Mayoral candidate Jim Kenney (Facebook photo).

The 27th Ward Democratic Executive Committee will host a forum Thursday, March 26 with candidates contending in May’s primary. The forum will include mayoral candidate and former city councilman Jim Kenney and city council candidates Blondell Reynolds Brown, Helen Gym, Ed Neilson, and W. Wilson Goode, Jr., Paul Steinke, and Sherrie Cohen.

The public is welcome to attend this meeting, which will take place at Rosenberger Hall at the University of the Sciences (600 S. 43rd Street, near Woodland Ave.), starting at 7:30 p.m.

This forum was originally scheduled for March 5 but was cancelled due to snow.

The primary election will be held May 19 and the general election is slated for Nov. 3. You can get up to speed on the council and mayoral candidates on the Committee of Seventy website.

– Mike Lyons

Two important and informative community events are happening this week in the Spruce Hill and Garden Court neighborhoods.

On Wednesday, March 18, the Spruce Hill Zoning Committee will be meeting at 6:45 p.m. at the Spruce Hill center, 257 S. 45th Street, to discuss a number of applications for development in the area. Cases will be heard in this order:

• 217 S. 42nd Street–application for a two-family dwelling
• 4030 Spruce Street–application for fraternity housing
• 400 S. 45th Street–increase in square footage allowed and increase number of permitted units from 12 to 19.
• 18, 20, 22 S. 43rd Street–application to increase maximum occupied area plus relief from five required parking spots (application is for relocation of lot lines from three to one in order to erect a structure for religious and educational use, connected to an existing structure).
• Presentation for feedback on possible development at 4415 Chestnut back to 4412 Ludlow by Scott Orens.  Continue Reading

Cafe Renata owners, Yasser Aiq and Kate Steenstra, at the cafe (archive photo, West Philly Local).

As many of you know, an overnight fire destroyed Café Renata at 43rd and Locust and injured a neighbor last Thursday. Café Renata co-owners, Kate Steenstra and Yasser Aiq, are safe, but heartbroken over the fire and are still assessing the damage. A lot of support has poured in to them from the community members, which Katie and Yasser are very grateful for.

“Our neighbors and friends have been so supportive of us during all of this and we are so grateful for their encouragement and hugs. We are lucky to be part of such a loving community,” Katie wrote in an email.

While it is still unknown when the popular Spruce Hill coffee and brunch shop will reopen here’s some encouraging news from Katie:

“After taking a few days of reflection Yasser and I would like to tell our friends and customers that we are so encouraged by their support and love the past few days. Without them, Renata would never have been the vibrant café it was. We are looking forward to your continued support during our rebuilding efforts. We will be back!”

If you would like to support Katie and Yasser, visit Cafe Renata’s Facebook page and leave a message. We’re also sharing information about a fundraiser for Café Renata this Thursday, March 19, at The Bar(n) (49th and Catharine) in Cedar Park. The Barn and Wyndridge Farms are teaming up for the Café Renata Tap Takeover Fundraiser where Wyndridge Farms brew will be hooked up to all four of The Barn’s taps. Admission fee is $10 at the door, but guests will get their first brew for free. All drafts will be $3. All of the door and draft proceeds will go to the owners of Café Renata. The event will take place from 6 p.m. – 2 a.m. Check The Barn’s Facebook page for updates.

You still have one more chance to see the inside of the enigmatic St. Andrew’s Chapel, the beautiful church at the corner of 42nd and Spruce that hasn’t been regularly open to the public for 40 years.

Earlier this month the chapel hosted the temporary art installation “Ci-Lines” by Aaron Asis. The installation’s closing on Saturday will include “Stories of St. Andrew’s,” a discussion featuring three experts on the history of churches in the city.

St. Andrew’s was built in 1923 by the Philadelphia Divinity School to educate Episcopal priests and has not been open to the public since 1974. Learn more about the church’s history during the talk, which runs from 4 p.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday.

Speakers will include:

• Davis d’Ambly – A liturgical artist who has worked in churches all over the city.

• Michael Krasluski – A librarian and professor at the University of the Sciences who curated the Philadelphia Studies blog, which tells the history of the city’s Episcopal churches through parish archives.

• Bob Legani – A member of the last graduating class of the Philadelphia Divinity School and a sacrastan who prepared the chapel for daily services for three years.

Mayoral candidate Jim Kenney (Facebook photo).

UPDATE (3/5/2015): The event has been cancelled due to the inclement weather and will be re-scheduled. Stay tuned for more information.

This Thursday, March 5, the 27th Ward Democratic Executive Committee will host a forum with candidates contending in May’s primary. Mayoral candidate and former city councilman Jim Kenney and city council candidates will be present, including Blondell Reynolds Brown, William K. Greenlee, Ed Neilson, and W. Wilson Goode, Jr.

The public is welcome to attend this meeting, which will take place at Rosenberger Hall at the University of the Sciences (600 S. 43rd Street, near Woodland Ave.), starting at 7:30 p.m.

The primary election will be held May 19 and the general election is slated for Nov. 3. You can get up to speed on the council and mayoral candidates on the Committee of Seventy website.

Kol Tzedek Purim Party. (Photo from Kol-tzedek.org)

The West Philly local synagogue Kol Tzedek will be holding two Purim events this and next week (Saturday, Feb. 28 and Wednesday, March 4). All community members are invited to take part in the celebration (you don’t have to be a member of the synagogue to participate in the events), hear the story of Purim, try delicious hamentashen, watch Purim performances, sing, dance and have fun. Both events draw a crowd of over 100 people, according to Kol Tzedek member and event organizer Rowan Machalow, who sent us this information. Kol Tzedek is located at the Calvary Center (48th St. and Baltimore Ave.). Here’s more information about the events from Kol Tzedek:

Annual Purim Rock Spiel led by Jessi Roemer & the Purim Players
Sat, Feb. 28, 4:15 p.m.

Mi Zeh Ba? Who is that coming? Rock-n-Roll Ahashverosh? Blues-Man Haman? Bassa Nova Esther? Come laugh, sing, dance, and enjoy our fabulous, fun for all ages Purim spiel (play) and celebration! Continue Reading