Buca, you have the wrong spot in mind. The former Zonk Arts place is on 5th Street. This is about a place on 7th & Bainbridge.

__________________
Yours aye,
The MacNapier

there is supposed to be a coffeehouse being built into the old zonk arts gallery at 5th and bainbridge, although my impressions of the fellow who's doing it are not too positive. I'll stick with redhook, thanks.

they have been working on the 7th and bainbridge place for awhile, and it showed little signs of actually being a coffeeshop until this past month. They, along with a few other developments on that street piss me off when I'm trying to walk along bainbridge and have to walk into traffic just to get by the enormous gates that ensure people can't walk near or park near the spot.

I have heard that a coffee house was coming to the old Zonk gallery site, but have seen precious little activity. The fellow doing the work does not inspire me either! I'd rather wait for the new Bean Exchange or go to one of our established places in the 'hood.
Keep in mind that the inconvenience of walking around the construction on the 600-700 blocks of Bainbridge is temporary, the improvement to the neighbourhood will be (hopefully) permanent.

__________________
Yours aye,
The MacNapier

Is this Fluffy Palmer?
You complain of a "not too positive" person supposedly opening a coffeshop in zonk arts, but your entire post is not positive at all-at anyrate, I know the zonkarts building inside and out, and there is no legal way they can open a coffeeshop for a multitude of reasons. If the tenant is illegally attempting to build a coffeeshop in there without approved permits he is waisting his time, as it will never be approved by the health dept., L&I, nor the zoning board.

"gates that ensure people can't walk near or park near the spot." I'm glad that you at least show some hint of intelligence by notating what the gates are use for. Once, when your home was being built, repaired, or rennovated, they had to block off the sidewalk to build it. Now, they are blocking off the sidewalk to build another home. If they didn't, people like you would trip, fall into the construction, and then get on phillyblog to complain about how irresponsible the contractors are for NOT having a fence.

I can certainly understand your concern having to cross the street in the dreadful I-95-esque traffic on Bainbridge just barrelling down the road three cars wide cruising at 80mph. Why, just the other day I had to run as fast as I could across 7th and bainbridge to avoid a car that was about a block and a half away...he almost took my life, but I showed him!!!! I lived to tell the tale, and will continue to stare death in the face as I trangress the tortures of the damned while venturing the daily mire across the treacherous sea of mechanical devils from the industrial age who snarl at me with their blazen headlights as I daringly cross Bainbridge with the same forthright as Washington crossing the Delaware.

Give me a break.

__________________
Peter Cetera:
Sometimes I just forget
Say things I might regret
It breaks my heart to see you crying

I just went up to 7th and bainbridge...I used my cell phone to provide everyone with the absolute up to date mindblowing reality video on the planet....
When viewing this link, please note the following:
1.The bird crossing my path almost tore my kneecaps off.
2.The fences at "the bean exchange" are not blocking the sidewalk, and no crossing the street is necessary, but I did it just to brave on with journalistic integrity to show how dreadful traffic actually is.
3.I got across bainbridge, even though I jaywalked, even though I was slow, and even though a car travelled past me slower than I was walking.
God Speed!~I present...La Bella Vista Trahison Dumbus Idios!
(sorry, next time I will pull my Bolex 35mm out of storage)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kg8Y9ZCZYK0

__________________
Peter Cetera:
Sometimes I just forget
Say things I might regret
It breaks my heart to see you crying

thanks, alesis, for the constructive comments. I could have been more positive in my last post, I'll try to be more so in the future.

there are busier roads, but when an entire sidewalk is closed off for months, maybe even a year or more, I become annoyed. Granted, streets in philly are small, but in most pedestrian friendly cities, when construction closes the entire sidewalk, there should be a temporary sidewalk built into the street (usually a divider provided so that pedestrians can have a buffer from automobile traffic).

riding my bike and walking around in this city on a daily basis, and having been brushed twice by cars who didn't care to slow down, I'm not very trustful of philly motorists, nor do I think the city does enough thinking/planning or advocating to improve the rights (or enforcement of) for pedestrians.

this is a small annoyance, yes building new homes will help the neighborhood, I just wish they would try to accomodate those who may travel on the sidewalks more. considering some of these projects take years to complete, that's a long time to close a sidewalk.

I'm elated that you took video of your excursion. the bean exchange's gates were just recently moved in, to the best of my recollection, they were blocking the sidewalk for some time before december. keep walking down that street, there are a few other fences you'll encounter.

keep in mind, this is something iritating about construction throughout the city, often where there is plenty of room to fashion a temporary walking route that doesn't require crossing the street in the middle of the intersection.

does anyone have any information about why in philadelphia they don't have to do this? I'm thinking about construction near 9th and arch, condos near 11th and locust, comcast center, etc?

I actually live on the same block as the Bean Exchange and while the fence doesn't bother me per-se, it is true that for awhile it was blocking the street and a bit of a nuisance for others. Bainbridge is definitely busy at night, particularly weekend nights. I've seen people hit by cars twice at the corner of 7th & Bainbridge and when the Bean Exchange had fence blocking the street I noticed several people take spills on some loose gravel surrounding the area. One girl was cut pretty badly, I actually offered her a seat in my living room and a band-aid since she was very shook up. I do agree though that combined with all the other fenced-in areas on Bainbridge it can get REALLY annoying. There's a section between 7th & 8th where you HAVE to walk in the street, it's fenced on both sides. For the past few months I've used South (and i HATE walking down South) to get home from Superfresh, Whole Foods, etc. It is only a short term nuisance though...and i'm really excited for the new coffee house to open. Talk about convenient!

City planning for construction and street projects is bad to nonexistent. It's not unusual to have sidewalks on both sides of a block blocked, as Bainbridge says, or to have more than one of the major routes from East to West blocked by construction or road work, or to have East-West and North-South streets in the same general neighborhood simultaneously blocked. There often is no to inadequate warning of a blocked sidewalk or road. This makes for unsafe passage in some cases and at least a traffic or pedestrian inconvenience in many.

I completely agree. We should have the city plan and place a date on every nickel and dime construction job so that smaller developers and business owners go bankrupt because they would have to carry a mortgage for a year without any progress just because someone near them is doing an equivalent rehab which also requires a fence.

I also agree that there is an inadequate warning of a blocked sidewalk, since nimbys, gawkers, and outdated "block captains" never look at the big orange stickers which plainly state the date of hearings for major construction, demolition, excavation, and reallocation of lot lines, all which require fencing under the building process.

Please Philadelphia, listen to your constituents! Stop this nonsense of letting small businesses and developers improve our condemned buildings so that we can live in peace without having to worry about things such as improved property values, improved quality of life, and improved services and shops in our area while we sit around and do nothing!

If the planners of our fare city do decide to allow one project to slip through, at least make sure they DO NOT put a fence up so that my kid can fall into the excavated pit or so that my neighbor will get hit by falling debris.

If you hate walking down South, then don't go to Superfresh or Wholefoods. Go to Acme. Such a naive, immature statement. Especially since you are talking about the area of south between 9th and 7th which is comprised of such outlandish storefronts as Wholefoods, A police station, a community garden, residential development on the entire north side between 7th and 8th, Crescent City, a well groomed starbucks, and so many more autrocities which just make it seem like South Central LA. Oh wait, I forgot, there is also Ritz Camera-those guys are real hooligans! The nerve of them to give me $50 off of a camera when I the manager overheard that I'm from the neighborhood! If they pull this crap one more time I'm going to report them to...well, I dunno-someone who will shut them down!

If you hate fuschia, I wouldn't suggest painting your house pink. If you prefer straight hair, avoid a curling iron, and if you don't like south street, then accompany Wile E. Coyote to the Acme; however, don't say I didn't warn you-he is a bit accident prone, so he may be one of the .002 percent of americans who get hit in the city by a vehicle, even though a majority of them are between 5-9 years old who are left unattended while playing in the street.

Yes, a small part of bainbridge between 7th and 8th has fencing on both sides. Yes, there is an unlikely chance someone could be hit if they wish to assume the risk of walking on the street without looking both ways, wrongfully assuming a speeding car will slow down, etc. and so forth.

There is also a chance of:
-Santa getting stuck in your chimney and making the entire family die from carbon monoxide poisoning, so don't put out any cookies this year.

-Dropping slippery soap, which is the number one cause of falling in the shower-so please refrain from any personal hygiene products while bathing in a prone position.

-Increased mercury levels from fish, heightened cholestorel from beef, and elevated estrogen from eating soy, so there's really no reason to eat anything from a grocery store. Just go to Wawa and get some twinkies-they're vegan dontcha know-(at least that's what my 400lb. college roomate said).

Some neighbors see the glass half full, others see it half empty-then there are those who see the glass as a potential for a nuclear disaster because if two hydrogen isotopes collide while in the glass a nuclear bomb will occur.
To those who think the latter, thanks for making me smile everyday this year phillyblog! Happy Holidays!

__________________
Peter Cetera:
Sometimes I just forget
Say things I might regret
It breaks my heart to see you crying