spoke about the 311 system and highlighted the new mobile app that was recently released.

Manny Citron of PhillyRising gave an update on their activities.

There was some informal discussion on the recent policing activities.  In addition, the residents of the 5000 block of Griscom street noted that two properties are being rehabbed by new owners which has had a positive effect on life on their block.

The next Frankford Civic Association meeting will be on January 10th at 7PM at Aria Hospital.

 

 

Posted on by

Change Comes to PSA1

Lt. Tony Burton

Recent changes in police staffing brought a new captain to the 15th district and a new Lt. to PSA1. Captain John McCloskey moved from the 35th district to take over from Captain Frank Bachmayer.  Lt. Tony Burton was recently promoted and will take over PSA1 from Lt. Derrick Wood.

Lt. Burton attended the PSA1 meeting on the 27th along with officers Austin and Andrews.  There was a good turnout with about 20 residents present.

The situation on the 4700 block of Griscom is stable. Drugs continue to be present but violence has declined.  The squatter in the house on the block continues to be an issue and plans by the owner of the property to press charges are moving forward.

The drug problem in the area of Frankford and Foulkrod continues.  When the police are present it goes indoors but when they are absent it is public and blatant.  The building behind the Sugar & Spice store on Foulkrod is a hot spot and L&I is working on that issue.  One business in that area is known to be cooperating with the drug dealers.  Residents are advised to call the police when the see drug activity to get it on the record.

The 5000 block of Griscom is quieter but there are still problems.

Lt. Burton noted that it might be productive to target a particular area for increased police presence in order to clean up that small area.  The effect would be to disrupt the drug business and see immediate improvement.  The residents at the meeting all agreed that the area of the FTC from Bridge down to Pratt is the most active and would benefit most.  The Lt. is looking into that strategy.

The next PSA1 meeting will be on December 20th at 7PM at Aria Hospital.