Frankford Community Blog | Local News, Events, Community Resources
Veterans Day is Friday, November 11th and there are many restaurants offering great deals for veterans.
The militarywallet.com has about the best, most up to date list of what is available. You can find it at this link.
Stop back at this page on Friday for our honor roll of Frankford veterans. If you or someone you know should be on that list, email me with the name and branch of service and I’ll make sure the name is included. gil@frankfordgazette.com
A reader just called to ask where the polling place is. It used to be at St. James. If you voted at St. James, the new polling place is at the String Theory School (Edmunds) on Haworth Street.
Vote.org is a good place to start if you are in doubt. You can find it at this link.
Former employees of the Budd Company may have a pension benefit waiting to be claimed even if you did not qualify at the time you left their employment. They are in Chapter 11 bankrupcy but the pension fund still is active and they recently sent this letter below to one former Frankford Budd employee.
If you have a pension available they are offering a lump sum payment for a limited time as an option. Call the number in the letter or go to the web site at this link.
The Frankford CDC is now conducting the first annual Capital Campaign to renovate their new office building located at 4667-69 Paul Street. They took over the old Daral building last May. At 4,100 square feet on 2 floors, it is big enough to house their offices on the second floor and additional leased office space and an internet café on the first floor.
Pictures below from the Construction Open House fundraiser on October 20th show the work is well underway.
The Daral building sits as a landmark on the northeast corner of Frankford Avenue and Paul Street, opposite SEPTA’s soon to be renovated Arrott Transportation Center for the Market/Frankford Elevated line. The renovation project will provide the building with 21st century technology but will also preserve a lot of the historical architectural features.
The building will retain the old block facade with tempered glass in a recessed entrance. The old terrazzo tiled entrance will be repaired as well as the stained glass above the entrance door transoms. The showcase windows will be preserved and used as a display for community and café programming. This high tech building will give FCDC a presence on Frankford Avenue and will serve as a catalyst for revitalization of a major intersection, while allowing the CDC to grow and build it’s capacity for the future.
This project is vital, as it is the first of several projects planned towards the goal of revitalizing the Frankford Avenue business district. The Frankford CDC is also working with the Philadelphia City Planning Commission to build an interactive park next door to the building. They recently completed a streetscaping plan with the Community design collaborative in efforts to make the Avenue more welcoming to visitors.
Their mission cannot be sustained without the continued generosity of private donors. They have received a tremendous amount of support through local government and foundation funding, however those funds almost always require that they raise additional funds to complete the project. To date, the Frankford CDC has raised well over $500,000 from public and private sources for this project.
Your support is needed to help raise another $45,000 towards the goal of completing the first phase of the project by December 31, 2016. Come winter of 2017, donors will begin to see first hand the significant impact their contribution has made towards improving the area around the Arrott Transporation Center and the positive effect it will have on local businesses. Additionally, you’ll be recognized for your generosity as a capital campaign supporter on the Frankford CDC website and in the CDC Winter newsletter.
For more information about this project and information on how you can participate in helping the campaign to fund the final stage of the project, go to this link:
