Little Green School House teachers (from left to right) Tyler Colvard, Dionne Wright-Chambers, and Rowan Machalow.

Rowan Machalow and her partner Tyler Colvard, both teachers, are opening a new preschool this fall, called The Little Green School House, at their home located near 45th and Walnut (219 S. Melville St). Apart from teaching music, art, yoga, science, reading readiness, math, and drama, the school will have a special emphasis on living green – kids will also be learning things like “composting in a worm bin, planting and growing food they can eat, preparing and eating local veggies, cleaning and beautifying our block, visiting a local chicken coop, sorting materials for recycling, and using recycled materials to create art.”

The preschool will have full-day and half-day options and will only have 12 spots available, since Rowan and Tyler would like to “keep it pretty small.” Besides them, there will be two other qualified teachers in the program. Kids from almost 2 years old through 3rd grade (for after school programs) are welcome to apply. You can check out the space and meet the teachers at one of the Open Houses – on Tuesday, July 30 and Friday, Aug 16, from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. For more information, visit www.littlegreenschoolhousepa.com, email info@littlegreenschoolhousepa.com or call 215-222-0208.

Photo by Annamarya Scaccia / West Philly Local.

After we posted our food and booze updates in West Philly earlier this month, readers started asking about what’s happening with the shuttered Mexicali Cafe at 110 S. 40th Street, and a couple of readers heard through the grapevine that the former Mexican joint is turning into a Korean restaurant.

Well, we did a little digging and found out that the University City space is, in fact, under construction, and it seems another restaurant will take its place. According to Licenses and Inspections records, Mizu Sushi Inc., which is listed as the applicant, was issued a renovation permit for the existing restaurant on March 15. The work described for the permit includes “interior renovation to an existing restaurant”–meaning interior upgrades, ceiling work, and construction of an ADA-compliant bathroom. A separate electrical permit was issued to Mizu on April 10.

West Philly Local stopped by the site multiple times, but was unable to connect with the owner. We did drop in Mizu, which is collecting packages for 110 S. 40th St according to a handwritten sign on the door, and the workers we spoke with were tight-lipped, declining to give out the owner’s contact info per his request. When asked about whether the space will open as a Korean restaurant, the worker said he heard the rumor but couldn’t confirm if it is true. We’ll post an update as soon as we have more info.

-Annamarya Scaccia

Dear Readers,

Thanks to your efforts we raised $744 to help the family of Ja’Briel O’Connor, who died tragically on Saturday. Ja’Briel’s funeral will be held Friday at The Church of Christian Compassion (6121 Cedar Ave.). The viewing is from 9-11 a.m. and the service will begin at 11 a.m.

Your contributions went to help offset funeral costs and other expenses – things like clothes and food for the services –  Ja’Briel’s mother, Aisha Watson, incurred. Ja’Briel also has three brothers and sisters who range in age from 9 to 14. The youngest in the family, Ja’Briel was a first grader at the Henry C. Lea School and often helped neighbors on Melville take their garbage out and weed their gardens.

We would also like to thank Katie and Yasser from Café Renata, who lent us a table in their shop as we collected dollars from people ranging in age from 5 to 75. Katie and Yasser also donated Café Renata’s the money from their sales during the period that we were there.

If you want to contribute but haven’t had a chance to yet, there may be additional collections from folks connected to the Lea school. We will let you know.

 – Mike Lyons

Prospero (Catharine K. Slusar) and daughter Miranda (Hannah Gold). Photo by Annamarya Scaccia / West Philly Local

Last night, Shakespeare in Clark Park (SCP) opened its eighth season with “The Tempest” at the “Bowl” on 43rd Street and Chester Avenue. The packed crowd laughed and reveled in the Bard’s majestic epic, which is directed by Swim Pony Performing Arts Artistic Director Adrienne Mackey and stars Catherine K. Slusar as protagonist (or antagonist, depending on your view) Prospero–a lead role typically cast with a male actor. And, without a doubt, Sean Hoots of local outfit Hoots & Hellmouth exceeded expectations with his ethereal and enchanted music.

Make sure to catch “The Tempest” at Clark Park before it closes on July 28. The remaining shows are on Thursday-Sunday, beginning at 7 p.m.

Photo by Mike Lyons/West Philly Local.

A drawing of the proposed building at 43rd and Baltimore. The five-story section in the foreground would include first-floor retail.

The developers of 4224 Baltimore Ave. – across from Clark Park – unveiled drawings during a public meeting last night of a modern, glassy residential building that would include a terraced section that peaks at 10 floors and includes upscale condos.

The design also includes a 5-story section on the corner of 43rd Street and Baltimore Avenue with first-floor commercial units that would wrap around the structure and, if built, could house a large, street-level restaurant with outdoor seating along 43rd Street. A large rooftop terrace on this section would overlook the park.

The “if built” part is important. The development firm that is proposing the project, U3 Ventures, is a liaison between the community and the property owners, Clarkmore Group LLC, have not seen the drawings. There is no guarantee that the ownership group, which paid $3.5 million for the property in 2008, will go for the plan.

Clarkmore currently has as conditional permit to build a four-story, 92-unit apartment building with six parking spaces. That building would unlikely include any retail space. U3 is hoping the group can be persuaded to build a larger building that could support retail and underground parking. A large majority of the approximately 40 community members attending last night’s meeting gave tacit approval to the plan, which includes 108 rental units – mostly one bedrooms – and 55 resident-owned condos (though that number could drop considerably if the condos are built larger). Continue Reading

63-year-old Robert Jean-Louis who suffers from dementia and who went missing on Tuesday morning, has been found, according to a neighbor who knows his family.

Mr. Jean-Louis was found by the police on Wednesday night at about 10:30 p.m. and taken to the hospital where he later was reunited with his family. Many thanks to everyone who shared the alert about him and who helped look for him.