Corey Harris (publicity photo).

After the summer break and some uncertainty regarding the Fall 2014 season, Crossroads Music is resuming its program. So far the company has announced performances by two musicians, which will take place at The Rotunda (40th and Walnut) while the Calvary Church building, its usual performance space, is undergoing maintenance.

This Sunday (Nov. 16), Corey Harris, a blues guitarist, vocalist, songwriter, and band leader, will give two performances. The concert begins at 7:30 p.m. (tickets are $10-$30 and can be purchased here) and there will also be a free program for children and their caregivers starting at 6 p.m.

On Sunday, Nov. 23, Honduran musician Aurelio will bring Garifuna music sounds to The Rotunda. This performance also begins at 7:30 p.m. and tickets are available here.

More performances will be announced soon, according to the Crossroads Music website, so check it regularly for updates.

Saturday park cleanup map.

It’s that time of year again when you get to love on your local park a little. Calls for volunteers have gone out for the “Love Your Park Fall Service Day” on Saturday, Nov. 15, when neighbors get together in their favorite green space and help each other spruce it up. Tools are usually provided, but it wouldn’t hurt to bring a rake and some gloves if you have them.

At Cedar Park (49th and Cedar) they need help planting trees, bulbs and ground cover. They are also raking leaves and doing general cleanup to get the park ready for winter. Work will go on at the park from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. and volunteers are asked to email tatemch (at) aol.com to let an organizer know you’re coming.

Lifelong park volunteer Doris Gwaltney, who died in January 2014, will be honored in a celebration at Carroll Park (58th St. and Girard Ave). Doris started the Carroll Park Neighbors Advisory Council, one of the first groups to partner with nonprofit organizations and city government to build community through revitalization of urban parks. Several speakers will get start at noon and the cleanup efforts at Carroll Park start at 11 a.m.  Continue Reading

Friday is finally here and despite chilly temperatures hitting our area a lot of cool and energizing stuff will be happening tonight on Lancaster Avenue, between 35th and 43rd Streets, as part of the monthly 2nd Fridays on Lancaster Avenue. Tonight’s program will include an art show opening, film screenings, live music and open mic, an orchestral disco party, coffee tasting, shopping, and more! Check out the flier below and also visit our Events Calendar for more information about tonight’s events. There is also a Facebook page for Lancaster Avenue – West Philadelphia, with tons of useful info.

Independence Charter School is considering opening a school in West Philadelphia.

Officials from the school, which currently has one location at 1600 Lombard, are trying to gauge interest in the school from the local community, a key part of a new charter school application. If approved, the school would likely be located in the 19139 or 19143 zip codes, according to the letter, which was posted on neighborhood e-mail lists.

The 19139 zip code covers an area west of 45th Street to Cobbs Creek and north of Spruce Street to Westminster. 19143 runs south from Spruce to the river and west from 45th Street to roughly 60th Street.

New charter school applications are due at the School Reform Commission by Saturday. Public hearings on the applications are expected by next month. The SRC then has up to 75 days to approve or reject a charter application.

The district currently has 86 charter schools that enroll some 67,000 students. This is the first time since 2007 that the SRC has considered new applications for charter schools, thanks to a provision in the $2-per-pack cigarette tax. There could be as many as 50 applications, according to reports.

Penn Alexander School (Photo West Philly Local).

In other school news, the School District of Philadelphia has published the procedures for the year’s kindergarten lottery at Penn Alexander School for the 2015-2016 school year. Applications will be accepted between Jan. 20 and Feb. 27. The lottery will be conducted and letters will be sent to parents during the week of March 9.

Here are some guidelines:

• Two proofs of residency within the Penn Alexander catchment are required.

• Head Start and Early Intervention applications are also due within the same time frame.

• From the District’s website: “Parents are strongly encouraged to participate in the School Selection Process beginning October 17, 2014 and ending 5:00 PM on December 12, 2014. The School Selection online application can be reached by going to schoolselect.philasd.org.”

• Admission decision will only be communicated in writing. No phone calls.

More information and application materials can be found on the Office of Student Enrollment and Placement website.

– Mike Lyons

A reader and Cedar Park resident, Gwen, sent us a letter wondering why there are more abandoned dogs in her area. She’s particularly referring to the 4900 block of Cedar Avenue where a few dogs have been found lately wandering about. Gwen and her neighbor found two large dogs (pictured) there on Monday. Here’s what she writes:

“I spent [Monday] afternoon trying to locate the owners of two enormous pitbulls with another West Philly resident. When I posted about the incident on Facebook, two different friends responded with stories of their own regarding discovering abandoned dogs at the same corner. Very disheartening, dangerous and cruel to the poor dogs, and dangerous for residents, their children, and their dogs. Who is abandoning these dogs? They were friendly, but seemed truly lost/abandoned, with no leashes or tags, and they were walking in the road. I can’t stop thinking about them.”

Unfortunately, these dogs’ owner was not found, but hopefully they will find a new, better home soon. Gwen says that after a couple of hours of knocking on doors, checking in with the Baltimore Pet Shoppe, and borrowing rope from the block captain, the person who first found them took them to the ACCT Philly shelter. “They will be ready for fostering and adoption as of this evening,” Gwen writes.

A recent crime update distributed by the University City District is a reason for concern. After several calm months, UCD is reporting a “substantial spike” in robberies and residential burglaries in the area last month. Overall, 47 serious crimes were committed in the UCD service area in October, according to the report (see map below). Arrests related to 10 of these crimes were made.

There were 11 armed and 12 unarmed robberies and 23 residential burglaries in October. Most of the burglaries took place in Spruce Hill (between Spruce St and Baltimore Ave). Arrests were made in relation to four of these burglaries. It’s worth mentioning that the previous worst month in terms of residential burglaries this year was March when over 30 burglary incidents were reported.

In addition to serious crimes, UCD also reports a large number of thefts from vehicles last month, which may be tied to several large events being held in the area.

Since days are getting shorter and most of robberies happen at night, please stay alert when walking or running after dark.

Serious Crimes in October, 2014 (courtesy of UCD).