Police are looking for three men between 18 and 20 years old who they say have been involved in at least four robberies in West Philly over the last two weeks. The first robbery took place on Feb. 8 near 38th and Baring in Mantua, according to police, when the suspects robbed a pizza delivery man at gunpoint. An undisclosed amount of cash was taken in that robbery. Police say the same three men used a gun to rob a 27-year-old woman near her apartment entrance at 44th and Pine on Feb. 12. They reportedly took the woman’s phone and purse.

The third robbery took place in Powelton Village, near 31st and Hamilton on Sunday, when the men robbed a 20-year-old woman, also at gunpoint, near her apartment, according to police.

The latest robbery happened on Monday, Feb. 16, when the suspects responded to a Craigslist ad by a person who was selling a paintball gun. The seller brought the paintball gun to a location near 41st and Spring Garden where he was robbed at gunpoint by the same three men, according to police. They reportedly took the man’s laptop and cell phone.  Continue Reading

The three-story Locust Medical Center building at 52nd and Locust, which is covered with a thick layer of ice after an early Monday morning fire that was put out in freezing temperatures, is going to be demolished, according to reports. The authorities announced on Tuesday that the building may collapse at any moment, and the streets around the building have been closed all week. It is not yet know when the demolition will start.

The Fire Marshal is expected to release information on the cause of the fire soon.

The University City Arts League (UCAL) is preparing for two big weekends as it will be opening two concurrent exhibitions. “Art in the Open,” a group show of eight multidisciplinary artists will open at noon this Friday at the UCAL Gallery (4226 Spruce St), and New York artist Aaron Asis will present “Ci-Lines,” a pop-up satellite installation across the street at the historic St. Andrew’s Collegiate Chapel (42nd and Spruce, entrance at 42nd and Locust) starting next Saturday, Feb. 28. This will be a rare opportunity to get inside St. Andrew’s.

“Art in the Open” is part of an annual event series. Over the course of four days in May 2014, thirty artists created art inspired by the landscape along Philadelphia’s Schuylkill River. Materials used to create their works along the River Walk include sound, spray paint, string and electrical tape. The UCAL gallery will host eight of the artists participating in the program: Noemi Armstrong, Aaron Asis, Lewis Colburn, Heejin Jang, Tom Judd, Eun Hye Kang, Tyler Kline, and Mat Tomezsko. The featured artists hail from as far as South Korea and as near as Philadelphia. This event will be the second of three parts of the “Art in the Open” series. The opening reception will take place this Friday (Feb. 20) from 6-8 p.m. The exhibit will be available for public viewing from February 20 until March 20, from noon to 6 p.m.  Continue Reading

People gathered to take pictures throughout the day on Tuesday of the building burned in a fire early Monday morning at 52nd and Locust. Fearing that the building may collapse, police closed nearby streets.

Streets around the burned out building at 52nd and Locust have been closed out of fear that the building, which is sheathed in a thick layer of ice, may collapse.

Police have blocked 52nd Street between Spruce and Walnut, Locust Street near the building and some smaller side streets. The building has become somewhat of a local attraction with people filing by on the closed streets to take photos of structure and television news crews posting nearby on Tuesday.

The School Reform Commission is set to make decisions on 39 charter school applications during a special meeting scheduled for 3:30 p.m. on Wednesday.

This is the final step in an application process that included public testimony and comment. This is the first time in seven years that the School District of Philadelphia has considered adding charter schools to go along with the 86 brick-and-mortar charters already operating.

The proposed schools would add some 15,000 charter school seats and cost the district hundreds of millions of dollars.

Charter school opponents like the Philadelphia Coalition Advocating for Public Schools argue that the district should invest money in existing public schools.

The Philadelphia School Partnerships, a pro-charter philanthropic group that includes Drexel University president John Fry on its board, offered $25 million to the district earlier this month to help offset the costs of adding new charters and another $10 million to improve existing district schools.

Republican legislators are also pushing for new charters in the city, The Philadelphia Inquirer is reporting.

A list of the proposed schools along with detailed applications are available on the district website. A dozen schools are proposed around West Philadelphia. Charter application evaluation reports are available here.

Wednesday’s meeting will likely be live streamed here.

– Mike Lyons

As snow continues falling in Philadelphia, the School District of Philadelphia has announced that all public schools and prekindergarten programs will be closed today due to inclement weather. All Archdiocesan schools are also closed. Please go here for more information on other school closings.

SEPTA announced the following service changes in the area due to cold weather and icy road conditions.

Regional Rail: All SEPTA Regional Rail lines may experience delays of up to 20 minutes due to weather conditions.

Customized Community Transportation (CCT): Service is operating with delays of up to 60 minutes due to weather conditions. Customers should call the CCT Control Center at 215-580-7720 to cancel trips if they don’t plan to ride or to inquire about pending “Same Day” trips.

Market-Frankford Line: All trains are making all station stops due to extremely cold weather. There is no A/B express service for passenger convenience.