Saad’s Halal is closed until Monday, July 11. (Photo West Philly Local)

Ramadan Mubarak to our Muslim neighbors! The holy month of Ramadan began on Sunday, and as always, some of Muslim-owned restaurants will be closed for a month or will have limited hours.

Saad’s Halal restaurant at 45th and Walnut has closed and will reopen on Monday, July 11. Manakeesh Café and Bakery will be closed during the day starting Monday, June 6 and will be open for pickup starting at 7 p.m. Dinner will be served starting at sunset, and closing at 11 p.m. every night. The restaurant is also offering special catering for iftar. For more information, visit Manakeesh’s Facebook page.

Other restaurants may also offer specials during this month. Feel free to post this information in our Comments section below.

Mayor Jim Kenney will be a guest at the 9th Annual Festival at ParkWest Town Center. He will join more than 2,000 friends, neighbors and businesses to celebrate the West Philadelphia community on Saturday, June 4.

Photo via goldenbergdevelopment.com

Kenney will recognize high school seniors Charnae McCoy and Christopher Rivers at 1 p.m. for their commitment to improve the West Philadelphia community and award them each a $2,500 ParkWest Town Center scholarship.

The festival will feature live performances by Kriss Mincey, the Universal African Dance & Drum Ensemble, and Zumba dancing. Also, there will be raffles, senior bingo and giveaways.

Kids will be treated to face painting, pony rides, arts & crafts, Lowe’s Builder Workshop, Ree Ree the Clown and Parrot Show, and a stilt walker and a juggler.

Also, presenting sponsor WURD’s Health Pavilion will provide cooking demonstrations, health screenings, chair massages, reflexology, financial fitness and a live broadcast.  Continue Reading

Photo © Jacques-Jean Tiziou / www.jjtiziou.net

UPDATE: Tonight’s performance by the Bernard Samuels Trio has been cancelled due to wet weather. Progressive Movement is scheduled to perform next Friday, June 10.

This is a reminder that Cedar Park Neighbors will be holding two of their biggest annual events this weekend.

Cedar Park Jazz Nights will kick off this Friday at 6 p.m. with a performance by Bernard Samuels Trio. This is a free weekly event, happening every Friday from 6 -8 p.m. at Cedar park (49th and Baltimore). Please bring your blanket or chair and enjoy live music by Philly’s best jazz musicians and guests. More information and performance lineup through July 29, read this post.

On Sunday, June 5, neighbors are invited to support local youth who are heading out to college this fall at the Annual Gary Bronson Scholarship Fundraiser, which will be held from 4-6 p.m. at St. Francis De Sales Parrish School Auditorium (917 S. 47th St.). There will be live music, food, drink and an opportunity to meet your community.

The Gary Bronson Memorial Scholarship Fund is named in honor of the visionary Cedar Park resident who founded the CPN Scholarship Committee in 1988. This scholarship fund supports young adults living in Cedar Park who are committed to pursuing higher education. The scholarship provides them with both mentorship and financial support to help them be successful in their post-secondary endeavors. You can purchase tickets for the event ($40; free for children under 12) or make donations to the fund here. Tickets will also be available at the door.

Clark Park Thursday Farmers’ Market resumes today at 43rd and Baltimore, along with a new program that offers yoga classes at farmers’ markets throughout the city. Yoga at the Market kicks off tonight in Clark Park and will continue weekly through the month of September. Classes are from 6 – 7 p.m. and are suitable for all levels, ages and abilities.

Yoga at the Market is donation-based and has no set fee. The program is entirely supported by the students, and cash donation is greatly accepted to support the teachers, insurance costs, and the administration of the program. You can show up with your mat or practice on the grass! Beginners and families are most welcome.

This is a joint program of Yoga on the Banks, The Food Trust, Farm to City, and the parks’ Friends groups.

A West Philly yoga instructor, Erin Gautsche, will be teaching the class.

“I’ve lived in West Philly for 12 years, and am excited to bring donation-based, outdoor  yoga to the neighborhood!” she wrote us in an email.

Clark Park Thursday Farmers’ Market will be open from 3 – 7 p.m. every Thursday until Thanksgiving.

Mantua rezoning proposal.

Community members have a chance to vote on rezoning in the Mantua neighborhood that will protect single-family home ownership, focus commercial zoning along highly-trafficked corridors, and correct zoning for parks, recreation centers, and public-use spaces. The meeting, hosted by Mantua Civic Association and Mt. Vernon Manor CDC, will take place on Thursday, June 2, at Grace Lutheran Church, 3529 Haverford Ave., from 6 – 7 p.m.

About 100 Mantua residents attended last month’s meeting where the neighborhood rezoning proposal was presented. The proposal rezones nearly every parcel in the neighborhood as RSA-5, attached or semi-detached single family homes. Most properties in the neighborhood are currently zoned RM-1, which allows developers to build multi-unit student housing.

Mayor Jim Kenney’s administration is rethinking the much publicized move of the police headquarters to 46th and Market, despite the start of $250 million in renovations and plans for an art installation and possibly even a new Police Athletic League branch.

According to reports first in Phillymag.com and then Philly.com, the Kenny administration is assessing the feasibility of moving police headquarters from its current location at 750 Race St. to the old Philadelphia Inquirer building at 400 N. Broad, leaving the future of the sprawling 87-year-old Provident Mutual Insurance Co. campus at 46th and Market in question. Kenney told Philly.com that the plans to move to West Philly are now “up in the air.”

In a proposal devised by Michael Nutter’s administration, the Provident campus was planned to be renamed the Public Safety Services Campus and would include the Department of Public Health and the Medical Examiner’s Office. But Kenney told Philly.com yesterday that the Provident campus might be better for “health-related” services and that moving police to the Inquirer building would place it near City Hall and other downtown offices.

The City Council approved more than $250 million in funding to complete the renovations at the Provident, which were scheduled to be completed by December.