James Roebuck speaking at the Mariposa Food Co-op in 2012. (Archived photo/West Philly Local)

Editor’s Note: This is the second in a series of Q&A’s with local political candidates before the primary election on May 20. Our first Q&A, with Algernong Allen, is here. Next up is Matt Wolfe, who is running for a seat in Philadelphia’s City Council. Also, today is the last day to register to vote in the primary. For more information, visit: http://www.votespa.com.

Since assuming office in 1985, James Roebuck has represented West Philadelphia and the rest of the 188th district as state representative, and focused on education as the chairman of the House Education Committee.

Roebuck says he leans on his background as a trained teacher and former Drexel University professor to inform his work as an educational advocate. Through his years of service in the legislature, and under former Governor Ed Rendell, Roebuck lays claims to many successes, including an improved pre-K system and an increase in educational funding. And, on his off-time, he says, you can find him at any local school, reading to grade school students or tutoring second graders.

“To me, education is not just about the way you fund the schools, it’s also about the way you involve yourself in local schools,” Roebuck told West Philly Local.  Continue Reading

Photo from allen2014.com

Editor’s Note: This is the first in a series of Q&A’s with local political candidates. Next up is Allen’s opponent, incumbent Jim Roebuck.

You probably know Algernong Allen. Whether it’s as the former owner of Elena’s Soul or as a community activist, Algernong Allen is a household name around these parts.

Tonight, Allen, along with incumbent James Roebuck, will answer prepared questions and address community concerns in a Candidates’ Forum hosted by the Garden Court Community Association (GCCA). The forum will begin at 7 p.m. at the Community College of Philadelphia’s west campus (4725 Chestnut Street), and is open to the public. A food and networking event will precede the forum at 6 p.m.

Residents of the 188th District can also offer feedback and share their thoughts with Allen through a community survey he is currently hosting on his campaign site, allen2014.com. Click here to complete the survey.

As part of our political interviews series, West Philly Local had a chance to chat with Allen about his campaign, the issues most important to him, and what his vision is for the 188th District.

West Philly Local: Why are you running?

Algernong Allen: I am running to give back to a community that has given so much to me. As a father and husband living here, I am concerned about the condition of nearby schools for my daughter, the safety of our streets, and the deep poverty in some parts of our community. I’ve spent most of my life living right here, I’ve built a business here, and I’ve provided jobs here. I want to be a part of supporting a community vision of growth that respects our differences and acts on our common interests.  Continue Reading

Say goodbye to Toviah Thrift Store (Photo by Annamarya Scaccia / West Philly Local)

After four decades of service, Toviah Thrift Store at 4211 Chestnut Street has shuttered its doors for good this month, and will soon be the new home of its neighbor, Dana Mandi International Foods and Spices.

When we stopped by Tuesday evening, workers from Dana Mandi at 4205 Chestnut Street were in the process of cleaning out Toviah Thrift. Its front room was mostly emptied of its low-priced products and furniture, with remnants scattered unevenly across the space. The next morning, when we returned in hopes of speaking with Dana Mandi’s owner, Toviah Thrift was cleaned out even further— a shell of its former glory.

(Photo by Annamarya Scaccia / West Philly Local)

According to local blogger Mark Krull, the owners of Dana Mandi recently bought the property from Reverend Larry Falcon, founder of Toviah Thrift, and will soon move into the shop. A worker named Suny confirmed this information to West Philly Local over the phone, but noted he didn’t have a confirmed date for the move. He did say, though, that it wouldn’t happen prior to May.

City of Philadelphia records show that Dana Mandi, under the name Asian Spice Food Inc, owns both 4205 and 4211 Chestnut Streets, which totals to over 3,000 square feet.

Toviah Thrift is a significant part of West Philly history. Around since the late 1970s, the Christian nonprofit acted as a self-declared “safe haven” for community children while funding Rev. Falcon’s Covenant Community Church through its second-hand store. The small, welcoming ministry was housed in one half of the building, while out of the back operated The Jubilee School—Toviah’s inexpensive private elementary school serving kids in West and Southwest Philly.

Opened between 11 a.m. and 5 p.m., for the last three decades, locals could stop in and purchase a mishmash of donated items that were priced inexpensively. It wasn’t a perfectly coifed space—often a disorderly grouping of products—but Rev. Falcon’s agenda of “love never fails” was apparent in its messy bones.

Much like the shop—and Rev. Falcon himself—reviews for Toviah Thrift are nothing if not interesting. One Yelper gave it one star in 2011, writing, “It looks dirty as a butt 3 days into a hippy music festival.” In 2013, another Yelper, who gave it two stars, compared the space to “an episode of Hoarders,” but noted Rev. Falcon was “nice and knowledgeable.”

Most of the other reviews echoed the same response, with one Yelper writing, “What makes this place outstanding is Larry, also known simply as Papa … Come in to meet this historian if nothing else; he’ll be happy to chat with you as you browse.”

–Annamarya Scaccia

We dig this song and newly released video, “Walk It Off,” by West Philly’s indie hip hop artist and emcee Sterling Duns (Facebook page). A part of the vid was filmed on Hazel Avenue, according to the musician.

Sterling Duns describes himself as an instrumentalist, poet, hip-hop artist, comedy improviser, and astronaut enthusiast!

West Philly artist Nile Livingston with some works from the “Baltimore Avenue Series” (Photo by Annamarya Scaccia / West Philly Local)

Nile Livingston’s presence is calming.

We’re seated at the back corner table in Green Line Café on Baltimore Avenue. Livingston is sitting across from me, every once in a while dodging the sunlight coming through the window. As she answers my questions about her art, she’s composed and soft-spoken—her responses brief, but with a relaxed kindness.

Which is completely opposite of her work. As West Philly Local wrote about nearly two years ago, Livingston is the visual artist behind the “Baltimore Avenue Series,” which chronicles life on the corridor through colorful line drawings. (The series was displayed in Gold Standard Café’s dining room in 2012.) For the series, Livingston took scenes of everyday Baltimore Avenue life and put them down on stark white paper, first creating contour lines and then adding vibrant dabs and streaks of color Sharpie paint markers to bring them to life.

The “Baltimore Avenue Series” was inspired by “the day-to-day pedestrian archetype” she’d often see after moving back to West Philly following her graduation from Kutztown University, where she earned a B.F.A in large metal fabrication and sculpture. As she notes on her website, the series “captures the fleeting moods” of the community as “it’s transformed by the influx of growing businesses, new residents, petty crimes, and trope characters.”

And all of the characters that compose the new West Philly are there: the jogger, the coffee shop writer, the dog walker, the artist, the neighborhood kids, and the parents with their children. Her favorite image from the series, titled “The Museum of Momma Art: Affordable Gifts for Mother,” is of a woman pushing a stroller down the street.

The final images, she said, are based both on observation and imagination.

“I tried to take these archetypes and leave it open to a story,” said Livingston, 26, who also designed the Cecil B. Moore playground mural at 22^nd Street and Lehigh Avenue. “I don’t know what their lives are about, so I draw people that are kind of similar to them. These aren’t people I know necessarily. These are all strangers.” Continue Reading

From left to right:  Hunter Gatherer shop manager Dominick Caswell and tattoo artists Josh Anderson, Zack Traum and Mike Munter (Photo by Mike Lyons/West Philly Local).

In November, we reported that plans to bring a tattoo studio to 4510 Walnut Street were in the works, becoming the latest business to occupy the revolving storefront.

Well, readers, turns out those plans become a reality two weeks ago, when Hunter Gatherer Tattoo (Facebook page) open its doors. Co-owned by tattoo artist Josh Anderson and Falls Taproom owner Marvin Graaf, Hunter Gatherer Tattoo becomes the third tattoo shop to operate in West Philly.

Hunter Gatherer, which is open seven days a week, specializes in traditional and neo-traditional designs with an illustrative focus, said Anderson. Anderson, 33, serves as the shop’s main artist, working every day to get Hunter Gatherer “off the ground and going.” Tattoo artists Mike Munter and Zack Traum also work out of the studio on a rotating schedule, with Dominick Caswell acting as shop manager.

So far, business has been good and “super positive” for the tattoo studio, with the community showing “nothing but great support,” Anderson said. Once the weather breaks, the owners plan to host a grand opening party with an art show featuring local artists, a private DJ, and food and drinks.

Hunter Gatherer Tattoo (Photo by Annamarya Scaccia / West Philly Local)

With Hunter Gatherer, Anderson said he wants to set it apart from the studios typical of South Street or in Brooklyn — two “touristy” places he’s worked where customers are rarely repeat. Instead, he prefers a relaxed atmosphere where he can make “all the artists happy and all the clientele happy.”

Much of the woodwork in the shop—a space that has been many things over the years and most recently an art gallery—was made from reclaimed wood pallets that Anderson and others cut and fitted together. The repurposing of materials, as well as Graaf and Anderson’s childhoods in big hunting and fishing towns, are much of why the shop is named Hunter Gatherer, Anderson said.

“I was getting sick of just having that whole hustle, bustle, not really get to know anyone. My clientele there, you never really saw them again,” Anderson, who’s worked as a tattooist for over a decade, told West Philly Local. “I’d like to develop a relationship with my clientele.

“We’re just trying to create a nice space for everybody to come and see, and get tattooed, that has a good vibe and environment.”

Hunter Gatherer Tattoo is open Mondays to Thursdays from 12 p.m. to 10 p.m., Fridays & Saturdays from 12 p.m. to 11 p.m., and Sundays from 12 p.m. to 8 p.m. Walk-ins and appointments available. For more information, call 267-233-7015.

-Annamarya Scaccia

Correction: An earlier version of this article incorrectly stated that Dominick Caswell is a tattoo artist. He is the shop manager. We regret the error.