You may have noticed new street signs popping up outside of businesses in and around Cedar Park in the past few months. So here’s the scoop. The signs are part of a project, “Humble Beginnings,” sponsored by the National Street Service, according to the project coordinator and West Philly resident Brian Cirksey.

Three signs have been posted along Baltimore Ave from 47th to 50th so far, by Vientiane Cafe, Talking Heads hair salon, and Satellite Cafe. These businesses were able to tell their unique stories of how they began (humble beginnings), via in-person visits, phone calls, and emails, and this information was translated into these historical marker signs.  Continue Reading

The Woodlands has started an online petition asking for community support for a crosswalk from the 40th Street trolley portal to the cemetery gates across Woodland Avenue.

The upcoming opening of the Trolley Portal Gardens has renewed interest in figuring out a way to make crossing Woodland Avenue safer for pedestrians. The Woodlands estimates that some 45,000 people visited the grounds last year, including about 4,000 in one day during the Go West! Craft Fest (see tweet and video below), many coming on foot across Woodland Avenue.  Continue Reading

Street improvement work has been happening on 40th street since last month with temporary street closures and parking restrictions during work hours. According to a new announcement by the Penn Public Safety Division, 40th street between Walnut and Locust will be closed to all vehicles between the hours of 7 p.m. and 5 a.m., on Tuesdays through Fridays, beginning Tuesday, Aug. 28. These traffic restrictions will last approximately five weeks until October 2, according to the announcement.

Police will be on scene to assist with traffic detours during these weeks.

Police are looking for three male suspects in connection with a burglary at Aksum restaurant at 4630 Baltimore Ave. that happened in the early morning hours on Sunday, Aug. 12. One suspect entered the restaurant after breaking the front window with an object. He took cash and several electronic devices from the restaurant and passed them on to the other men who were waiting outside, according to police.

Police released surveillance video of the burglary where the suspects can be seen outside and inside the restaurant during the burglary (see below).  Continue Reading

Centennial Village, the mixed-use rental project with 51 units of affordable housing and 7,227 square feet of commercial space, officially opened in West Parkside on Thursday with a grand opening ceremony. Community members, City and State officials, project funders, and Centennial Village new residents were in attendance.

The project has transformed 52nd Street between Columbia and Parkside Avenues and nearby areas by rejuvenating 44 formerly vacant lots and buildings. It includes a 30-unit apartment building, a mixed-use building with six residential units and two commercial spaces, and the renovation and new construction of seven single-family homes and one duplex.  Continue Reading

Police are now offering a $20,000 reward for information leading to an arrest of the driver involved in a fatal hit-and-run last month in West Philadelphia. Kenneth Whiters, 61, was struck on Lancaster Avenue near Aspen Street on July 22 at 3:14 a.m. by a vehicle, believed to be a Mazda 3 hatchback, that was traveling at a high speed west on Lancaster Avenue from Fairmount Street. The car fled the scene after the accident.

Police released surveillance video of the accident last month (see below).  Continue Reading