Two Giant employees work in the rain to help assemble Mayfair Memorial Playground. Photo by Kirsten Stamn

“A promise kept. That’s what this is.”

Melinda Mulvenna, a co-chair for the Friends of Mayfair Memorial Playround, surveyed the playground that was furiously undergoing construction, with hundreds of volunteers milling around hauling mulch, assembling equipment and pushing wheelbarrows. The Mayfair Memorial Playground at Rowland Avenue and Vista Street, which was to be completed in only a matter of hours, had taken more than three years to get rebuilt after it had been torn down. And for Mulvenna, that was a personal triumph, as she was an indirect reason for the previous playground’s destruction.

“My daughter [Kaylee] was the one that was hurt. Her foot got caught in the padding and she fell into the monkey bars. Thank God it was only a black eye,” she said. “I called politicians and the mayor’s office; all I asked for was that the padding be repaired. I thought I was doing the right thing. One innocent phone call . . . it was demolished that April.”

Looking at the progress that had been made that morning, Mulvenna’s eyes became glassy. “Three years later, now look at it. We’re putting in a rumble slide for people with special needs. Our goal is to have everybody play. This is for kids with casts or wheelchairs, everyone. We even have Freddy the Firetruck for John Redmond, the firefighter who passed away and [for whom] this park is dedicated to for his service. We’re even painting his number on the side,” she said.

For Mayfair, getting to this day has been a long, arduous process. Before, in the times of former Pa. Rep. John Perzel, Mayfair might have gotten a check from the government, which was putting lots of resources into building up the community. But with Perzel’s indictment, all the funds had to come from donations and the community, which rose spectacularly to the challenge. continue reading »

As the State Representative for the 172nd Legislative District in Northeast Philadelphia, I’ve had the opportunity to work with various city departments on a variety of issues.  An issue of extreme importance in my district and our city is blighted properties and negligent out-of-town property owners.  These disregarded homes not only denigrate the quality of life, but force hard working families to move.

I am elated that License and Inspections Commissioner Fran Burns has taken bold steps to help combat this plague.  According to a Philadelphia Daily News article on Oct. 26, Commissioner Burns state she would, “Extradite out-of-town owners and usher them into the city’s new blight court.”  It is encouraging to know that the city is willing to take the necessary actions to address these cancers that have affected neighborhoods. continue reading »

Q: I rent a three-bedroom home in Mayfair and my landlord said she’d sell it to me for $100,000. My bank said that my mortgage would be less than $600 a month. My rent is currently $800, so I’d definitely be saving money, but how do I know it’s even worth $100,000? Can you tell me what I should pay?

A: How much this property is worth depends on the address. There are 97 properties for sale in Mayfair from a low of $49,000 to a high of $199,900. The average sold price in Mayfair overall is $108,000. But how much your rental is really worth depends on your exact location in Mayfair. continue reading »

The Mayfair Memorial Playground site in February 2010, not long after rebuilding efforts were renewed. Photo by Stephen Zook for NEastPhilly/Philadelphia Neighborhoods.

A fundraising event a couple years in the making will culminate later this month when Mayfair residents come together to rebuild Mayfair Memorial Playground.

After teaming up with KaBOOM!, getting business sponsorships and working with the School District of Philadelphia to secure the sight, the Mayfair Civic Association is now looking for volunteers to help with the build. 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 »

An estimated 750 people attended a meeting at Lincoln High School to protest the methadone clinic proposed for the 7900-block of Frankford Avenue in Holmesburg.

A bus will depart Lincoln High School at noon tomorrow, carrying residents from Holmesburg, Mayfair and beyond to Center City, where a hotly contested methadone clinic will come under review at the Zoning Board of Adjustment.

Councilwoman Joan Krajewski and others are expected to ask the city to remove the proposed clinic’s over-the-counter permit and prevent it from operating at Frankford Avenue and Decatur Street. continue reading »

Let’s get right to the point: Finding the Mayfair, Tacony and Holmesburg borders is no easy feat, even for the people who live there.

The three neighborhoods’ civic associations and town watch groups work pretty closely together, and the Mayfair Business Association’s boundaries stretch beyond the neighborhood.

So we could maybe look past the fact that a fire in Tacony was reported as Mayfair by CBS3. But the North Philadelphia headline is unacceptable. continue reading »

A problem at a PECO substation in Holmesburg has left 20,000 people in the Northeast without power.

Smoke at the station near Rhawn Street and Torresdale Avenue is preventing crews from getting in to fix what could be a breaker failure.

The outage began before five this morning, and is affecting large portions of Mayfair, Holmesburg and Tacony as far west as Roosevelt Boulevard.

The Mayfair Memorial Playground site in February 2010, not long after rebuilding efforts were renewed. Photo by Stephen Zook for NEastPhilly/Philadelphia Neighborhoods.

During its regularly scheduled meeting this week, the School Reform Commission is expected to weigh in Wednesday on the next step in rebuilding the Mayfair Memorial Playground.

A vote will be taken on whether or not to approve an $80,000 gift from playground-building organization KaBOOM! Pending a supportive vote, the School District of Philadelphia will sign a letter of permission to build. Mayfair community members will then be able to schedule their design and build days to re-install a playground at the Rowland Avenue and Vista Street site.

The SRC meeting begins at 2 p.m. in the auditorium at the School District of Philadelphia, 440 N. Broad St. Meetings are open to the public.

UPDATE – The property at the center of Saturday’s shooting in Mayfair, as well as other neighboring properties, has been brought to the attention of the city and state and municipal politicians. These properties have a history of complaints against them. We’ll have more information for you as the story develops.

Saturday – A man was found shot in Mayfair early Saturday morning on the 6300-block of Frankford Avenue. According to reports and accounts from neighbors, the man was shot multiple times in a home on the 3100-block of Levick Street. He was taken to Aria Health-Torresdale after being found on the Avenue. continue reading »