The Stella site plan. See full documents at the end of this article. Image/Columbus Property Management

Documents related to this story are embedded at the bottom of the article. The Holme Circle Civic Association stuck fliers in about 1,200 doors advertising Wednesday night’s meeting as part of a renewed effort to grow the membership.

It worked. The line to sign into the meeting was out the door as HCCA board members scurried to add more chairs to the St. Jerome School hall to accommodate the roughly 200 people who attended the meeting.

They were there to talk about The Stella, the affordable housing units planned for the old convent on the Nazareth Hospital property at 2723 Holme Ave. When the HCCA last met in November, Columbus Property Management shared plans to turn convent into 44 affordable housing units for veterans. continue reading »

Plans for affordable housing for vets was the topic at a crowded Holme Circle Civic Association meeting Nov. 28. Photo/Shannon McDonald

“This meeting is going to pot.”

It was 8:49 p.m. Wednesday and Holme Circle residents had just spent nearly two hours listening to details of a plan to convert the old Sisters of Nazareth convent into affordable housing. The soon-to-be property owners had trickled out and residents had begun to carry on sidebar conversations as Holme Circle Civic Association President Joe Razler called everyone back to order.

It had been a long two hours, as residents asked repeated questions about the project – which does not need a zoning variance – that the four representative from Columbus Property Management struggled to answer effectively.

The convent is adjacent to but separate from Nazareth Hospital at 2723 Holme Ave. The hospital president will address the plan at the next HCCA meeting in January, but told residents last night, “we have nothing to say about it.”

But Holme Circle residents, joined by representatives from the Ashton Square and Winchester Park civic associations, had plenty to say. Namely, they were concerned about CPM’s inability to guarantee that the 44 new housing units will be reserved for veterans. continue reading »

The current Northwood Civic Association leadership was announced in December 2011. L to R: President Joe Krause, member Gina Panchella, Vice President Frank Bennett, member Renee Hudson and member Lou Kubik. Not pictured: Treasurer Bill Rodebaugh. Photo/Christopher Wink

The Northwood Civic Association meeting Oct. 16 featured the nomination for elections to the board.  Joe Krause is the sole nominee for president.  Tom McAvoy is the sole nominee for vice president. Gina Panchella is the sole nominee for secretary. Mary Robus, Ed Martin, Lou Kubik, Rodney Allen and Frank Bennett are the nominees for board members. The election will take place at the next meeting in November.

The meeting opened with reading of the minutes followed by the treasurers report.  It was noted that Cancer Treatment Centers of America donated $2,500 to the Neighborhood Security Patrol via a donation the the Northwood Civic.

Membership now stands at 109 paid members.  Notice of dues coming due are being distributed and dues are $10 for the coming year.

Read the rest of the meeting recap from the Frankford Gazette.

Lt. Tom Tomlin presented crime statistics for the 2nd District’s PSA2 (middle) at Tuesday’s Lawncrest Community Association meeting. Image/Philadelphia Police District Map

With a new crime plan rolling out in the 2nd Police District, Lt. Tom Tomlin appeared at the Lawncrest Community Association meeting Tuesday night armed with stats. And he had some good news.

Sharing numbers from the last 30 days in Police Service Area 2 , Tomlin reported the three aggravated assaults in the area are a “phenomenally low” statistic, and the three stolen vehicles is” actually a very good” number. continue reading »

Lt. Thomas Macartney of the 2nd District addresses Castor Garden residents at Monday's Take Back Your Neighborhood meeting. Photo/Erin Dungee

At Monday’s Take Back Your Neighborhood meeting in Castor Gardens, a group of 40 met to discuss local affairs at the Max Myers Recreation Center.

Lt. Thomas Macartney of the 2nd District addressed the group, as did  mediator Jonah Roll from the Philadelphia Commission on Human Relations and Fair Housing Commission.

Jared Solomon, the group’s leader, had a member introduce the group’s mission and began the meeting discussing the bylaws, which are to be voted on July 16th. The meeting’s main topic was the rising tide of drug use in the community.

Macartney addressed the crowd about the 6600-block of Castor Avenue, where it meets with Magee, as being a hotspot for drug sales. continue reading »

Jack O'Hara is the current vice president and president-elect of the Greater Bustleton Civic League. Photo/Erin Dungee

This is the first in a two-part report on leadership changes within the Greater Bustleton Civic League.

The Greater Bustleton Civic League voted May 23 to replace many governing board positions. Accusations of poor leadership caused tension within the civic association and played a heavy role in the election, which led to the installment of a new president, vice president, corresponding secretary, recording secretary and treasurer.

Some Bustleton residents described the league as disorganized and have alleged past members of misleading the group about zoning, miscounting votes and failing to effectively communicate with members and each other.

“What’s great about the league is we do have a lot of very passionate people,” said Myles Gordon, former GBCL vice president a current 15-year member. “The problem is some discussions can get a bit contentious.” continue reading »

Shamrock Shuttle 2010 outside McNoodle's. Photo/Mayfair resident and Civic Association board member Donny Smith

It’s that time of year again. The buses, the drinking, the public urination. The revenue for Frankford Avenue’s many bars and restaurants.

“The elephant in the room,” as Mayfair Civic Association President Joe DeFelice called it at last night’s meeting. It’s all coming back in March when the trio of annual bar-hopping events returns to Mayfair.

The Mayfair, Tacony and Holmesburg civic associations have already met to discuss finding a happier medium for the bars that participate in Shamrock Shuttle and the neighbors that deal with the aftermath. continue reading »

Phil Grutmacher reviews Lawncrest's top zoning issues at the January Community Association meeting. Photo/Shannon McDonald

Last night’s Lawncrest Community Association meeting began with a word about burglaries from 2nd District Community Relations Officer Mark Mroz, ended with a $49 50/50 ticket and was interrupted by  a birthday cake for dedicated LCA member Peg Kramer.

But the meat of the meeting was zoning. With no guest speaker plan, President Bill Dolbow breezed right through the agenda and let Phil Grutzmacher take the mic to discuss zoning. Five proposals were reviewed, but the first is a site that’s been a thorn in the LCA’s side for months. continue reading »

Before the Frankford Civic Association meeting got started Thursday, zoning officer Pete Specos had an announcement.

Alice Henry will withdraw from the board for personal reasons, with Specos taking the helm. Henry joined the board as vice president in January. continue reading »

The re-opening of the Holme Avenue Bridge was one of the main discussion points at the October Holme Circle Civic Association meeting. Photo by Stephen Schultz.

The Holme Circle Civic Association held its annual “Meet the Candidates Night” during its monthly meeting on Wednesday at St. Jerome’s School Hall.

The local candidates in attendance were City Councilman Brian O’Neill and Democratic challenger Bill Rubin; Democratic at-large Councilman Jim Kenney represented by his aide, John DelRica; Republican candidates Denny O’Brien and Michael Untermeyer; and Republican candidate for City Commissioner Al Schmidt represented by his aide, Steven Boc. Each candidate was given five minutes to expound on their platforms culminating with questions from the 40 member audience. continue reading »