The Global Leadership Academy Charter School at 5151 Warren St. “cannot be salvaged” after a five-alarm fire this morning, according to the school’s website.
The fire began at about 6 a.m. in the school’s basement, according to reports, and quickly engulfed the school. A police officer passing by the school at about 6 a.m. spotted flames in the basement of the building. The school announced that it will keep students up to date with automated phone messages.
About 500 students grades K-8 attend GLA Charter School, which is scheduled to begin the 2011-2012 school year at a new building near 46th and Girard.
The Enterprise Center CDC, the Spiral Q Puppet Theater and the Philadelphia Water Department are joining forces this Saturday for a workshop on good nutrition, water quality, asthma prevention, fire safety and a bunch of other important issues for parents and children. The workshop begins at 10 a.m. at the Enterprise Center (4548 Market St).
Folks from the Water Department will talk about storm water prevention/pollution and the importance of clean drinking water. As a little enticement to attend, families will receive a free BRITA water filter and water test kit.
The children’s workshop sounds like it might be a little more lively. Puppets from Spiral Q will touch on some of the same issues with kids in their own special way.
You can RSVP for the workshop or get more information by contacting the Center’s Brian Mallon at 215-895-4010 or bmallon – at – theenterprisecentercdc.org.
Here’s an idea: someone on a bicycle comes to your place, picks up your laundry, does it for you – including folding – and returns it, also by bicycle. Clean and green. This exists and it’s called Wash Cycle Laundry. If you think this is a good idea, then you are not alone. Echoing Green, an angel investor in socially conscious entrepreneurial businesses, has named Wash Cycle a semifinalist for one of its 2011 Echoing Green Fellowships.
Now to be honest there are a lot of semifinalists – 224 to be exact. But that is out of 2,854 applicants. About 15 of those semifinalists will be awarded fellowships, which include start-up money to pay for health insurance, a stipend and access to legal and financial help.
Gabriel Mandujano, the former executive director of the Enterprise Center Community Development Corporation in Walnut Hill, started Wash Cycle Laundry earlier this year. The company does pick-ups and deliveries in West Philadelphia and Center City. You may have seen their bike trailers loaded with large blue tubs.
Just a reminder as trees start to pile up curbside. If you want to recycle your tree, a couple of options are available. See our previous story here for more details.
The death of an infant from starvation and dehydration at a West Philadelphia family shelter has been ruled a homicide. Police say the boy, 2-month-old Quasir Alexander, was found by medical personnel at the Traveler’s Aid Family Services shelter at 111 N. 49th St. and later pronounced dead at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.
The Philadelphia Inquirer reported that the boy had been living at the 75-room shelter, which is well stocked with food, with his mother and siblings.
Traveler’s Aid Family Services started as an organization focused on helping immigrant families in the early 1900s. It has evolved to help homeless families and stranded travelers, according to its website. Families typically stay at the shelter an average of five months.
Monday’s snow drew some observations by Holly Otterbein in City Paper about the changes at Clark Park. The story quickly lays out the two sides of the argument: “improvements” versus “clear cut.” Here’s the meat of the story:
“Indeed, the renovations — though aimed at providing better drainage, improved paths and more lighting — are the subject of no small controversy. The Clark Park revitalization, which has been in the works for the last 10 years, has drawn criticism from various locals, including eco-artist Aaron Birk, who wrote this September in an e-mail to City Paper and others, “Clark Park is going to be clear-cut in the next day or so. There is now a chain-link construction fence preventing anyone from setting foot in the park,” adding, “Let me know if you’re interested in helping organize an emerge ncy sit-in. I have a 50-watt megaphone.”
But according to the Friends of Clark Park, only 24 trees have been removed and that’s because they’re old, diseased or invasive.
“These trees were selected for removal after consultation with arborists from the Morris Arboretum,” says xBrian Siano, vice president of the Friends. “And preserving the tree canopy was one of the most important goals we had.”
Below is a copy of the (now 10-year-old) master plan for Clark Park. The folks at The Friends of Clark Park have said that they expect the “A” park to be open by this spring. Clark Park Master Plan
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