The third annual Philly Photo Day is tomorrow (Oct. 26) and everyone in the city is invited to take a photograph. The photo can be of any subject, as long as it’s taken on October 26. Philadelphia Photo Arts Center will print all the pictures and hang them for exhibition in the Crane Arts Building in Kensington. In addition to the main exhibition, PPAC will place select Philly Photo Day pictures on city billboards, Septa buses and trains, creating a public exhibition of the work.

“At its core, Philly Photo Day is about increasing access to the arts for everyone in Philadelphia,” said Sarah Stolfa, Executive Director of the Philadelphia Photo Arts Center.

You can upload your photo from October 26 to October 30 on this page (you can only submit one picture).

This year, PPAC is reaching out to local community centers, providing cameras and artists who will teach photography basics and help participants select their best photos for this event. If you need instruction or a camera to participate, here’s where you can go to in West Philly:

Morning Sites, 9am – 12pm

Action AIDS
3901 Market Street

People’s Emergency Center
325 N. 39th Street

Ronald McDonald House
3925 Chestnut Street

West Philadelphia Senior Community Center
1016 41st Street

Afternoon Sites, 1-4pm

Mariposa Food Co-Op
4824 Baltimore Avenue

People’s Emergency Center
325 N. 39th Street

West Philadelphia Community Center
3512 Haverford Avenue

Reminder: Our 2012 Pumpkin Carving Contest is underway and we are looking forward to receiving snapshots of your jack-o-lanterns. Please email them to: contest@westphillylocal.com. The contest is open through October 29.

Here are more details:

The 2nd Annual Pumpkin Carving Contest runs from October 15 through October 29. All ages are welcome to participate. Prizes are supplied by these West Philly businesses: Curio Theatre (2 tickets), Dock Street Brewery (a gift card), Four Worlds Bakery (a gift card), Green Line Cafe (a gift card), Honest Tom’s Taco Shop, Lil’ Pop Shop, Locust Moon Comics (a copy of BATMAN: The Long Halloween), Mariposa Food Co-op (a goodie basket), Penn Museum (two general passes to the Museum + a MAYA 2012 tee + a copy of the latest issue of Expedition Magazine), Sabrina’s Cafe (a gift card), and VIX Emporium (a gift card + tote bag).

Here’s how it works:

Submit a snapshot of your pumpkin by email (contest@westphillylocal.com) that includes your name, address (West Philly residents only please), and age (if you are entering the Kids category). Entries from kids 12 and under will also be entered into the Kids category. Be sure to get a good photo that shows off your pumpkin’s best features.

Winners will be selected in the following categories:

Scariest
Funniest
Kids (12 and under)
Best Philly-Themed
Readers Choice (grand prize)

The entry deadline is 6 p.m. on Monday, October 29.

The winners will be announced on November 1. Voting for the Reader’s Choice will run between October 29 and October 31. Note: One entry per person. We’ll put all photos in a gallery.

Last spring, we wrote about door-to-door salesmen pressuring people into switching their energy providers. Here’s another, recent account of similar activity, this time by representatives of Commerce Energy, that left a neighbor, Sarah, upset and made her believe that it was a scam.

We should point out that Commerce Energy is a real company and a major player in electricity. The Inquirer includes them in a list of alternative suppliers here. But their sales tactics have angered many consumers. Sarah’s description of her encounter echoes the experience of many others.

“We have had two Commerce Energy representatives come to our door tonight saying that they wanted a copy of our PECO bill and wanted to sign us up to Commerce Energy whereby we can get lower rates. By way of protection do not sign up with them and do not hand over your PECO bill, as it is an absolute scam as they are basically trying to sign you up for a new energy company and lock you into a 5 year agreement… They are still walking around West Philly trying to sign up other people… They are also quite aggressive and harassing so just tell them to leave.”

Photo by Paul J. Roane.

The folks at 4611 Springfield Avenue are again hosting a Halloween party for neighbors of all ages, an annual tradition in the Squirrel Hill neighborhood. On Halloween night, from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m., make sure to visit the Haunted Garden for treats and tricks. As usual, the garden will feature a dozen spooky sets and treat stations, with thousands of candy bars, fruits, pretzel bags and bite-sized treats. And while waiting in line, enjoy The Philly Thrillers group performing the zombie dance from the “Thriller” video.

Haunted Garden wouldn’t be such a success without all the help from people in the neighborhood. This year, too, the event organizers are looking for volunteers to help decorate the place this Saturday and Sunday, from 1-4, and on Halloween, from 4:30-7:30 to act in costume and distribute treats. If you would like to help, you can contact one of the organizers, Elizabeth, by email: home.in.phila@juno.com.

A screen shot from the Philadelinquency map (see full map below).

Philadelphia has a lot of tax deadbeats. As West Philly-based journalist Patrick Kerkstra wrote, there is a “culture of non-payment” that has cost the city hundreds of millions of dollars in taxes. One brand of delinquent is the landlord who allows tax bills to pile up while still charging tenants rent. Christopher Sawyer has created a helpful way to identify them.

Sawyer, an “anti-blight activist” in Kensington, has produced a very useful tool over at his site, Philadelinquency, that has taken delinquent tax records and matched them with rental property licenses to produce a database of delinquent landlords. To make this information more helpful, he has plotted all of the delinquencies on a clickable Google map. When you click on a pin you get the Office of Property Assessment account number, contact information, Licenses and Inspections history and amount owed.

As you might have guessed, no section of the city has more delinquent landlords than West Philadelphia.

Across the city more than 4,500 properties have a delinquent balance of more than $100 and 1,178 property owners owe enough in back taxes to be brought to sheriff’s sale. The total amount owed is about $13.36 million.

We’ve embedded the Philadelinquency map below. The map is movable and clickable. To see West Philly properties grab it and drag it to the right, then click the + in the upper left to zoom in to a specific area.

Be sure to keep an eye on Sawyer’s site for more future info and data crunching.

View Larger Map

A national franchise is entering the local pizza game. Domino’s Pizza is scheduled to open its doors at the corner of 45th and Chestnut streets next Monday. The space was formerly occupied by the restaurant Demetris, which reopened last winter after being closed for remodeling, but closed again shortly after that.

Unlike many Domino’s restaurants that specialize in take-out and delivery, this location includes a half-dozen or so eat-in tables. This is the second Domino’s Pizza restaurant in West Philly. The other one operates in the Overbrook area (60th and Lancaster).