The Holme Avenue Bridge re-opened the afternoon of Oct. 25. Photo by Stephen Schultz

Months of work and detours culminated at 2 p.m. yesterday when the Holme Avenue Bridge re-opened.

Work on the Holme Circle bridge began earlier this year with partial lane closures, but by the end of June, both lanes on either side closed for good after PennDOT and Buckley Construction found structural deficiencies.

PennDOT assured Holme Circle residents the bridge would re-open by Christmas — a long time, given commuters hadn’t expected it, but far sooner than if repairs had continued with partial lane openings, as was the original plan. continue reading »

Jodie Rizzo,(right), of Holme Circle at Occupy Philly

Occupy Philadelphia is preparing to enter its second week and Tuesday’s noon-time crowd numbered a little more than 100 people.

Plain clothes police, reporters and the homeless mixed with activists on the plaza at City Hall. A number of Northeast Philadelphia residents joined the protest, all with different reasons.

Earl Refsnider of Lawndale is protesting the harsh treatment of the homeless by the government. “I am protesting the government screwing over people,” he said. It is getting harder and harder, as there are continued cuts in funding.” continue reading »

Toy guns are being sold from an ice cream truck in Holme Circle parked across the street from Pollock Elementary School.

The policy on toy guns at Robert Blair Pollock Elementary in Holme Circle is simple: they’re not allowed.

But a parent called Fox29 recently when his child showed up to school with a toy gun the parent says was sold to the student by the ice cream truck driver at Welsh Road and Tolbut Street. continue reading »

Seen here Sept. 28, the Holme Avenue Bridge is expected to reopen by the end of October.

Four months after closing and two months ahead of schedule, the Holme Avenue Bridge is expected to reopen by the end of October.

“October 31 if everything goes well,” PennDOT’s Harold Windisch specified.

Windisch brought the welcome news last night to the Holme Circle Civic Association meeting. More than 20 people attended to hear firsthand the news announced Monday on Facebook. continue reading »

Michael Susten, far right, and dancers from Xhale Dance Company warmed up before practice.

The annual Philadelphia Live Arts Festival and Philly Fringe brings thousands of performing artists from around the world to the city to showcase their acts and talents. For some, it is a once-in-a-lifetime experience and for others, it is a yearly affair. Many of the artists are from Philadelphia and two, in particular, are from the Northeast.

Michael Susten, a director and dance instructor at Xhale Dance Company, is from Rhawnhurst. His middle-class upbringing meant he did not have the means to participate in other activities.

“I went to a local dance studio…and dance was our whole life,” Susten said. continue reading »

Though it’s been more than “a week or so” since PennDOT said the new traffic lights at Ashton and Willits roads would be activated, the change has finally be made.

Left-turn lanes have been painted and green arrow lights have been installed to help keep traffic flowing during the Holme Avenue Bridge repairs. The bridge shut down unexpectedly in June, blocking off the chunk of Holme Avenue between the circle and Convent Avenue/Pennypack Street. continue reading »

A month after the Holme Avenue Bridge closed unexpectedly, residents and business owners are still handling the impromptu detours and increased traffic.

One of the busiest intersections, Ashton and Willits roads, has had new traffic lights installed to accommodate more lanes of traffic, but those lights remain dark and covered in plastic. We reached out to PennDOT to find out why.

“This was a time-saving measure so that once our traffic operation plans were finalized, the signals would be in place and ready to go,” Safety Press Officer Jennifer Robinson tells NEast Philly. “Due to the volume and complexity of traffic patterns in the area, our analysis of the revised traffic control plan has been taking a little longer.  Our signal experts have nearly completed their review, and we also are coordinating our plans with the city Streets Department.” continue reading »

Holmeburg, Holme Circle and Burholme are all derivatives of some sort of the Holme family of Philadelphia. They’re all also different neighborhoods in the Northeast, which has proven a difficult fact for Philadelphia’s larger media outlets to navigate around.

So when the Daily News picked up on the Holme Avenue Bridge closure story this week, it wasn’t too surprising when the neighborhood was called Holmesburg. Not a very helpful report from the Help Desk.

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Q: Is there a way to figure out how much to offer on this home in Holme Circle? It is a really nice four-bedroom twin for sale for $199,900 and has been on the market for more than two months. Do you think the seller would take an offer for $150,000? I am approved to $180,000.

A: There is no set formula for making an offer on a property. The only way to find out if the seller would take an offer that low is to make the offer in writing. But no matter how long it’s been on the market — and these days two months isn’t very long — you’re talking about potentially offending a seller who might be agreeable to $180,000. And an offended seller may not want to participate in negotiations. continue reading »

Harold Windisch of PennDOT talks about the Holme Avenue Bridge.

John Buckley’s construction company has had $60,000 worth of small tools stolen in the last six weeks from its site on the Holme Avenue Bridge.

It’s one of many complaints coming out of the two-year project on the bridge, which PennDOT engineer Harold Windisch talked about at last night’s Holme Circle Civic Association meeting.

Buckley and his family are offering a $5,000 reward for tips leading to the return of the tools — a problem he says he’s never had in any other neighborhood.

Residents living near the bridge, who’ve come to see Buckley as an ally during the construction project, are outraged on his behalf, and at the traffic preventing them from safely accessing their homes. continue reading »