"One resident blamed a lot of the problems we are facing on Councilman Mariano’s absence from his office. He felt that we should have more than just a staff fielding phone calls for the District; that we should have someone acting in a proactive way on behalf of the District and its problems."



Until there is a new councilperson elected to the 7th district, I'm curious why no one contacts the Council-at-Large reps for issues and complaints. I'm not exactly sure what the "At-Large" councilpeople are supposed to do, but they all come knocking for our votes at election time.
Their votes in council affect all of us. But if you call them for a problem, they just refer you back to the district councilperson.
Most At-Large councilpeople couldn't find their way to Northwood - or Mayfair, or Bustleton, etc. with a map.
Wouldn't it be nice to have an At-Large person stand up and say, "Ok, I'll take on the 7th district and get to know the area and the issues. After all, it's my job to represent these people."

[quote=cyainthehood Until there is a new councilperson elected to the 7th district, I'm curious why no one contacts the Council-at-Large reps for issues and complaints. I'm not exactly sure what the "At-Large" councilpeople are supposed to do, but they all come knocking for our votes at election time.
Their votes in council affect all of us. But if you call them for a problem, they just refer you back to the district councilperson. (QUOTE=cyainthehood)

[B]The last Council-At-Large that actually did his job was David Cohen. You have Jack Kelly and Frank Rizzo Jr. and Council-At-Large just doesn't want to step on the toes of the distircts councilperson (indicted or not). It would mean stepping on the toes of their other cronies, Council President and the Ward Leaders, and on and on. Marge Tartaglione is/was the ward leader for much of this area and that's how Rieger got in and that's how a lot of local politicos get in. What Marge says, pretty much goes. It's just old time Philly street politics and these wimpy At Large council people will not step on the toes of someone elses territory. Now, Frank Rizzo Jr. will be happy to come and tell you about his Mom's gravy. And Jack Kelly will be happy to have one of his old time buddies slap you on the back at Tir na Nog in Center City and possibly buy you a Guiness, but other than a smile and a wink they ain't bothering with Frankford or any controversial problems. Too Hot a Button, until like you said, Election Time. So, keep that in mind folks![/b]

. Now, Frank Rizzo Jr. will be happy to come and tell you about his Mom's gravy. And Jack Kelly will be happy to have one of his old time buddies slap you on the back at Tir na Nog in Center City and possibly buy you a Guiness, but other than a smile and a wink they ain't bothering with Frankford or any controversial problems. Too Hot a Button, until like you said, Election Time. So, keep that in mind folks![/quote]

You named only the 2 republican At-Large councilpeople. There are 5 Democrat At-Large people too, ya know?
The only one I can think of off-hand is Jim Kenney. Always liked him and he sends staff members to most community meetings.
Now, can anyone else tell me the names of the other 4 democratic At-Large councilpeople??

And what exactly is their job description?
I don't want to hear that they won't address a problem in a certain neighborhood because it would be viewed as stepping on a district councilperson's toes. That's ridiculous.
The 7th District should be good and mad that effective May 1, they will no longer have a councilperson in office.

Like I said, wouldn't it be nice if an At-Large councilperson stood up and said, "Hey, I'll take that on. After all, it's my job to represent these people".
Ha. Unlikely.

Page A6/Northeast News Gleaner Wednesday, April 26, 2006

Northwood, Frankford Residents
Spar Over Quality of Life
BY LAUREN FRITSKY
Staff Writer

The first words spoken at the
April meeting of the Northwood
Civic Association set a
tumultuous tone for the evening.

"I don't want Northwood to
look like Frankford," said
President Joe Menkevich.

The statement sent two
people out the door and other
attendees into a frenzied dialogue
about quality of life issues in
both communities.

The first complaint was lack
of involvement in the civic,
which Menkevich said has only
45 paid members. Due to a
problem sending out the civic's
newsletter, last month's meeting
had only a dozen attendees. The
turnout for last Tuesday night's
meeting numbered around 75.

"I think our property values
are higher, I think people live
here for a reason," Menkevich
said. "We should have this place
packed like this every month."

According to residents, the
skimpy membership may be
linked to a belief that city
leaders do little to help with
problems. Civic associations typically
get city council involved or send
correspondence to appropriate
city departments regarding
issues like crime, zoning and
lack of services. Residents of
Northwood, which is split
between 5th District
Councilman Darrell Clarke and
7th District Councilman Rick
Mariano, have griped about
council neglect for months.

"We have no representation
at all here," said resident Pat
Howell. "The Northwood Civic
Association should write [City
Council President] Anna Verna
and ask [Mariano] to step
down."

Over the weekend, Mariano
announced he would resign from
Council May 1, a month before
his June 1 sentencing. He faces
six to 10 years in federal prison
for corruption.

Residents said poor council
leadership has led to a pile up of
quality of life problems and
crimes like burglaries, drug
deals and after school fights.

"My kid was jumped by 20
kids in December and nothing
was done," said Tara Lynn.
Other residents reported
incidents outside of Edmunds
Henry R School, 1197 Haworth
St., and Frankford High School,
5000 Oxford Ave.

Recording Secretary
Kathleen Fitzpatrick offered
information about the Safe
Corridors Program, which
allows neighbors and parents to
monitor children during school
arrival and dismissal.

"The city will equip neigh-
bors just to do a few minutes
outside their front doors during
school hours," she said. "They
equip us in any way, shape or
form you need it."

Parents complained that
many of them work during
school hours. Others didn't think
the program would help.

"Where are all the police
officers?" one parent asked.

As for other criminal activity,
Frankford resident Bobby
Dempster agreed with
Menkevich that the area is
attracting more troublemakers.
"It will trickle up here,"
Dempster said. "If no one tries
to help these people out or the
houses that become vacant, it
will get bad."

Dempster disagreed, however,
with Menkevich's claim that
Frankford is causing the
problems.

"You shouldn't even be up
here making ignorant
statements like that," he told the
president.

Sgt. Scott Drissel of the 15th
District Police said the depart-
ment attempts to respond to all
calls. Problems arise, he said,
during shift changes at mid-
night.

"[There were] 51 calls that
didn't get answered between 4
p.m. and 12 a.m. last Saturday
night," he said.

Drissel reminded concerned
parents that kids who break cur-
few - which is 10:30 p.m. Monday
through Thursday and 12 a.m.
Friday and Saturday - cannot be
arrested. He vowed to put recurring
trouble spots on roll call. He
also asked residents to use
greater discretion when calling
911.

"The problem is people are
calling for nonsense and the
people who need service are not
getting helped," he said.

'Drissel said he would make
a list of the biggest issues in the
area or get them from
Menkevich.

"Give a list to Joe and I'll take
care of it," he said.

State Rep. John Taylor (R-
177) also attended the civic
meeting and fielded some
resident questions. He made it
clear that he wasn't there as a
politician.

"I wasn't on the agenda, but
I'm here as a resident," he said.

The next meeting of the
Northwood Civic Association
will take place on Tuesday, May
16 at 7 pm at St. James Lutheran
Church, Castor Avenue and
Pratt Street.

P.S.

Lauren Fritsky - Leaving the Gleaner

To my contacts and colleagues:


I am writing to inform you that as of May 10, I will no longer be employed at the Northeast News Gleaner.


I have accepted a position as a staff writer at the Northeast Times, effective May 15.


I hope to keep in touch with all of you as I make the transition to the Northeast's other weekly newspaper. I anticipate the change to be a positive one and look forward to contacting you for future stories at the Times.


I have enjoyed forging relationships with all of you and have appreciated your time and efforts over the past nine months.

I will contact you with my new email address and phone number when I obtain them.


After the 10th, you may contact Managing Editor Dave Foster at dfoster@newsgleaner.com and Staff Writer Ed J. Vassallo at evassallo@newsgleaner.com for future stories.


Sincerely,


Lauren Fritsky

April 27, 2006 edition

Northwood leader has grave concerns
By Tom Waring
Times Staff Writer

Northwood Civic Association president Joe Menkevich has a knack for getting a rise out of people.

Menkevich is proud of his neighborhood and does not want it to go downhill. In his opening remarks at last week’s monthly meeting, he cited a neighboring community as a particular eyesore.

"We’re part of Frankford," he said, "but we don’t have to look at Frankford."

At that, two women in the front row burst to their feet and stormed out of the meeting.

"Real class act," one of the women said before leaving.

Discussion on the current state of Northwood dominated the meeting.
Menkevich said the neighborhood remains nice, with high property values.
He likes the fact that most of the community is covered by a deed
restriction that prohibits businesses.

Still, he read a two-page letter from a former resident who said he moved, in part, because of the declining Oxford Avenue business corridor.

The civic leader is also upset at the state of Greenwood Cemetery. He wants the place cleaned up and opposes an effort to add a crematory.
Menkevich read from an old newspaper story that described how City Councilman Rick Mariano and state Sen. Tina Tartaglione worked to prevent a crematory from opening in East Frankford.

No fan of Mariano — who will be sentenced on June 1 on a federal corruption conviction — Menkevich thinks the councilman should have made sure the cemetery was cleaned. It’s now Councilman Darrell Clarke’s district.

The neighborhood activist, who contends Mariano bullied ex-Councilman Dan McElhatton in his first election and civic association secretary Kathleen Fitzpatrick in his last election, said the area needs strong representation in Council, like the days when Harry Jannotti visited the civic group before going to jail on an extortion conviction.

"Him and Jannotti are going to have something in common," he said, referring to Mariano’s upcoming sentencing.

Menkevich does not like some of the nonprofit groups in Frankford. He blames them for supporting a prisoner re-entry program that could bring ex-cons to Northwood. The neighborhood already has a couple of drug-rehabilitation houses, and he fears that halfway houses might open.

"We’re fertile ground," he said, adding that he’d like to build the group’s legal fund to fight future battles.

Menkevich might seek financial help for his group and the Historical Society of Frankford from state Rep. John Taylor, a Northwood resident who has a sometimes-testy relationship with the civic leader.

Taylor, who sits on the board of the Frankford Community Development Corp., defended the FCDC and Frankford Group Ministry against accusations by Menkevich that their boards consist of "a bunch of yes men" who don’t represent Northwood and aren’t accountable for their spending.

"These organizations aren’t rolling in dough," Taylor said.

Neighbors had their own complaints, citing boarded-up houses, illegal parking, unruly behavior by students at H.R. Edmunds School and Frankford High School and kids hanging out late at night.

"This neighborhood is going to hell," one woman said.

Fitzpatrick, the aforementioned civic-group secretary, suggested that neighbors form a "safe corridors" patrol at dismissal.

Another woman passed out business cards encouraging parents to enroll their children in a cyber charter school.

Tony Payton Jr., the leading candidate to replace retiring state Rep. Bill Rieger, promised to help neighbors create a sense of community.

"I want to be proactive," he said.

Sgt. Scott Drissel, of the 15th Police District, said parents need to control their kids better. He noted that curfew is 10:30 p.m., Sundays through Thursdays, and midnight on Fridays and Saturdays.

"It’s not an arrestable offense," he said. "We can’t even take them home anymore."

Armed robbery is an arrestable offense, and Drissel said police apprehended someone responsible for 14 holdups of local pizza and Chinese-food deliverymen.

Drissel told the crowd to call the 15th district at 215-686-3150 (51) to report non-emergency crimes, but added that the district does not dispatch officers like 911. The phone number to report outdoor drug sales is 215-686-3152.

In other news from the April 18 meeting:

• Taylor, chairman of the House Urban Affairs Committee, said the Legislature is trying to make sure the city does not enjoy a revenue windfall after it moves to a system that assesses properties by their full value. Right now, the Board of Revision of Taxes uses a complicated formula.

"We don’t want them to use that as an excuse to whack us," Taylor said.
The lawmaker told the crowd he is getting hate mail from businesses unhappy with his legislation that would require profitable corporations with 10,000 or more employees to provide health insurance for workers. Individuals who do not have health coverage through their employer often need state-sponsored assistance.

• Northwood Civic Association will meet on May 16 at 7 p.m. at St. James Lutheran Church, at Castor Avenue and Pratt Street. ••
Reporter Tom Waring can be reached at 215-354-3034 or twaring@phillynews.com

The Northeast Times . . . May 14, 2003 Edition

As usual, 7th district has lots of drama

By Tom Waring
Times Staff Writer

There’s never a dull moment in the 7th Councilmanic District.
Councilman Harry P. Jannotti ruled the district until he went to prison in 1983 after being convicted in the Abscam sting. His three successors were each bounced from office by the voters after a single term.

Today, Councilman Rick Mariano represents the district. The colorful Democrat is seeking his third term and is running in Tuesday’s primary.
Though there’s less than a week before the primary, it remains unclear whether Mariano will be unopposed or face an opponent.

Kathleen Fitzpatrick is fighting a court battle to stay on the ballot. The dispute centers around whether she gathered 750 valid signatures to win a spot on the ballot.

In addition, there’s a third possible candidate. Attorney Fran Hanssens was tossed from the ballot in a residency dispute. He says he lives on Griscom Street in Frankford, but Mariano contends he resides on E. Godfrey Avenue in Northwood, which is in the 5th Councilmanic District. Hanssens is appealing in court but has endorsed Fitzpatrick in case he can’t run himself.

Such late uncertainty is nothing new to the 7th district. Jannotti tried to reclaim his seat in 1987, but his lever was locked the day before the Democratic primary when a judge ruled that his past conviction barred him from running for office.

The district map is probably the weirdest-looking of the 10 in the city. It stretches from Girard Avenue to Grant Avenue.

Assuming there is a contest, both candidates are confident of victory.

“I will beat her so bad that she will move up to the Poconos,” Mariano said.

Fitzpatrick thinks she’ll be a double winner. She’ll prevail in court to stay in the race and unseat Mariano on Tuesday.

“His days are numbered,” she said. “I’m going to win on May 20th.”

Mariano, 47, of Juniata Park, is an electrician who defeated incumbent Dan McElhatton in the 1995 primary, then cruised to victory in the general election. He won a second term in 1999 by crushing two opponents in the primary and beating his Republican opponent in the fall.

Fitzpatrick, 52, of Northwood, worked for 30 years in a computer-related job for the court system. She retired earlier this year to enter the race, and changed her party affiliation from Republican to win the financial support of the anti-Mariano forces in the Democratic Party.

Mariano, chairman of Council’s Committee on Licenses and Inspections, said he deserves re-election to keep continuity in the district and because of his close relationship with Mayor John Street.

The incumbent points to the fact that Street just approved bringing the Community Life Improvement Program to the district.

Additionally, Mariano notes that he secured the money to build a Northeast Older Adult Center and gymnasium at the Rhawnhurst Recreation Center and bring an indoor swimming pool to the Whitehall housing project. Then there’s legislation like the one that would provide wage tax cuts for Philadelphians if real estate tax revenues grow more than 2 percent in any year.

“I’ve grown in this job, and I’ll continue to grow,” Mariano said.

Fitzpatrick believes that eight years is enough for Mariano. Her campaign theme is “restoring the pride” to the 7th district. She has stressed issues such as schools, crime, drugs, blight and wage and property taxes.

The challenger has also focused on her opponent’s controversial statements over the years. The incumbent has threatened to throw Councilman Angel Ortiz out a fourth-floor City Hall window and “hurt” NBC-10 anchorman Larry Mendte after a story showing Mariano staffers making deliveries for his ex-wife’s cookie business.

Mariano likened Councilman David Cohen to a vampire who eats young children. He also allegedly called residents of Kensington’s 31st Ward “trailer-park Irish trash.”

“That’s not the kind of behavior District 7 wants to be known for,” Fitzpatrick said. “It’s going to come back and haunt him.”

Mariano said Councilman Frank DiCicco was lying when he accused him of making an anti-Irish slur. He said he was joking when he made the reference to Cohen, not knowing it was an anti-Semitic statement. He regrets threatening Mendte.

The incumbent said he has a strong office with chief of staff Walt DeTreux, legislative aide Hugh Allen, zoning czar Joe Zaleski, attorney Pat Dugan and others. He’s able to work with strong-willed Democratic ward leaders like Carlos Matos in West Kensington and John Sabatina in Rhawnhurst.

If he is re-elected to a third term, Mariano would continue his dialogue with Philadelphia Housing Authority Executive Director Carl Greene to remove bad tenants from the Section 8 housing program.

The councilman, who says he sees Section 8 as a code word for racism, joined welfare activist Cheri Honkala recently to oppose any time limit on Section 8 vouchers.

Mariano also wants to strengthen the Frankford business district and help lower auto insurance rates.

“Car insurance is way out of control,” he said.

Mariano wants to see some changes in Council. Though all five incumbent at-large Democrats are running for re-election, Mariano has endorsed challengers Mike Driscoll and Juan Ramos and said nice things about Joe Grace.

He said Council, under President Anna Verna, suffers from a “dire lack of leadership.”

The incumbent sees the district and the city changing.
“We’re changing it for the better,” he said.

Mariano said he’s not sure if he could back Fitzpatrick in the general election.

Fitzpatrick said there’s no way she’d support Mariano, adding that she’d probably back Verna for the Council presidency.

She’s unsure whether she would vote for Street or Republican Sam Katz in the Nov. 4 general election.

Fitzpatrick is calling for aggressive tax cuts to bring jobs to the city.
“The sooner the better,” she said.

The challenger also wants to increase police resources in the district, arguing that people will move if they feel unsafe.

“Another family gone, another taxpayer gone,” she said. Fitzpatrick said Mariano is too close to Street, and she said she’s independent enough to work with either Street or Katz.

The challenger said Mariano doesn’t deserve another term because of his controversial remarks.

“It’s gonna stop on May 20th,” she said. ••

Reporter Tom Waring can be reached at 215-354-3034 or twaring@phillynews.com
http://www.northeasttimes.com/index.html

[quote=NCA-President]April 27, 2006 edition

Northwood leader has grave concerns
By Tom Waring
Times Staff Writer

Northwood Civic Association president Joe Menkevich has a knack for getting a rise out of people.
[quote=Dragonfly] Good, somebody's got to!
Menkevich is proud of his neighborhood and does not want it to go downhill. In his opening remarks at last week’s monthly meeting, he cited a neighboring community as a particular eyesore.
"We’re part of Frankford," he said, "but we don’t have to look at Frankford."
At that, two women in the front row burst to their feet and stormed out of the meeting.
"Real class act," one of the women said before leaving.
[quote=Dragonfly] Oh well. [quote=Dragonfly]
Discussion on the current state of Northwood dominated the meeting.
Menkevich said the neighborhood remains nice, with high property values. He likes the fact that most of the community is covered by a deed restriction that prohibits businesses.
Still, he read a two-page letter from a former resident who said he moved, in part, because of the declining Oxford Avenue business corridor.
[QUOTE = Dragonfly] It would have been very important to hear from The Frankford Business Association, because in order to have a thriving residential area, a community needs a thriving business corridor to meet the consumer needs in the area. Unfortunately, the business association is being steered by non profits. Makes sense?[quote=Dragonfly]
The neighborhood activist, who contends Mariano bullied ex-Councilman Dan McElhatton in his first election and civic association secretary Kathleen Fitzpatrick in his last election, said the area needs strong representation in Council, like the days when Harry Jannotti visited the civic group before going to jail on an extortion conviction.
Menkevich does not like some of the nonprofit groups in Frankford. He blames them for supporting a prisoner re-entry program that could bring
[quote=Dragonfly] Not to mention the past few years of squandered funding and poorly experienced leaders at FCDC that lost sight of how to continue with progress. Incompetence.[quote=Dragonfly]
The neighborhood already has a couple of drug-rehabilitation houses, and he fears that halfway houses might open.
"We’re fertile ground," he said, adding that he’d like to build the group’s legal fund to fight future battles.
Menkevich might seek financial help for his group and the Historical Society of Frankford
[quote=Dragonfly] I understand the importance of the Historical element of Frankford, and certaintly the financial assistance for the Civic Group, which can do much for community.
I'm not quite clear how the Historical Society, however, plans to make a huge impact on community or business development?
And, don't get me wrong, I'm a big fan of the Historical Society and preservation of it's archives, etc. It's just seeing where this fits into the economic development of the community that might be cloudy.
Possibly via preservation of Historical buildings? Having certain sections deemed Historical in order to prevent demolition and gain funds for restoration? That would be a very good impact in terms of a draw for the area.
The importance of the plans of the Historical Society need to be brought to the forefront so that others will understand the significance the organization has and the impact it could possibly make on the community.
It's certaintly a draw, but at some of the meetings (in the past) it appeared that they were doing well from a couple of auctioned items and grants, as well as a few various fundraisers such as the event at The Knowleton Mansion. In fact one of the board members a while back that is involved with organizing the events, etc. mentioned how well they were doing and that they were attempting to obtain grants for capital improvements of the building.
Would these funds for the Historical Society be utilized in some way for community improvement, education, or development in some form via a historical aspect or are these funds specifically for capital improvements of the Historical Society building in and of itself? [quote=Dragonfly]
from state Rep. John Taylor, a Northwood resident who has a sometimes-testy relationship with the civic leader.
Taylor, who sits on the board of the Frankford Community Development Corp., defended the FCDC and Frankford Group Ministry against accusations by Menkevich that their boards consist of "a bunch of yes men" who don’t represent Northwood and aren’t accountable for their spending.
[quote=Dragonfly] Good for you Joe! As a board member of FCDC, did Mr. Taylor ever address the inadequacy of the leadership in FCDC and what the board was going to do about it? [quote=Dragonfly]
"This neighborhood is going to hell," one woman said.[quote]

Is this last post dated 2003 a hint that Kathleen Fitzpatrick might be running again for the 7th council seat?
Her suggestion (printed in the NE Times) to the neighbors to join the Safe Corridors Program and patrol their blocks when the kids get out of school is a bit silly. These high school kids can be dangerous and retalitory. Is she suggesting neighbors confront these kids? Or just call the cops?
Why should neighbors who don't have kids going to these schools babysit them? If she's going to run for council, she needs to come up with better suggestions for these types of problems than that. IMO

Just want to keep this in the continuity of the NCA thread. I am posting below, the hyperlink to the above captioned thread.
http://www.phillyblog.com/philly/showthread.php?t=18151

MAY MEETING

The general meeting of the NCA will be held at St. James Lutheran Church located at Castor Ave. and Pratt St., Tuesday, May 16, 2006 at 7:00 PM. All Philadelphia residents are welcome to attend.


Pastor Paul Andell of this Church will open this month's meeting with a moment of prayer for Officer Gary Skerski.

He made the ultimate sacrifice at Castor & Arrott. Officer Skerski laid down his life while saving the lives of our residents.

AGENDA

NORTHWOOD AS A CONSERVATION DISTRICT

Today the citizens of Philadelphia now have a unique opportunity to have some control over their own neighborhoods.

While a large part of Northwood is “protected” by the Burk Deed Restriction, that alone, is not enough.

We need to be proactive in using any and all tools available to protect the integrity and fabric of the neighborhood, as well as the property values and quality of life.

The City has a new tool to combat such erosion called “Conservation Districts."

The May meeting will be the first step in making Northwood, or the largest part of it, a Conservation District.

This will affect real estate value and place further restrictions on just how Northwood residents are permitted to "improve" their property. If you want to know more please attend the meeting as this will move forward with or without your input.

People that were either sent a formal invitation or contacted for the May meeting:

DARRELL L. CLARKE, Philadelphia City Council representing the 5th District.

Anna C. Verna, President of City Council, or her proxy to represent the vacant Office of 7th District Council.

Michael Thompson from the City Planning Commission.

Commissioner: Robert D. Solvibile, Sr. Department of Licenses and Inspections.

Preservation Alliance representatives

To join the NCA, bring $10 for dues or send a check, in care of our treasurer, mail to:
Northwood Civic Association
1031 Granite St., Phila. Pa. 19124

Join our Mailing List by Sending A Request To: http://www.northwoodcivic.com/



Vital Information * Free Speech * Important Links * Highly Recommend:
http://www.mynorthwood.net/

(MyNorthwood's Web-site and discussion board is Independent of the NCA)