Hawthorne Hall (Photo from grayareaphilly.org)

Down every street, and around every corner, we see Philadelphia’s history chronicled in the old brick roads, the abandoned trolley tracks, and every lot overrun by foliage.

Most of all, we see the city’s history in the timeworn foundations of its older buildings. Be it the imposing Provident Mutual Life Insurance building or the grandiose Divine Lorraine Hotel, Philadelphia’s antiquity is forever sealed in their unique brickwork and beguiling design.

But how we preserve the architecture of that history has become uninspired, if not non-existent. Instead, Philly’s historic buildings are bulldozed to make way for shopping centers and luxurious townhouses. Or they’re left abandoned—nothing more than waning icons relegated to the pronoun of “I wonder what that used to be.”

That’s where GRAY AREA comes in. Supported by the Pew Center for Arts & Heritage, GRAY AREA is an experimental project launched by the University of the Arts and DesignPhiladelphia of the Center for Architecture that looks at “historic preservation in the modern city.” Currently in its third phase, GRAY AREA aims to engage both design and development experts and the public at large in envisaging creative ways to maintain and repurpose the city’s older buildings so they’re moments of revitalization in their communities.

As part of its third phase, known as GRAY AREA 3, a multi-disciplinary cohort of experts and community partners spent most of last year studying two historic buildings: Hawthorne Hall (3849 Lancaster Avenue) in Powelton Village/Mantua, and the Max Levy building (212-220 Roberts Avenue) in Germantown. Armed with a series of questions raised during GRAY AREA’s first two phases—a panel discussion and a facilitated conversation, respectively—the team researched the buildings’ history and their cultural significance in an effort to cultivate ideas for “eventual interpretation, reuse and design.”

This Wed, May 28, the GRAY AREA 3 team will gather at the Catalyst for Change Church (3727 Baring Street) to share their findings on Hawthorne Hall with the West Philly community. The event, which begins at 6 p.m., will serve as the third phase’s final community meeting in which they will test a preservation toolkit developed for “encouraging meaningful dialogue, making unexpected and new connections, and generating ideas,” GRAY AREA Project Director Elise Vider told West Philly Local.
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In an effort to keep the West Philly community up-to-date on happenings in the area, West Philly Local followed up on some projects we have followed over the last year. Here’s what we found so far:

First, for the most important update, Taco Angeleno is open for business! The outdoor taco joint, located at 5019 Baltimore Avenue, officially opened on Thursday, May 8 after months of delays and red tape. The grand opening party is this Friday (May 23), from 5 – 9 p.m. If Taco Angeleno’s Facebook page is any indication, it seems business is so far going well for owner Vanessa Jerolmack—even selling out of food her first weekend open. To satisfy those taco cravings, stop by Taco Angeleno from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. Thursday through Saturday.

In other local food related news, the guys from Pitruco Pizza, the popular wood fired pizza truck often seen on the Drexel campus, who are also serving their signature fare as Enjay’s Pizza at Smokey Joe’s on 40th St, recently started a delivery service out to 50th Street for a $2 charge. “A real nice service for the neighborhood,” writes West Philly Local reader and Pitruco/Enjay’s fan Louis Tannen.

Gush Gallery co-founders Sarah Thielke and Stephanie Slate (Photo courtesy of Thielke and Slate).

This summer, Taco Angeleno will have a new neighbor, Gush Gallery. The art gallery space, which West Philly Local profiled in January, will open Friday, Aug 1 at 5015 Baltimore Avenue, which is currently home to a local barber shop (owners Sarah Thielke and Stephanie Slate get the keys to the space on July 1). On opening day, which is also a First Friday event, the duo will premiere their first group exhibit, “Embark,” which will feature local artists. There’s a chance they may open a week earlier than the exhibit’s launch date, but don’t hold them to it.

In real estate news, it seems construction of the Sedgley Apartments (pictured right) will finally be finished by next week and available to rent in June, Noah Ostroff, principal at 400 S. 45th Street, LLC., told West Philly Local. This is different than what he told us in September; when asked about the six month difference, Ostroff said there weren’t any delays, but “construction took longer than expected.”  Continue Reading

West Philly Local readers are reporting that a porch collapsed this afternoon at around 2 p.m. at 4314-4316 Pine St. The fire department was on the scene. Neighbors say that the property has been neglected for a number of years.

“No one was home when this happened, thank goodness,” one neighbor wrote. (Photo by Deirdre Woods).

Photo from woodlandsphila.org

Last month, when West Philly Local shared details about The Woodlands’ community survey, many of our readers took to the comments section to air grievances about off-leash dogs running around the site. The general consensus is that off-leash dogs are dangerous to visitors, as well as other animals on the site.

In response, Erica Maust, The Woodlands’ program & communications coordinator, reached out both in the comment section and directly to West Philly Local to remind the community of The Woodlands’ strict no off-leash dogs policy, as well as promote its Dog Walker membership. Maust confirmed that off-leash dogs as a major concern for the grounds, and that concern was reflected in “an overwhelming number of [survey] responses from neighbors and community members.”

According to Maust, off-leash dogs are “never permitted, or welcome, at The Woodlands,” both by city law and management policy, no exceptions. All dogs passing through its gates must be leashed, and if they are not, Maust said, Woodlands staff will ask the owner to leash their dog. If they’re a repeat offender, they’re asked to leave the grounds.

“No one should feel unsafe or uncomfortable when visiting the grave of a loved one, enjoying an afternoon walk, or teaching their children to ride a bike,” she told West Philly Local. “Not everyone likes or feels comfortable around dogs, and we want all of our visitors to feel as though The Woodlands is a safe place to visit.”

But, she noted, The Woodlands employs a small staff on the 54-acre site, which makes fully enforcing its policy difficult. So The Woodlands also rely on members visiting the grounds to help implement or make other visitors aware of its leash policy when a staff member may not be present, Maust said.

In an effort to raise awareness about the policy and ways members could help, Maust said The Woodlands’ created a Dog Walker membership, good for one person and their dog(s). The benefits of this membership level, which costs $75, include invites to members-only events and Doggy “Yappy Hours”, discounted ticket pricing, occasional exclusive after-dark access to the grounds, and one “I LOVE THE WOOFLANDS” dog leash.

“The dog-walking community is an especially important membership group to us, because so many people who live nearby rely on access to The Woodlands to walk their dogs daily. We recognize this, and we love that we can allow neighbors to walk their dogs at The Woodlands,” she said. “We also hope that these neighbors and their pets recognize that The Woodlands is an incredible resource that’s right in their backyard, and will use the space respectfully.”

The Dog Walker membership also includes access to the Dog of the Month program, in which visitors can submit a photo of their dog on the grounds via social media using the hashtag #wooflands. The social media campaign “has helped us raise awareness for our leash policy for all of our visitors and our followers on social media, and we hope it will lead to fewer problems and incidents with off-leash dogs at The Woodlands,” Maust said.

–Annamarya Scaccia

Curio Theatre’s 2013-2014 season is coming to an end, with only three shows of Oedipussy remaining. Oedipussy is Curio’s North American premiere of British theater troupe Spymonkey’s hilarious adaptation of the well known Greek myth of Oedipus. Tickets are still available for this Thursday, Friday and Saturday’s shows, so grab them while they last.

The show received some great reviews.

“I can say in all honesty, it was one of the most enjoyable evenings I’’ve had in the theatre…,” writes Ellen Wilson Dilkes for Stage Magazine.

Aetna Gallagher in Oedipussy.

Oedipussy is a physical comedy. “Leaping, climbing, hurling themselves around the simple set while downing painkillers, they barrel through the tragedy in a hilarious and weirdly touching meditation on life, love, theater, and aging gracelessly,” writes The Inky‘s Wendy Rosenfield praising the actors’ physical stage fitness (three of the four cast members are nearing 50).

And here are six reasons why you should not miss this show, according to Curio’s Managing Director Gay Carducci:

1) Not one bad review
2) Standing ovations nearly every night
3) Neighbor reviews posted on telephone poles
4) Nobody is really naked
5) You will laugh…there is no doubt
6) And it’s the last show of the season!

Performances take place in Curio’s home base, the Calvary Center for Culture and Community at 4740 Baltimore Ave. at 8 p.m. Tickets ($20-$25) are available here. Parental discretion is advised.

Paul Kuhn (left) and Harry Slack in Oedipussy. Photos courtesy of Curio Theatre.

The 26-year-old Kingsessing man accused of shooting and killing another West Philadelphia resident outside of the Copabanana bar and restaurant near 40th and Spruce last month will be held for trial following a preliminary hearing on Tuesday.

Shooting victim Timothy Cary

Corey Gaynor faces a count of first-degree murder in the shooting death of 31-year-old Timothy Cary of the 5100 block of Locust Street at about 1:30 a.m. on April 14.

Police say Gaynor, who is from near 52nd and Whitby, fired as many as 10 shots from point-blank range at Cary after an argument inside the Copabanana reportedly spilled outside onto the sidewalk.

Penn police apprehended Gaynor near 40th and Pine a few minutes after the shooting. Police found a handgun nearby. Several witnesses at the scene identified Gaynor as the shooter, according to police.

Gaynor is scheduled to be arraigned on June 10 at 11 a.m. in Courtroom 1104 of the Criminal Justice Center.