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The Zoning Board of Adjustment (ZBA) is awaiting an opinion from Councilwoman Jannie Blackwell’s office before it decides whether to allow a city developer to convert the old Apple Storage building on 52nd Street near Hadfield Street to more than 100 loft apartments.

The proposed development has become a potential hotspot of gentrification along 52nd Street, although the feedback that the ZBA has received so far has been overwhelmingly positive.

The property investment firm Iron Stone, which has developed high-end apartments elsewhere in the city, proposes to convert the commercial building into 112 loft-style apartments. The plan also includes 2,000 square feet of commercial space on the ground floor and 92 parking spaces in the rear of the building. The building is currently designated as industrial and Iron Stone is seeking a residential zoning classification.

The community organization Cedar Park Neighbors has posted an online petition aimed at convincing Blackwell to support the project.

The project’s ZBA file contains more than 30 letters in support of the project from nearby homeowners and businesses.

Homeowner Cheshire Augusta, who lives two blocks from the project on 51st Street, wrote the ZBA:

“My family and I would be delighted to see growth at the west end of the 50th Street to 52nd Street section of the Baltimore Avenue corridor. So exciting!”

Renee McBride-Williams, an executive producer at the West Philadelphia community radio station WPEB 88.1, wrote that replacing the “dreary, unsafe, abandoned building” would “improve the quality of life in our community.”

Other letters of support came from community leaders, block captains and business owners.

The most vocal opponent of the project has been Shawn Kelly of the Community Achievement Association, who has argued that the building should retain its industrial designation and that businesses that could provide needed jobs in the neighborhood should be sought to fill it. He also voiced concern about the availability of affordable or Section 8 housing if the project goes through.

As a private investor that is not requesting government funds, Iron Stone is under no obligation to provide subsidized housing.

But positive feedback about the projects have far outweighed detractors.

Seth Budick, a block captain on the 1000 block of S. 50th Street, argued in a letter to the ZBA that the project “would inject new life onto that street, creating a livelier and safer environment for the entire neighborhood by putting people back on the street and eyes in the windows.”

This Thursday, Feb. 23, Drexel University’s Kal & Lucille Rudman Institute for Entertainment Industry Studies is hosting a special event celebrating the 25th anniversary of WHYY’s Radio Times, one of Philadelphia’s most longstanding talk radio programs. The event begins at 6:30 p.m. at Ruth Auditorium (125 Nesbitt Hall, 3215 Market Street) and is free and open to the public.

The institute welcomes Radio Times host and executive producer Marty Moss-Coane for a talk discussing how you put together two hours of compelling talk radio five days a week and about the highs and lows of the past twenty five years of the show. Over these years, Marty Moss-Coane has interviewed more than twenty thousand guests – everyone from Salman Rushdie to Bobbie Mcferrin to Jane Fonda and countless politicians, educators, celebrities and opinion leaders.

Radio Times is one of the region’s most respected local, FM interview and call-in programs. For her work Marty Moss-Coane has been recognized by the Society of Professional Journalists for Excellence in a Talk Show on radio; the Pennsylvania Associated Press Broadcasters Association for Excellence in Public Affairs; the American Women in Radio and Television for Excellence in focusing on the Women’s Movement; and by Philadelphia magazine for hosting the Best Radio Program in Philadelphia.

Radio Times airs weekday 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. on WHYY 90.9 FM.

We are passing along information about two events happening at Dock Street Brewery.

Local artists are welcome to participate in the West Philly T-Shirt Design Contest that is currently underway at the pub. The competition is running until March 17 and the winners will be announced on March 20. Any West Philly artist, illustrator or designer can enter and there are no entry fees. The design can be based around the pub, a specific beer or Dock Street beers in general. For more information, check out this page.

The Books Through Bars fundraiser will be held at the pub on Wednesday, Feb. 22, beginning at 8:30 p.m. This fundraiser will help get dictionaries for incarcerated people. The most fundamental tool for self-education and empowerment, the dictionary is the single most requested book by prisoners across the country.

$10 donation will get you a beer, a slice of pizza and a dictionary for BTB. Live music from Sour Mash and Cask & Co is starting at 9 p.m.

A neighbor is looking for her cat that went missing two days ago:

“Male Snow Shoe Siamese cat, light grey and white with a half mustache and bright blue eyes…. Goes by the name of Luchie. Kind of a big guy and missing some teeth, very food motivated. Friendly but can also be shy, likes to hide in boxes and small spaces and meows a lot, a very distinct meow. Reward if found. Please call 203 273 5300. Last seen between Warrington and Springfield on 50th St.”

Neighborhood Foods, West Philadelphia’s first urban farm-based CSA, is accepting members for the 2012 season.

Members of the Neighborhood Foods CSA will receive weekly shares of vegetables from West Philly gardens and fruit from farms in the greater Philadelphia area. The 22-week CSA runs from mid-May to October, and offers add-on options of locally-produced seasonal jam, local honey, and bread from Four Worlds Bakery.

All profits from this CSA are re-invested into the Haddington and Walnut Hill neighborhoods where the produce is grown, supporting urban employment and youth leadership development.

To become a member, fill out the application form here.

Pick up sites in West Philly are:

– Walnut Hill Community Farm at 46th & Market Streets, Friday afternoon
– Four Worlds Bakery at 47th & Woodland Streets, Friday evening or Saturday morning

The Neighborhood Foods CSA is a collaboration between West Philadelphia nonprofits Urban Tree Connection and Enterprise Center Community Development Corporation.

Named after the New York-based avant-garde film society started in 1947 and inspired by Maya Deren’s Greenwich Village exhibition of experimental films, Cinema 16 is a new series of film experiences based at the International House that “seeks to confirm the relevance of the historic avantgarde by pairing it with contemporary sound.” For its opening night event this Friday, Feb. 17 artist and curator Molly Surno has commissioned musicians as varied as the internationally recognized pop rock band Yeah Yeah Yeah’s to the locally Brooklyn favorite krautrock group FORMA to create original music that will accompany a series of historic short, experimental films to create a mixed media performance that “remove film from the conventional big screen theater.”

This edition of Cinema 16 at IHP will explore themes of perversity, flesh, and the female form. The films are:

Asparagus
dir. Suzan Pitt, US, 1979, 16mm, 18 mins, color

Kusama’s Self Obliteration
dir. Jud Yalkut, US, 1967, 16mm, 24 mins, color

Lusting Hours (excerpt)
dir. John and Lem Amero, US, 1967, 10 mins, b/w

8:00 p.m. International House Philadelphia (3701 Chestnut Street). $9 general admission, $7 students & seniors.  For more information or if you want to buy tickets online, go here.