Pennsylvania legislative district 172, as it stands today. Click to visit Redistricting the Nation.

This is part of ongoing coverage in “District 172: The Politics of Change after State Rep. John Perzel,” a collaborative effort with Philadelphia Neighborhoods funded by J-Lab.

Shaping legislative districts is by no means illegal. It’s a part of the democratic process.

After each U.S. Census informs leaders about population and demographic shifts throughout the country, each state, county and municipality is meant to see subtle movement in its boundaries to better reflect the realities there, from balancing population totals and community divides. For example, in the post-1990-census redistricting, Philadelphia lost two House seats to its western suburbs due to population growth there.

Where redistricting has earned the more negatively connoted term of ‘gerrymandering’ — coined in 1812 after a partisan Massachusetts governor — has been when political, not population, shifts seem to motivate legislative rewiring.

Now again, Pennsylvania is revisiting its boundaries, like the rest of the country, following the 2010 census. In April, a former Superior Court president was named the independent chair of the state’s Legislative Reapportionment Commission, which by October is due to send to the state Supreme Court its reapportionment draft of state legislative districts.

One district that will be watched by some insiders is the Pennsylvania 172nd State House Legislative district, formerly the precinct of John Perzel.

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This is the first in a two-part look at zoning in the Northeast. Read the second part here.

There are 10 day cares on the three city blocks of Rising Sun Avenue between Robbins and Fanshawe streets. My Little Doves by Hellerman Street is the newest addition.

Lawncrest residents are concerned about the number of daycares on Rising Sun Avenue. Photo by Ian Romano.

Many residents said they are angry about their zoning board’s approval over the site.

“Someone needs to decide when enough’s enough. We’re going overboard now,”  said Lawncrest resident Cherylann Wharton.

Residents said they were left out of the decision. Their concerns about the day care were made clear at the April 19 Lawncrest Community Association meeting: they don’t want any more traffic. continue reading »

Hugh Campbell, a 45-year-resident of Burholme, thanked Matt Taubenberger for sweeping up trash Saturday.

Campbell said he can’t shop at the stores on Castor Avenue because there is too much trash.

“It’s good to see a couple of young fellas cleaning up,” Campbell said. “I’m a product of New York City and left because it was so filthy.”

Taubenberger and a group of college students took part in Philadelphia’s spring cleanup by packing mulch into the street trees and sweeping the sidewalks on Burholme’s end of Rising Sun Avenue. Councilwoman Marian Tasco joined volunteers on the Lawncrest end of the street.

“One of the things that I really hate and see all the time is people throwing their trash right on the ground,” said Taubenberger, who plays an active role in the neighborhood as part of the Business Association. “I think when people walk by and see us cleaning up they realize how hard it is to keep the street clean and they try not to litter.” continue reading »

You don’t have to live in Summerdale or Lawndale to know that one is not the other. Lawndale is one-half of Lawncrest; Summerdale is another neighborhood entirely.

It doesn’t take much to spot the difference. All you need is a map and general knowledge of Philadelphia. Cue the error… continue reading »

An early morning fire claimed the life of two residents of the Oxford House in Lawndale.

Crews responded to the blaze around 9 a.m.,  where Gerald Hooper, 75, and Lynn Scripnicencu, 56, were struggling to get out. Both needed wheelchairs to get around. Hooper was found unresponsive, Scripnicenu was pronounced dead at the hospital. continue reading »

Police located a stabbing suspect early yesterday morning in Lawndale. It what appears to be a domestic dispute, a woman stabbed a man in the chest in a home on the 1100-block of Kerper Street, then fled the scene. continue reading »

Friday – Police raided Lawndale Coin and Collectibles Friday morning, as it’s an apparent front for stolen jewelry and metals. Authorities believe owner Robert Snyder has been receiving stolen goods there, including items from 55 burglaries for which the perpetrator  was arrested in October. Snyder insists the Rising Sun Avenue store conducts legitimate business. continue reading »

We’re a little late in correcting this, and we’ve gotta thank the multiple readers who pointed out this blunder.

There’s a lot of discussion on this site and elsewhere about which neighborhoods make up the Northeast. And while there are some points of contention, we all pretty much agree: Olney is not in the Northeast. continue reading »

More than 60 local residents turned out for the vigil held out front of Glatz Jewelers on Rising Sun Avenue.

A preacher is standing on a street corner in a white jacket with a megaphone. He is wearing an “I Love Jesus” cap and spouting his message loudly to oblivious passersby on Rising Sun Avenue in Lawncrest.

“I was an alcoholic. I was a drug addict. But I found Jesus and Jesus’ message changed my life,” said Jimmy Gardner, 52, an aspiring Bible teacher from North Philadelphia. “Only in Jesus can we all see the error of our ways and can we find salvation.”

An older woman with sleek gray strands pulled back into a bun ran over to him holding her pink jacket closed with her right hand, informing the megaphone preacher that he was disrupting the vigil for a murdered jeweler being held across the street.

So touched was the megaphone preacher, and so apologetic for his disruption, he joined the others in prayer.

“We are all God’s children,” Gardner said.

The vigil was held Saturday in honor of William Glatz, hosted by pastors from several local churches in front of his former jewelry store, in response to the man’s shocking death during a robbery attempt on Oct. 21. Glatz was 67. continue reading »

Q: I am a Northeast Philly native moving back to the Northeast after 10 years. Things have changed in the 10 years I’ve been away, and the row homes have become more expensive now. I’ve got $120,000 to spend on a home. What section of the Northeast do you suggest?

A: After the few very recent years of an up-and-down housing market, one thing is for sure, Northeast Philadelphia has still managed to grow in value within the last 10 years. That’s a good thing for our Northeast neighborhoods.

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