News

Councilman plans hearings on Amtrak's Philadelphia bridges

By Paul Nussbaum

Inquirer Staff Writer
City Councilman Curtis Jones says he plans to hold hearings early next year on the state of Amtrak's deteriorating rail bridges in Philadelphia.

Jones, chairman of Council's committee on transportation and public utilities, said he would introduce today a resolution to authorize hearings.

The Inquirer reported in September that Amtrak inspection reports showed that nearly half of Amtrak's 302 bridges in the Philadelphia region have some elements rated "poor" or worse.

One of those is the massive, 108-year-old bridge over 52d Street in Jones' West Philadelphia district. Trees grow from the ramparts, water seeps through the stone walls, holes are visible in the rusting deck, piers are cracked, and beams are corroding.
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Click here for Press release

Click here for Resolution

Legacy of leadership

By: Naila Francis, The Intelligencer

After 21 years at the helm of the Please Touch Museum, Nancy Kolb is retiring — and leaving behind impressions that speak more to the fun-loving woman she is than the building that’s been her bailiwick.

Her legacy seems obvious.

It rises in majestic elegance from the Avenue of the Republic, a historic landmark that, once the centerpiece of the 1876 Centennial Exhibition, today spills giddy laughter and bright exclamations from its halls, with hundreds of children cavorting daily through a space that some initially deemed too stately for their eager hands and curious minds.
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Elizabethan Troop Frolics at Please Touch

(Philadelphia, PA) The frolicking will begin with the Town Crier exclaiming a proclamation which announces its purpose: to honor the career of Nancy Kolb. The Nobles will then retire to Meeting Room West to present the Please Touch Museum with the First Annual Nancy Kolb Award. On October 3, 2009 at 10:30am, the board members of the Business Association of West Parkside will be arriving by horse-drawn carriage to the front steps of the Please Touch Museum in Fairmount Park.
Click here for full press release.

Google Alert: Business Association of West Parkside

Philly.com Mobile Edition
"For one side to achieve, the other has to achieve," said Marjorie Ogilvie, president of the Business Association of West Parkside. ...

City Planning/Zoning

BAWP supports the creation of the zoning code commission. For more information go to Zoning Code Commission at www.zoningmatters.com

Be sure to get your copy of Stanley Glenn’s book, “Don't Let Anyone Take Your Joy Away: An inside look at Negro League baseball and its legacy.” The book is available in paperback and hardcover on Amazon.com.

We also have available limited edition baseballs autographed by the former five Philadelphia Stars. The balls cost $50.

ParksideWest

The Business Association of West Parkside publishes an informative newsletter for anyone interested in the successes, changes and challenges facing this area of Philadelphia.
Click here to view the most recent copy of the newsletter, Winter 2008-2009.

Past newsletters:
Spring 2007
Spring 2007 Insert
Winter 2006
Fall 2006
Spring 2006

In the media:

The West Parkside area continues to attract attention from business, government and media. Here’s what’s been said in the news:

Jun 5, 2008 ... Neighbors rejoice as new shopping center opens in West Philadelphia
LOCAL RESIDENTS say it has been decades since West Parkside had a supermarket to call its own.

"I have been here as a business person for 20 years and there has been no shopping center and no grocery store," said Marjorie Ogilvie, president of the Business Association of West Parkside.
Read More

Mon, 07 Jul 2008 ... $45M sought for Centennial District at Fairmount Park
Miller Parker , a representative of the Business Association of West Parkside, said the Centennial District revitalization would be an economic boost to the ...
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"The future of education is growing in Parkside"
Microsoft partners with district to create high-tech high (Philadelphia Daily News, August 3, 2005)
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Parkside shopping center set to get under way in June (Philadelphia Business Journal, March 17, 2006)
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