The owner of 542 Levick St. wants to open an accounting business on the first floor of the residential property. Image/Google Maps

The house at 542 Levick St. in Lawncrest is three stories and zoned residential.

If owner Chandler Le gets his way, the Zoning Board of Adjustment will vote later this month to approve a variance allowing Le to operate his accountant business from the first floor of the home.  Currently vacant, the house would be converted to accommodate Le’s business on the first floor, while Le and his wife and children would live on the second and third floors.

Though Lawncrest Community Association members voted 26-11 last night to support Le’s plan, members had several questions about Le’s intentions and the future of the property.

Members approved the plan with three provisos: continue reading »

Philadelphia’s City Council members will be in Northeast Philadelphia tonight for a public hearing on the city’s budget.

The doors of St. William’s parish hall, 6234 Rising Sun Ave., will be open to the public, and residents are encouraged to give their public testimony.

“Please come and show your interest,” Councilwoman Marian Tasco, D-9th, encouraged attendees of the March Lawncrest Community Association meeting. Though held in Lawncrest, residents and business owners from all over the city are invited to the meeting – the only neighborhood budget hearing scheduled in the Northeast.

NEast Links: Bringing you additional Northeast news

A 4-year-old was rushed to the hospital Saturday night after shooting himself in the chest. Authorities say the boy found the gun under his mother’s pillow on the 6200-block of Cardiff Street [CBS3].

Police in the 2nd District are looking for the man who robbed a Burholme bank Thursday. The suspect fled the Citizens Bank at 7248 Rising Sun Ave. after presenting a threatening note to the teller [Philadelphia Police].

Sources within the Philadelphia Fire Department say the dismissal of Deputy Chief  Robert Wilkins is the result of ongoing racial tensions in the department. Initially let go for pleading guilty to – and failing to report to his superior  domestic assault charges, the Rhawnhurst resident is now said to be the scapegoat for Commission Lloyd Ayers’ necessity to prove he will discipline other black firefighters [Philadelphia magazine].

NEast Links: bringing you additional Northeast news

The Tacony CDC and Tacony Civic Association are inviting volunteers to participate in their Philly Spring Cleanup event April 14. Participants will meet at the Tacony Library to clean up Torresdale Avenue from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Volunteers should call (215)501-7799 or e-mail at alex AT taconycdc.org [Tacony CDC].

A Parkwood woman who faked cancer to avoid going to prison has been found out, and will go to jail. Leah Moock will spend five years in federal prison for the scam, during which time she started a relationship, had a child and got cosmetic surgery [Daily News]. continue reading »

Mayor Michael Nutter (hat) meets Heavy Hitta's boxing coach Lonnie Haile at the 2011 Philly Spring Cleanup on Rising Sun Avenue. Also pictured on left are clean-up organizers Kathy Wersinger of 9th District Councilwoman Marian Tasco's office and Matt Taubenberger of the Rising Sun Avenue Business Association. Photo/Ian Romano

The countdown is on for the fifth annual Philly Spring Cleanup, and residents can now register to volunteer for projects in their neighborhood.

“Thousands of volunteers, hundreds of projects and millions of pounds of trash and recycling have been collected over the last four years,” Mayor Michael Nutter said in his announcement yesterday in Kensington. “We’ve accomplished a lot, but I know we can do better this year.” 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 »

L to R: Jeanette Newman with son Jordan, St. William's fifth grade teacher Kathy Mcdonald, and Summer and Kenny Rivera at the annual Grove Cleanup in Lawncrest. Photo by Stephen Schultz

With Lawncrest’s Veterans Day ceremony scheduled for Friday morning, residents took to the Grove this past Saturday to beautify the area around the rec center and library.

The annual Grove Cleanup brought volunteers out on a bright, sunny day to rake leaves and pick up trash in the are off of Rising Sun Avenue. continue reading »

Northeast Lion Rich Wilson at the eyeglass drop off box located in Lions Park, Fox Chase

It sits adjacent to sidewalk on the Oxford Avenue side of Lions Park. Painted bright yellow with blue lettering, it’s the N.E. Lions Eyeglass drop-off with, three large Lions International insignias.

We recently helped out a reader who accidentally dropped her Blockbuster rental in the box on Rising Sun Avenue, wanted to know more about the boxes.

To learn more about them and the Lions Recycle for Sight Program, we talked to Richard Wilson, former president of the Northeast Lions. continue reading »

Essay contest winners and their parents celebrate with Mayor Michael Nutter and GNPCC President Al Taubenberger. Photo courtesy of Rising Sun Plaza.

Rising Sun Plaza honored 16 Northeast students last lost month in its annual My Mom’s/Dad’s the Greatest Essay Contest . Students ranging in age from 8 to 18 were chosen for their creativity and originality in essays acknowledging their parents’ dedication by supporting their belief that their mom or dad is the greatest.

continue reading »

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 »