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2016

Prisoner’s Song: Performance art from the inside

March 17, 2016

Prisoner’s Song, a powerful performance created by composer Gelsey Bell and visual artist Erik Ruin about the prison experience will be presented at The Rotunda (4014 Walnut St.) on Friday, March 18, 8-10 p.m.. The presentation is a fusion of art and activism and will give the audience the chance to speak to formerly incarcerated men who lent their stories to beautiful music and huge wall projections.

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Performance photo by Michael Yu.

Using shadow puppets and projections alongside a variety of musical idioms, the piece draws on historic ballads, poetry, audio interviews with people who have spent time in prison, and other primary sources to create a fragmentary encounter with the states of mind and heart prison engenders.

The event is working with Reconstruction, Inc., whose mission is to effect social change by forging individuals that were formerly incarcerated into an organized community of leaders working together to transform the criminal justice system, their communities and themselves.

The performance will be followed by a brief talk-back with the artists and various contributors to the project, including Hakim Ali and William Goldsby of Reconstruction, Inc., LuQman Abdullah and Emily Abendroth.

Admission is free, but an optional donation will be accepted at the door for Reconstruction, Inc.

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Clark Park Youth Soccer returns April 2; Registration underway

March 17, 2016

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Clark Park Youth Soccer coach Jean-Marie with one of his students, October 2015. (Photo courtesy of CPYSL)

A great and affordable local outdoor youth soccer program, Clark Park Youth Soccer League (CPYSL), will be back next month for its Spring 2016 season and is currently recruiting kids and volunteer coaches.

The spring season will start on Saturday, April 2 and end on May 21.

The program provides soccer instruction and intramural games for children ages 5-11 on Saturdays each spring and fall at Clark Park and emphasizes enjoying the game of soccer while learning soccer skills. Each 90-minute session includes both skills training and a game.

Children are assigned to teams by age:

– Mornings (10:30-Noon): ages 5 to 6.5 and ages 6.5 to 7
– Afternoons (Noon-1:30 pm): ages 8 to 9 and ages 10 to 11

Families can fill out an online application and submit their payment online at this link; register and pay by mail (download registration form here and mail it to CPYSL by March 28); or register in person at walk-in registration on April 2.

The all-volunteer-run program is also currently seeking volunteer coaches. If you like soccer and enjoy working with kids, email clarkparksoccer@yahoo.com  Continue Reading

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A draft plan, new renderings released for 30th Street Station redevelopment project; Open house this Wednesday

March 16, 2016

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A draft plan has just been released summarizing the two-year joint planning process as part of a long-range re-development of the station and its surrounding area (30th Street Station District Plan). The plan will be presented today (Wednesday, March 16), from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. at an open house, which will take place at the station (behind the Amtrak ticket office).

The draft plan pinpoints several key development areas, including remodeling and enhancements to the station and building a new urban neighborhood with “a healthy balance of residential buildings, station-anchored commercial office towers, and retail, recreational, and cultural amenities to sustain a 24/7 environment.”

The plan also proposes a new expansive park, two new pedestrian and bicycle bridges over the Schuylkill river and both vehicular and pedestrian bridges across Powelton Yard to the west, a new intercity bus terminal, and reopening the tunnel connecting 30th Street Station to SEPTA’s subway and trolley station.  Continue Reading

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Two-story, 125-seat restaurant part of 40th Street Trolley Portal overhaul

March 16, 2016

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A rendering of the proposed Trolley Car Station restaurant at 40th Street Trolley Portal.

Update (April 8, 2016)The Zoning Board of Adjustment approved the plan for the Trolley Car Restaurant following a March 29 hearing. Specifically, the ZBA approved a variance for the building as a sit-down restaurant. Construction is expected to begin this fall.

The public got a look at plans on Tuesday evening for the development of the 40th Street Trolley Portal, which includes a two-story, 125-seat restaurant with take-out beer and outdoor seating.

University City District officials and the owner of the Trolley Car Diner in Mount Airy presented the plans to the Spruce Hill Community Association zoning committee and about a dozen members of the public.

Now an expanse of concrete criss-crossed with trolley tracks, the portal will be turned into a more navigable public space complete with moveable tables and chairs, enough racks to accommodate 48 bikes and “vegetation everywhere,” Nate Hommel, UCD’s director of planning and design, told the zoning committee. The trolleys will still run through it, but it will be more pedestrian friendly.  Continue Reading

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Check out two new West Philly baked goods shops this weekend

March 15, 2016

Just in time for spring, two West Philly-based baked goods businesses have announced that they will be having grand openings this weekend.

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Everything is ready for Dottie’s Donuts official opening on Friday, March 18 (Photo from Dottie’s Donuts Facebook page)

The long-anticipated opening date for Dottie’s Donuts’ first brick-and-mortar location at 4529 Springfield Avenue was announced this morning on the popular business’s Facebook page. According to the announcement, the shop will officially open on Friday, March 18, and the hours for now will be 7 a.m. – 3 p.m.

Along with a wide selection of vegan donuts, the shop will sell bagels and other baked goods, plus coffee and tea. You can read more about Dottie’s Donuts and the people behind it here.

If you didn’t get a chance yet to check out the recently opened Lil’ Pop Shop‘s bakery, here’s a great opportunity this weekend. The new bakery and shop at 4608 Woodland Ave. is inviting everyone to its grand opening celebration on Saturday, March 19. Stop by any time between 11 a.m. and 5 p.m. on Saturday and enjoy free treats, coffee, and spritzers (fruit-based seltzer drinks).  Continue Reading

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Man steals minivan with baby in back seat near 49th and Walnut

March 14, 2016

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Police are looking for a young man, who got into a minivan parked on the 4800 block of Walnut Street with a 4-month-old infant in the back seat and drove off. The baby was later found unharmed in Germantown.

The incident happened at 7:50 a.m. when the minivan owner and the baby’s father left his car with the engine running at 4847 Walnut St. to make a purchase at a food store, according to police. The child was left secured in the back seat. When the man returned a short time later he discovered that his car along with his son was gone.

The child, who was strapped in his car seat when he was abducted, was found about 30 minutes later near Penn and Green Streets, according to police. The thief reportedly found a phone number inside the car and sent a text message telling where the child can be found. Police found the baby boy at that location outside in the rain, but unharmed, according to a report by NBC10Continue Reading

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