Mayor Michael Nutter and Seeds Gallery owner Saba Tedla speak about Cedar Park on Monday.

Michael Nutter chats with a local business owner outside the Seeds Gallery on Monday.

Mayor Michael Nutter dropped in at the Seeds Gallery near 50th and Baltimore as part of a multi-neighborhood tour of the city designed to publicize the launch of the Philadelphia Neighborhoods marketing campaign.

The campaign highlights neighborhoods as “visitor-ready” destinations surrounding Center City. One person traveling with Nutter called it “intra-city” tourism that would appeal to people already living in Philadelphia.

Seeds Gallery owner Saba Tedla, who also owns Aksum on Baltimore Avenue, joined Nutter at the gallery.

Nutter, a West Philly native who grew up about 10 blocks from the gallery, called the Cedar Park area an “amazing melting pot” that features what he called the “3 Rs” needed for vibrant neighborhoods – restaurants, retail and residential housing. He also visited East Passyunk and Bella Vista.

Photo by Jensen Larson Photography via Philly.com.

So Eagles’ owner Jeffrey Lurie’s new bride may look familiar to West Philadelphians. Or, maybe we should say that Tina Lai’s new husband may look familiar.

Lai, 39, a member of the vaunted Lai family of Vietnam Cafe and Fu-Wah fame, married Lurie, 61, in a private ceremony in Charleston, S.C. over the weekend, according to reports.

Lai’s family, which also owns Vietnam Restaurant in Chinatown, came to the United States from Vietnam in 1978. Tina, who was instrumental in getting the restaurants started, is no longer associated with their day-to-day operations.

Lurie announced last July that he and his wife of 20 years, Christina, were divorcing.

No word yet on what Tina thinks about the Chip Kelly offense.

This Saturday in Malcolm X Park (51st and Pine) you have the chance to see some pit bulls and other rugged (or not rugged) pooches engaged in some thrilling, macho competition. But these are pullers, not fighters.

The Lug Nuts program was designed about a dozen years ago as a way to provide competition for (mostly) young men and their dogs that didn’t involve fighting. The dogs don padded harnesses hooked to plastic sleds filled with bags of dog food and do their damdest to pull the sled. No dog is forced to pull and any dog is welcome – from the smallest of chihuahuas to the greatest of Danes. Dogs are judged by how much weight they pull as a percentage of their body weight. So that chihuahua could walk away with the whole thing.

Saturday’s program includes low-cost vaccines, low-cost microchips, low-cost spay and neuter info and runs from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. rain or shine. The pulling competition is 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. No registration or training is required and entrants get free dog food and other gifts. The winners get cash money.

The Penn Vet Animal Welfare Society, Philadelphia Animal Welfare Society (PAWS) and Philly Lug Nuts (Facebook page) are sponsoring the event.

These bikes are part of the Washington D.C. bike share program. (Photo from Newsytype.com)

Bike sharing in Philadelphia took another step closer to becoming a reality yesterday when the city’s Office of Transportation and Utilities (MOTU) released some details during a public meeting at the Academy of Natural Sciences.

The proposal divides the city into two zones. The first would include Center City, University City and the streets near Temple University and would include 1,000 to 1,500 bikes. A second zone, which would include neighborhoods from near the navy Yard north to Lehigh Avenue, would see about 500-1,000 bikes, the Philly Post reports.

The bikes would be housed at stations and can be picked up at one station and dropped off at another. The program will likely require a membership (in Washington D.C.’s program this ranges from a day to a year) and a usage fee (around a couple of bucks an hour). You will probably have to supply your own helmet.

Bike share programs already exist in Boston, Denver and Washington D.C. New York and Chicago are considering plans. Those programs, like the one planned for Philly, are managed by private contractors. The company Alta Bicycle Share operates the program in Washington – Capital Bikeshare – and Boston – Hubway.

City officials believe the improvement in Philadelphia’s biking infrastructure – including more dedicated lanes – has helped prepare the city for a bike share program. The downside is that we’ll have to keep waiting. The program won’t be up and running until 2014.

The parklets, those cool little curbside outdoor seating spots, are branching out. There is now one in front of Fu-Wah Mini Market and Deli, home to the best tofu hoagie in the city, near 47th and Baltimore.

The parklet is also back at the Green Line Café at 43rd and Baltimore. Others will return soon in front of Honest Tom’s Taco Shop/Lil’ Pop Shop on the 200 block of S. 44th Street and Ramen Bar at 4040 Locust St.

A reminder that the parklets are public, so no purchase is required to sit at them. Three new parklet locations, including Fu-Wah, are slated for this year. Parklets are cooperative effort between the city and the University City District. More details on the others coming soon.

Enjoying a banh mi from Fu-Wah at the new parklet. (Photo by our Twitter follower @deviantollam).

Photo courtesy ThePennRelays.com

The nation’s oldest and largest track and field event, the Penn Relays, kicks off tomorrow at the University of Pennsylvania’s Franklin Field (233 S. 33rd St.) and there are a couple things West Philadelphia residents should know about the event.

First, traffic near Franklin Field will increase significantly as a result of the Relays, which run through Saturday. Penn security officials said 33rd Street from Walnut to South will be closed for about an hour on Saturday, from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m.

Those planning to attend the event, which attracts some 15,000 athletes ranging from high school students to Olympians, should expect much tighter security than in the past due to the recent bombings at the Boston Marathon. Security will be tight at every entrance to Franklin Field and everyone will be checked with metal detectors. Bomb-sniffing dogs and bomb disposal teams will also be on hand.

Here are the rules:

• Backpacks and large bags (gym bags etc.) will not be permitted into Franklin Field or the Relay Carnival Village.

• Participants (athletes, coaches, team medical personnel) will be permitted to bring in backpacks. These bags will be thoroughly checked and will only be allowed in via the designated participant entrances.

• All bags containing food must be smaller than 12x12x6 (inches) and in clear plastic bags. Sealed plastic water bottles and cardboard juice boxes are permitted inside the clear plastic bags.

• Coolers, glass bottles and cans will not be permitted.

For more info, including ticket information and schedule of events, go to the Penn Relays website.