Cedar Park Neighbors, the Garden Court Community Association, and the Walnut Hill Community Association are co-sponsoring a property tax workshop to help residents navigate through the various programs designed to help people with their property taxes. Several of these programs are rapidly approaching deadlines. The workshop will be on Wednesday, Sept. 11, at the Calvary Center for Culture and Community (48th and Baltimore; enter through the 48th St. entrance), beginning at 7 p.m. Apart from the workshop organizers, Monty Wilson, an attorney from Community Legal Services, and representatives from the Councilwoman Jannie Blackwell’s office will be present at the event.

If you’re looking for answers to any of the questions below, you’re encouraged to attend Wednesday’s workshop:

• Have you filed for a homestead exemption yet? It’s worth $400/year, and it’s due on Sept. 13.
• Do you have questions about how to appeal your AVI assessment to the Bureau of Revision of Taxes (BRT)? Appeals are due on Oct. 7.
• Do you have questions about the senior tax freeze? Applications are due on Oct. 15.
• Want to know more about the property tax and rent rebate program? Curious about how to enter a payment plan on past due taxes to avoid a tax foreclosure sale?

For more information, please visit the event’s Facebook page.

The Mill Creek Farm, the pretty terrific urban farming project near 49th and Brown, is hosting a mixer/fundraiser on Thursday called … wait for it … “weed dating”!

This thing kicks off at 6:30 p.m. with a weed identification lesson, then you’ll “jump right into weeding and a few rounds of getting to know the person across your row,” according to the invitation. All of that weeding will be followed by music and refreshments. 

Now there is a charge for this thing – it is a fundraiser after all – and there is a limited number of spots. Admission is $12 and you can order tickets here. It is also BYOM (Bring Your Own Mug) and is restricted to those 21 and over. No farming experience necessary, but dress to get dirty.

This is from the event Q & A:

Q: What does my ticket price support?

A: Your ticket supports Mill Creek Farm’s educational and food security programs for the fall of 2013. Mill Creek Farm is dedicated to improving access to healthy food, buidling a healthy community and environment, and promoting a just and sustainable food system – and we couldn’t do it without you!

Q: I am gay, can I participate? or I just want to meet like minded people, can I participate?

A: Everyone is welcome. While we can’t guarantee that there will be a match for every attendee, we do hope that we will meet some great friends in the process.

There’s no doubt that there are tons of talented folks in West Philly. Curio Theatre would like to hear from you.

On Friday, Sept. 13, auditions will be held for Curio’s Talent Show, which is part of the annual Curio Theatre Benefit Night. The Talent Show, dubbed “The Best of the West (Philly) Talent Smackdown!,” will have everything: judges, voting, and the proverbial “Fat Lady” to sing you off the stage if your act is losing steam. Contestants will be competing for a grand prize of $200, a goody bag, and they all get free entrance to the Gala event.

So don’t be shy and show your neighbors what you’re good at. To apply, call 215-525-1350, or email: company@curiotheatre.org to set up an audition time.

The Talent Show and Benefit will be held on Friday, Sept. 27, in St.Francis De Sales School banquet room located at 917 S. 47th St. More information can be found at www.curiotheatre.org. If you want to buy tickets ($50), click here.

Photo from Baltimore Avenue Dollar Stroll 2012/West Philly Local.

This year’s only Baltimore Avenue Dollar Stroll – after the first Stroll scheduled in June was rained out – will be Thursday, Sept. 12. This popular annual event draws huge crowds from West Philly and other parts of the city, who come to enjoy $1 deals, from food, sweets and beer to arts & crafts items to music and yoga class vouchers to theater tickets.

University City District (UCD), which organizes the event, says that established neighborhood businesses, like Milk & Honey, Dock Street Brewery and Firehouse Bikes, will participate in the Stroll along with newcomers that include Little Baby’s Ice Cream and The Green Tambourine. See the complete list of participating businesses here.

Radio station WXPN favorite The Fleeting Ends will perform live at the 46th Street Triangle, along with other artists and street performers. Free face painting and balloon artists will be on hand to entertain the little neighbors. Food trucks, including Jimmies Cupcake Co., Sunflower Truck Stop, The Tot Cart, and Lil Dan’s Food Truck ,will also be selling $1 items along the avenue.

Finally, stop by Clark Park (43rd & Baltimore) at 6:30 p.m. to take part in The Mp3 Experiment, a public, flash mob kind of event created by Improv Everywhere, where participants carry out coordinated instructions delivered to their headphones (instructions are available here).

As usual, the Dollar Stroll will take place from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. along Baltimore Avenue between 43rd and 51st Streets. As we always recommend, make sure to get there early if you don’t want to miss out on best deals from over 30 local businesses.

Photo by Annamarya Scaccia / West Philly Local

Last night, Curio Theatre opened its 2013-2014 season with its free production of Washington Irving’s classic 19th century short story, “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow,” at the “Bowl” in Clark Park on 43rd Street and Chester Avenue. A full crowd of mostly families hunkered down on the grass as they listened to the story of Ichabod Crane (played by company member Josh Hitchens, who adapted “Sleepy Hollow” for stage) and his fateful encounter with the headless horseman.

During the 45-minute show, Hitchens and his fellow actors, Rachel Gluck as Crane’s love interest Katrina Van Tassel and Chris Braak as his rival Brom Van Brunt, moved around the simplistic set with quiet intensity as several torches and a small crackling campfire illuminated the scene. Sound effects, provided by Eli Halpern (who played The Musician), filled the atmosphere as Crane’s story unfolded.

Make sure to catch “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” at Clark Park before it closes on September 8. The remaining shows are on Saturday and Sunday, starting at 7:30 p.m.

West Philly is the place to be this weekend (and all week for that matter). Actually it kicks off today. Here’s a little guide we compiled to help you figure out what to do. If you know of more events that your friends and neighbors should know about please post them as a comment below.

Thursday, Sept 5

• Free events and art installations at Clark Park’s Farmers’ Market (43rd & Baltimore), 3-7 p.m. For more information click here.

Friday, Sept 6

• The 2013 Fringe Festival kicks off at various locations around the city. For more information on the festival events in West Philly, check our story here.
• Free performance by Man Man at The Porch at 30th Street Station (30th & Market), noon. Presented by WXPN, this very special outdoor “Free At Noon” concert will feature Philadelphia-based Man Man, who come celebrating the September 10th release of On Oni Pond, a compelling mash-up of Fear Of Music-era Talking Heads, classic soul, psychedelia, hip-hop, and 50’s rock and roll.
• Curio Theatre presents The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, Clark Park “B” (43rd & Chester, in the bowl), 7:30 p.m., Free. Curio brings the unforgettable legend of Ichabod Crane and the Headless Horseman to Clark Park for three nights, beginning Friday. There will be live music, cool sound effects and a real campfire. Bring a lawn chair/blanket/food/wine and prepare to be scared!
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