Sen. Mike Stack (podium) talks about the need for long-term transportation infrastructure funding. He was joined Wednesday by (left to right) Rep. Mike McGeehan; Dr. Dick Voith, the senior vice president and principal of Econsult Corp; and Craig Hoogstraten of Anderson Construction. Photo/Office of Sen. Mike Stack

“Our transportation system is falling apart right under our tires,” Pa. Sen. Mike Stack said yesterday.

He joined Pa. Rep. Mike McGeehan and transportation officials at Holmesburg Junction Station to call for  funding for Pennsylvania’s distressed transit system.

By their count, more than 1 million people used SEPTA to get around last year.  continue reading »

Holmesburg Junction Station in December 2011. Photo/Shannon McDonald

For many who take the train every day, Holmesburg Junction is their first (and sometimes only) glimpse at the neighborhood.

The aging train station has been a focus of a joint effort by the Upper Holmesburg Civic Association and Philadelphia City Planning Commission as the pair work on neighborhood improvements under the Phila2035 plan.

But while those efforts concentrate on greening, waterway access and an overall more desirable-looking neighborhood anchor, legislators Wednesday will focus on the station’s need for funding to better serve the community. continue reading »

Holmesburg Prison, as seen from Torresdale Avenue. Photo/Christopher Wink

Like in any prison, the walls of Holmesburg Prison tell its story. Two Spanish artists are bringing those tales to life with their Doing Time | Depth of Surface  exhibit at The Galleries at Moore College of Art & Design.

María Jesús González and Patricia Gómez will display large-scale prints, photographs and related videos from their time working in the prison. They use a technique to preserve surfaces by detaching the paint with glues and fabric and transferring the paint to a new canvas. They detail that process in an interview with Philagrafika. continue reading »

Just a year after taking state office, Rep. Kevin Boyle has announced his re-election bid for the 172nd District seat.

Waste Management plans to add to its Holmesburg facility. Image/Google Maps

As part of its contract with the City of Philadelphia, Waste Management already runs a single-stream recycling facility on a portion of its 42-acre site in Holmesburg.

Pending approval from the Zoning Board of Adjustment, Waste Management will add a facility to the property to do something with the 20,000 tons per month in waste the recycling center brings in [zoning plan PDF].

Tara Hemmer, director of area recycling operations for Waste Management, brought the proposal to last night’s Holmesburg Civic Association, where she explained how the Process Engineered Fuel facility would work. Waste Management plans to build a 59,000-square foot building on its property, which extends east toward the Delaware River from Bleigh Avenue and Milnor Street. continue reading »

The sit of the former Liddonfield Homes in Upper Holmesburg stands to be redeveloped. Image/Google Maps

Upper Holmesburg’s Liddonfield housing project has been torn down, but the site itself (bound by Megargee, Cottage and Tolbut streets and Torresdale Avenue) remains a source of controversy in the neighborhood as residents wait to see what springs up in its place.

This is an important week for two Northeast groups as they focus on the former public housing development’s past and future.

Tonight, the Northeast Philadelphia History Network will host speaker Rosemary Reeves [calendar item]. The former Liddonfield resident will discuss her time spent there and her effort to have a marker placed on the site — whatever it may become — to recognize the positive impact Liddonfield had on many of the people who lived there.

Regardless of the property’s past, the Upper Holmesburg Civic Association doesn’t want to see public housing take priority at Liddonfield in the future. Thursday is the last day Holmesburg and Torresdale residents can submit petitions in support of a redevelopment by Holy Family University. continue reading »

Milt Martelack (megaphone), seen here with State Rep. Kevin Boyle (second from right) and staff members at a September rally against a Holmesburg methadone clinic, will help restart the Mayfair Town Watch. Photo by Stephen Schultz.

Mayfair residents will try again to form a town watch.

The group started fresh more than two years ago, shortly after the Mayfair Civic Association assumed new leadership and liquidated all assets the previous membership had accumulated.

But that town watch effort fizzled out after a series of weekly meetings, training sessions and talks of taking on other neighborhoods’ town watch efforts. Determined to try again, Mayfair residents have organized a meeting for Monday, Jan. 9 for the third incarnation in as many years. continue reading »

Upper Holmesburg resident Dan Yencho hopes he can win a Pepsi Refresh Project grant to open a fitness center for teens.

All Dan Yencho needs is a large, warehouse-type space and a little money — say, $50,000.

The Upper Holmesburg resident with a personal training background needs both to open what he calls the Holmesburg Power Company, an after-school fitness center for teens.

“Having a positive place where kids can go can be a great place for the community,” Yencho says.

He’s hoping the Pepsi Refresh Project can help.

No stranger himself to exercise, Yencho was running through his neighborhood over the summer to train for the Spartan Race at Blue Mountain when he bumped into his inspiration.

A teenage girl, running on the same street but in the opposite direction, stopped Yencho to ask him for pointers when she saw his gym sweatshirt. Yencho says he offered her tips, including one to be careful running by herself early in the morning.

What she told him next became a jumping off point. continue reading »

Father Judge had a hazmat situation earlier this week. Which means mainstream media just discovered the school and tried to figure out what neighborhood it’s in.

That’d be Holmesburg. You know, where there are Holmesburg flags flying from telephone poles.

Kudos to our reader Mark Hanna, who spotted Fox29′s ridiculous error. The large media outlets jumped all over this story (were they there Thanksgiving week when Judge students helped break ground on a renovation project at Ramp playground?) Maybe spending some time in Holmesburg outside of the hazmat situation and methadone clinic might help. continue reading »

The Archdiocese has announced Father Judge High School will remain closed for an additional day after a skin and eye irritant was found in the building. High school administrators say the building has been deemed safe, but will remain closed Wednesday for additional environmental safety tests. continue reading »