Fishtown Neighbors Association

Please join the FNA for our May General Membership meeting, Thursday May 17th at 7 PM. Meetings are held at the Fishtown Rec Center, 1202 E. Montgomery Ave (entrance across from the basketball courts). Drinks & chatting starts at 630 PM.

FNA will be joined by the Kensington Community Food Co-op & the Compost Co-op. KCFC has some excited news about a new employee and potential location within 19125. Come learn about what the Compost Coop does and how you can be a part of feeding the big biodigester at the NKCDC Garden Center.

We will also have updates from all of our committees, more info about Meet the Neighbors coming up in June and a representative from the 26th to address any community safety concerns.

If you have not paid your 2012 dues yet, you can renew your membership with $5 at the door. All are welcome, see you there!

The Penn Treaty Museum is hosting a celebration to recognize the listing of Penn Treaty Park on the Registrar of Philadelphia Historic Places.

Saturday, May 12, 2012   Noon-1 PM
Penn Treaty Park  -Delaware and Columbia Ave.

Music -Kensington Creative and Performing Arts High School-Drum Line

Presentations:
New Kensington CDC
Preservation Alliance of Greater Philadelphia
Philadelphia Parks & Recreation
Barbara Morehead, Friends of Penn Treaty Park

The collection of the Penn Treaty Museum will be open to the public 1-3 PM  immediately after the ceremony.

Wednesday, May 9th, 6:00 pm
Youth United For Change, 1910 N Front St (just north of Berks station)

There will be a community zoning meeting next week concerning the proposed development at 1942 N Front Street (bank buildings at Front and Norris). The applicant is the Women’s Community Revitalization Project (WCRP). They propose to demolish the existing bank buildings and construct a total of 25 new residential units with a community center and a 10-car parking lot. The proposal is for 12 two-family buildings, plus a community center with a residential unit above. All buildings are to be three stories (35 feet tall) in height. The community center and parking lot are proposed to be located on Hope Street.

This meeting is hosting by Norris Square Civic Association, with residents of East Kensington and Fishtown invited to attend. This project straddles the border of all three civics.

The Philly Tree People welcome you to join their Pruning Club. Perfect if you are interested in learning proper pruning techniques while getting to know other neighbors interested in helping to beautify the neighborhood and the city. The focus is on clearance pruning, which allows safe passage to both street traffic and sidewalk traffic.

Volunteers will consist of beginners, seasoned  amateurs, and   certified professionals. Everyone is welcome and no experience is necessary. Please bring a friend if you  know someone who would be interested. Tools will be available for volunteers to use as well as instruction on  how to prune. Please bring eye protection,  gloves, and any sharp tree  pruning tools you have to pruning club events. At each pruning club event a free tree care tool will be raffled off to volunteers who attend the entire session.

Thursday, May 24, 2012 6-7:30PM @ Jasper and Somerset 19134
Saturday, June 23, 2012 10-12 @ Salmon and Cumberland 19125
Wednesday, July 11, 2012 6-8PM @ York and Amber 19125
Monday, August 6, 2012 6-8PM @ Belgrade and Venango 19134
Saturday, September 15, 2012 10AM-12PM @ Emerald and Dauphin 19125

About Philly Tree People Club:

Outings: The PTP Pruning Club meets a minimum of three  times a year and at least one time in  Spring, Summer, and Fall. We will meet additionally as needed.

Training: We’ll provide training on how to prune the trees in the neighborhood as well as  instruction on other tree  related work that can be done by volunteers. One or more certified arborists will be available to lead. For the most part, training will be provided on the days of the outings but may also be arranged for other times. We may have guest speakers or experts visit the neighborhood to give presentations and training on tree care   topics.

Click through to download the Sustainable 19125 Green Blocks Grant application! A list of example projects is also available for guidance. Hurry, the application period closes May 23rd, 2012 at midnight.

The Green Blocks Grant offers financial support to blocks in 19125 that would like to complete a project to make their block a greener, cleaner, more beautiful place to live by implementing a block-wide project that promotes energy conservation, renewable energy sources, sustainable stormwater management, recycling and upcycling, cleaning and beautification, trees and gardening, or biking and walking.

It is the goal of the SUSTAINABLE 19125 GREEN BLOCKS GRANT to assist neighbors in 19125 in improving the community and sustainability of their blocks. Rather than simply pay for sustainable features to be installed on the block, the grant aims to have residents on the block collaborate to complete the project, using the funding to purchase supplies and/or training for the project.

Neighborhood-wide projects that are not block-specific may also be considered.

In April, FNA was delighted to host Diana Ownes from the Bicycle Coalition, Aaron Ritz, City Active Transportation Director, and Charles Carmalt, City Pedestrian & Bicycle Coordinator at our general membership meeting.

FNA was lucky to get a glance at the Mayor’s Office of Transportation and Utilities proposed bicycling plan for Fishtown, links below.

The blue lines represent ‘proposed bicycle facilities’, which could mean either a true bicycle lane (seperate from traffic by a solid line) or a sharrow (a ‘share’ ‘arrow’ symbolized by two carat like arrows with a bicycle behind them, pictured), indicating that the street is bicycle friendly and that motorists should share the road.

The City is looking for your feedback on this plan! Please contact Charles at charles.carmalt@phila.gov with your thoughts and ideas. Please note: The plan for Frankford Avenue is sharrows ONLY.

Fishtown Proposed Bicycle Plan

Riverwards Bicycle Plan

Get emailing!

7:00 pm: 1235-47 Crease Street
A proposal for 7 attached 3-story single-family homes with interior parking.

This meetings will be held at the Fishtown Rec Center, 1202 E. Montgomery Ave.  All residents of Fishtown are eligible to vote.  Please bring proof of residence or business ownership in the  form of a driver’s license or a photo ID and a lease, utility bill or recent piece of mail addressed to your home or business.

Philadelphia City Council and the Veterans Resource Council presents

“R E I N V E S T I NG I N YOU R POT EN T I A L” – A resource fair focusing on health/wellness, housing, employment, education, and Benefits.

Monday May 21, 2012 from 10:00 A.M.-1:00 P.M at

The Inquirer Building
400 North Broad Street
Philadelphia, PA 19130

All veterans and veteran families are invited to attend.
For more information or to RSVP, call 215-686-3256.

Veterans Resource Fair_flyer2012

May 1 is Tamanend Day, a celebration of the Lenni Lenape Chief who signed a treaty of friendship with William Penn at what is now Penn Treaty Park.

Tamanend was considered the patron saint of America by the colonists prior to American Independence. In 1777, the Continental Congress, meeting in Philadelphia, set aside May 1 as a day to honor the chief, and celebrations always included the ringing of bells.

Everyone is encouraged to bring a bell to the 7 pm celebration in Old City. The gathering will take place at the Tamanend statute at the corner of Front and Market streets. The event is sponsored by The Franklin Fountain, Old City Civic Association, The Penn Treaty Museum, Arch Street Friends (Quaker) Meeting, and Shane Confectionery. Complimentary confections will follow the bell ringing.

The RiverWards Crime Watch invites you to a continuation of their NightOut demonstrations on Friday April 27th from 6:30-8:00pm at Hetzells Field (Columbia and Livingston Streets).  This will be a peaceful gathering with the intention of neighbors meeting neighbors and continuing a tradition of safety and peace in our neighborhood.

More information at http://rwcw.org/

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