The Porch, the lively public space near 30th Street Station, reopened today after being closed for a few weeks for renovations and upgrades, which include new landscaping design and seating. Also, some cool new features were introduced and a more permanent food concept, The Rotisserie, in addition to gourmet food trucks that have been offering food, drinks and desserts at The Porch since its inception in 2011.

Plainclothes police officers arrested a 57-year-old male during a burglary on the 4000 block of Spruce Street on Tuesday. The buildings on this block are mainly used for off-campus student housing. The man was caught inside a three-story twin house shortly after 2 p.m. when he exited an apartment with a bag filled with stolen items, including a $1000 Mac Book laptop, according to police. A plainclothes police officer was injured during a struggle which ensued when he and another officer tried to detain the suspect. The injured officer was taken to the hospital and treated for a head injury and a broken hand.

Plainclothes police observed the suspect earlier that day when he was first sitting on the steps of one of the buildings and then was walking up and down the block, according to a police report. The officers matched the male’s appearance to an earlier crime alert in the area. When the man entered one of the buildings, the officers followed him and heard some banging noise coming from the second floor. When the officers went to investigate they noticed that the door of one of the apartments was damaged, and then they observed the suspect exiting the apartment with a bag in his hand. The suspect dropped the bag and ran a few feet down the hallway but then turned back and punched one of the officers, according to police. The suspect was arrested after a short struggle.

Police say that this man is also suspected in other burglaries in the area. On Tuesday, a police source said that burglaries were a concern right now.

Chili Szechuan is opening a new location at 4205 Chestnut St. (Photo West Philly Local)

The owners of popular Baltimore Avenue restaurant Chili Szechuan have announced that they will be opening a new location on the 4200 block of Chestnut Street within the next week or so.

We stopped at the restaurant for dinner over the weekend and got a chance to chat with the staff. “We found a bigger place and it’s close to campuses… the current location is doing well business-wise,” one of the restaurant workers said.

The new location is opening at 4205 Chestnut St, at the former Dana Mandi International Foods and Spices space. (Dana Mandi moved next door, to 4211 Chestnut St, last spring). This location is also next door to Kabobeesh restaurant. The new restaurant will have the same menu items as the current location but will feature some new items as well, according to Chili Szechuan owner Kangzhi Ma. Both locations will be open until the end of the calendar year, after which, the owners will make a decision whether to keep the Baltimore Ave location open or not.

Chili Szechuan’s original location at 4626 Baltimore Ave. (Archived photo)

The original Chili Szechuan location opened at 4626 Baltimore Ave in early 2013. We did a food review about the restaurant then and would like to report that it is still as delicious as we remember it to be.

By the way, during our latest visit to Chili Szechuan we stayed off the “Americanized menu” because we felt like there was something snarky about the title, so we went for the authentic stuff. The Dan Dan noodles were very flavorful and the flavor was robust. Next was the deep flash fried chili chicken, with a biting spice. (Be sure to keep the water and napkins coming). Another highlight was the Szechuan style chicken, simmered in sauce and cabbage. The portions were huge, so there were many leftovers.

– Rana Fayez

UPDATE (5/27/2015): Due to rain in the forecast for this Thursday, the show has been postponed until next Thursday, June 4. 

Tangle Movement Arts, a West Philly-based acrobatics company known to many by their Tiny Circus performances at Go West! Craft Fest at The Woodlands and other venues, is bringing an all-new, free and family-friendly show, Intersections, to Clark Park this Thursday on Thursday, June 4.

Intersections celebrates the broad communities that gather in the park and the dynamics of daily life. The acrobats will be disguised as normal visitors to the Clark Park Farmers Market, from vegetable shoppers to playground-visiting children to commuters on their way home. The show also celebrates the chance meetings that happen in our public spaces.

Tangle Movement Arts is a circus arts company with an interdisciplinary focus; its work integrates traditional circus like aerial acrobatics with dance, theater, and live music, with an emphasis on queer and female experiences. Tangle has been thrilling audiences with dynamic circus-theater since its inception in 2011.

Intersections premieres at the park near 43rd and Baltimore on Thursday, May 28 June 4 at 6 p.m. The show is part of the City of Philadelphia’s Performances in Public Spaces program, managed by the Office of Arts, Culture and the Creative Economy.

(Photos courtesy of Tangle Movement Arts)

Police have released some details on a few robberies that took place in the area last week.

Two teenagers were arrested for an attempted mid-day robbery on May 20 on the 4200 block of Pine Street. The incident happened at around 2 p.m. when the suspects, 16 and 18 years old, walked by a 25-year-old man, then stopped and attempted to rob him. The man resisted and the suspects ran off, according to police. They were caught a few blocks away. No injuries were reported.

A gunpoint robbery took place on May 22 at around 11 p.m. on the 4900 block of Spruce Street. Police say a young man ran from behind a 26-year-old woman, who was on her way home from work, and cut her off. He then pointed a small black gun with two barrels at her and demanded her bag. He also took the woman’s phone from her pants pocket. After robbing the woman the man and another male who was on a bike fled north on 49th Street, according to police. The woman wasn’t injured.

Also on May 22, a 19-year-old male was arrested at 52nd and Kingsessing after robbing a 22-year-old woman. The robbery took place shortly after 10 p.m. on the 4600 block of Chester Avenue when the suspect approached the woman and robbed her of her pocketbook which contained several items. The man fled the scene on a bike. Police recovered the victim’s phone.

There have also been several burglaries in the area in the last two weeks, and a police source says that burglaries “are definitely an issue right now.” We’re trying to get more information. See the map below (source: Crimereports.com) for the reports of robberies and burglaries from May 12 to May 26, 2015.

A good way to get down to what Memorial Day is really about is to take a quiet stroll through The Woodlands today. Over the weekend flags were placed at the dozens and dozens of soldiers’ gravestones, some of which date back to the Revolutionary War (Photo by West Philly Local).