A 39-year-old man was robbed at gunpoint on the 200 block of S. 46th St. last night and this time it was not a BB gun. The man was shot in the foot when he resisted, according to police.

The victim told police he was walking along 46th Street between Spruce and Locust Streets near his home at about 10:45 p.m. when he was approached by two males ages 18-20 who asked him if he had a light for a cigarette. One of the young men then drew a grey handgun and demanded the man surrender his belongings. They took his wallet, which contained $70 cash and some credit cards, and searched through his pockets.

At one point, he told police, he resisted and the man holding the gun said, “This gun’s not fake,” and shot the man in the foot. Police found a shell casing near the scene but did not release the caliber of the gun.

The unidentified victim was transported to the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania and was in stable condition this morning, police said.

The incident was the latest in a string of gunpoint robberies in the area involving young men in their late teens. Some of those robberies have been committed with BB guns, some of which police have recovered. Also, a few victims in recent days have successfully fought back against would-be robbers. But police are asking people not to take chances. Here is a comment by Southwest Detective Joe Murray on the recent rash of gunpoint robberies.

Police supplied descriptions of the two suspects:

• Black male, dark skin. Height: 5-1 to 5-5. Thin build, closely cropped hair. Wearing a black t-shirt with white stripes.

• Black male, light skin. Height: 5-10. Thin build. Longer hair. Wearing a tan t-shirt with a tie-die pattern on it.

This morning a crew from the University City District began installing the city’s first “parklet,” a wood and metal platform complete with tables, chairs and planter boxes at 43rd and Baltimore designed to reclaim parking spots for more leisure space.

The platform, which extends six feet into the street and is the length of two parking spots along 43rd Street in front of the Green Line Cafe, essentially widening the seating area of the cafe, although you won’t have to buy anything to sit there. Oddly, the spot chosen for the first parklet is about 50 feet from an actual park – Clark Park – which was recently renovated to add additional cafe-style seating.

The parklet will occupy a parking spot where a Philly Car Share vehicle was once parked. That spot will be moved up 43rd Street.

The ribbon-cutting ceremony for the parklet will be at 43rd and Baltimore at 1 p.m. on Thursday.

Parklets, which are designed to be temporary and portable, have become a fairly common site in many cities. They are designed to extend pedestrian space in busy urban neighborhoods and encourage people to drive less (presumably by making parking spots harder to find?) and slow down the spread of asphalt.

The parklet is a cooperative effort with the City of Philadelphia and the University City District and with money from a William Penn Foundation grant.

Ramadan starts today and while we are happy that our Muslim friends and neighbors get to observe this holy month of fasting and prayer, we’re sad that a few of our favorite food spots will be closed or have their hours drastically curtailed.

Saad’s Halal Restaurant, for example, is closed this month. The following is a short list (for now) of Ramadan hours for neighborhood food spots. We will keep adding to it. If you know of any to add, please drop a comment below.

• Saad’s Halal Restaurant (4500 Walnut St.)

Closed for the entire month.

• Manakeesh Cafe and Bakery (4420 Walnut St.)

Opens at sunset each night. Each night includes a signature dish. See the Ramadan menu here (Facebook page).

• Kabobeesh (4201 Chestnut St.)

Open regular hours. Free Iftar, the fast-breaking meal, for those fasting for the month.

• Wah Gi Wah (4447 Chestnut St.)

Open regular hours.

With folks getting bent out of shape these days for the environmental unfriendliness of even small things – like the sleeve on your coffee cup – how is it that the Yellow Pages still exist? We came across this stack on Spruce Street near 46th.

The family of 22-year-old Drexel senior Evan Morris is urging police to continue the investigation of their son’s death, saying he may have been “set up,” the Daily News reports today.

Morris was stabbed three times early Friday morning in his ex-girlfriend’s apartment on the 3400 block of Race Street and later died. Police have said that the man who stabbed him, an unnamed student from another university, acted in self defense and that charges would likely not be filed in the case.

But Morris’ parents have hired an attorney, Willie Nattiel Jr., who told the Daily News:

“We believe that there is much more involved with this. We don’t like that he was being portrayed as this crazed burglar.”

Nattiel even speculated that Morris may have been “set up.”

Read the entire article here.

Police are reporting that two young men recently tried to rob two Russian nationals at gunpoint near the 4800 block of Walnut St. The Russians proceeded to beat the two men up and take their BB gun.

Police say the incident, which happened Thursday, was one of several robberies or attempted robberies on that day in the neighborhood. Thursday’s robberies are part of a rash of robberies over the last few days. Most have been clustered within a six-block radius of 48th and Baltimore. Below are details on some of them. The information comes from a combination of police reports, an anonymous e-mail to westphillylocal.com and Southwest Detective Joe Murray’s must-read Twitter feed.

• Thursday, July 28 – A 25-year-old man was approached near 49th and Cedar at about 1 a.m. by a 19-year-old carrying a black handgun. The victim fled on foot but was cornered by a second young male. Both men beat him up and stole his cell phone, which was valued at $215.

• Thursday, July 28 – A 32-year-old female was approached by two males near 48th and Cedar at 12:13 p.m. One male grabbed her purse. The woman fought back, but the two men fled with her car keys. The woman refused to file a report.  A witness, who asked that her name not be used, e-mailed us with some details on this one. She wrote:

“Two women and a twelve week old infant in a baby carriage were mugged in the middle of the day on Thursday, July 28th. The thief was carrying a gun and approached from behind on the south side of the 4800 block of Cedar.”

• Thursday, July 28 – Three armed and masked young men entered the Fresh Deli (4832 Baltimore Ave.) and attempted to rob it at about 10:30 p.m.. The owner, who was unarmed, chased the men out. Detective Murray wrote: “He’s lucky.”

• Thursday, July 28 – Plainclothes officers from the 18th District arrested a man who had broken into a home at about 1 p.m. and stolen a laptop and iPod. The items were returned to the owner.

Murray also warned residents that it’s not a good idea to fight back against armed robbers, despite the success by some folks above. He wrote: “Two robberies I posted had unarmed people fighting people with guns. Don’t roll the dice on it being a fake gun..plenty of real ones out there.”