May 1999

Letter from the President

"Will the Real Manayunk Please Stand Up"

Manayunk is called the community of churches and I'm living proof this is true. Since March I have been to a confirmation at St. Josephat's, a communion at St. John's, a funeral at the New Umbria Baptist Church, a wake at Fitzpatrick's and another funeral at St. John's.

On any given weekend you could find a Beef 'n Beer for somebody's fundraiser and you'll usually find them in a church hall/community room. Or, if lotteries are your personal choice, go to your local parish.

I couldn't imagine Manayunk being anything but a town of churches, all within walking distance. What a great place to live and die!

- Kathy Tomosky, President

Breaking News

The Department of Community and Economic Development has approved a $5,000 grant for Manayunk Neighborhood Council. Liz Turella applied for this grant for community issues. The monies will be used for a long awaited and much needed project informing all property owners in Manayunk of the codes and regulations regarding rental housing.

The grant will also allow for the expansion of the newsletter, The Council Crier, from a members-only circulation to a community wide distribution. This would be for a limited time, with the goal being to continue to increase membership and keep the neighborhood informed.

MNC would like to thank Senator Hughes for his support in obtaining this grant. Additional grants requiring matching funds are available, so MNC will be having some fund-raisers throughout the year.

Creating a Better, More Livable Community

At the June 2^nd General Meeting, Arte Verbrugghe and Joe Clemens will begin the process for the development of a "Community Vision Statement." Community visioning is both a process and a product. The process is where residents have an opportunity to express what they value about their community and to develop a consensus on what they would like to change or preserve. The product of these discussions is a vision statement.

Our area is unique. We are the only ones who can create, refine and implement a plan on how to achieve what is best for our community and ensure our quality of life. If we do not think about and actively participate in activities to shape the future, we will likely become a victim of someone else's vision.

This project will not be easy. It will require leadership, patience, determination and, most importantly, community involvement. Residents will have to put aside their differences and take a realistic look at their neighborhood. It will not be a time to assign blame, but to establish an honest appraisal of where we are.

The process will include defining community boundaries, analyzing community resources, adopting a vision statement, developing an action plan and implementation. We may want to include other civic areas in our community vision since we are closely connected and what happens to them also happens to us. Our vision may even extend to include the entire 21^st ward!

Civic organizations are constantly in a state of reaction. Much time and effort are spent reacting to a developer's plans, the City's plans or to a completed project that is causing problems. Manayunk Neighborhood Council believes our time could be better spent if we first create a Community Vision Statement and use that to guide us into the future. Creating a vision is not an end in itself; creating a better, more livable community is. However, we need you to get involved to make it happen!

MNC Updates

At the Annual Awards Conference and Luncheon of Philadelphia Operation Town Watch, the Manayunk Town Watch was honored from the 5^th District. Held at the Wyndham Franklin Plaza Hotel on Saturday, May 15^th, twenty-three groups from around the City were recognized. Accepting the plaque on behalf the Manayunk Town Watch was its founder John Teague.

Also attending were Captain James McCarty and Community Relations Officer Walter Edenborn of the 5^th District Police, Mr. Jerry Overstreet, Karen Tomosky and Karen Smith.

Manayunk Town Watch has only been in existence for a year, so to receive this award speaks well of its dedication to the job of working to maintain the quality of life in the neighborhood. A small group of residents are patrolling the streets every weekend and are seeking more volunteers to add to their ranks. This is a way to have some control over what goes on in the neighborhood.

Manayunk Garden Club

BE A TREE-TENDER - Learn Tree Care and get some tools for the Garden Club!

If our civic group gets 4 or more people to complete the Tree Tenders course, the Philadelphia Horticultural Society will give the community a set of tools. These tools are worth at lease $75. It will also make us eligible for grant money under the Tree Tenders program. This course costs $25 for individuals however, you can take this course free as a member of Manayunk Neighborhood Council.

The Pennsylvania Horticultural Society's Philadelphia Green offers these classes with hands-on training. The 12 hour training takes place over three Wednesday evenings and a Saturday morning this June: Wednesday: June 9, 16 & 23 (6-9pm); & Saturday, June 19 (10am-1pm)

Pizza and soft drinks will be served. The classes are informative, interesting, and fun.

The main training will be held in the auditorium at the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society, 100 North 20th Street, in Philadelphia. If you are interested in attending call Jane Glenn at 482-5528.

The Garden Club was very busy throughout the month of May. On May 10^th members met in the office of the Manayunk Development Corporation to review and discuss the plans for Pretzel Park prepared by a landscape architectural firm retained by the Department of Recreation. Also attending were representatives from MDC, the PA Horticultural Society and Councilman Nutter's office.

The initial $50,000 of City funds, from the 1999 budget, will be used primarily to get running water functioning in the park again and the construction of a basic structure to be used for tool storage initially and later to also function as a backdrop for the natural amphitheater in the park. There was lively discussion about the overall look of the park with regards to the planting and lighting. The new building raised the most questions. While working within the confines of the budget, the Garden Club members insisted that the building be more than just a concrete block box. The architect left the meeting with a list of ideas for the design and materials and a better knowledge of what the longterm vision is for Pretzel Park.

Immediate results showing the interest of the Garden Club could be seen after Wednesday evening, May 12^th. Members planted over 150 white petunias and red geraniums donated by the Canal Committee, Inc. in the raised bed along the corner of Cresson and Rector Streets.

Sunday, May 16^th found members of the Club at Smith & Hawken for the groundbreaking ceremony at the new butterfly garden along the canal. The Club designed the garden, helped plant it and provided the soil from Pretzel Park. The Mayor was on hand to turn the first shovel of soil. Local Girl Scout Troop #1546 not only helped with the planting; they also had a lesson on indigenous butterflies from

Kathy Bright of the Schuylkill Valley Nature Center.

Friday, May 21^st found the members back in Pretzel Park at 3:30 in the afternoon to meet with children from the North Light Community Center's after school program, Kid Zone, to plant flowers the children had started from seed at the Center. About 20 children ranging from six to sixteen in age arrived with Program Director T.J. Strain armed with gloves, trowels, a variety of plants including morning glories, nasturtiums, marigolds and a truckload of energy!

They exuberantly dig in the soil along the fence surrounding the Tot Lot. Garden Club members Ginger Restemeyer and Kevin Smith added a dogwood tree and several shrubs provided by the PA Horticultural Society.

There was sad news this month when vandals first broke the top of the new community Christmas tree that was planted last fall. They apparently came back the next night and pushed the tree over. It has been set upright and pruned. Hopefully it will survive and flourish. Let's all use and enjoy the park and be the eyes and ears of the community.

Zoning Committee

The most pressing zoning issues have to do with the Manayunk Recreation Plan and issues related to Venice Island. MNC is hoping for assistance from the City, the Planning Commission in particular, to help in formulating a plan to preserve the fragile ecobalance of the area. They will be working with experts in many fields to address the problems resulting from any development on the island.

Liz Turella, Vice President of MNC was invited to speak at a recent meeting of the North Light Leadership Team focusing on housing. The statistics compiled by the team validated the trends noticed by the civic in recent years. There is a preponderance of rental houses not in compliance with city codes and regulations both in matters of licensing and also in occupancy rates, as many of the houses exceed three tenants. With grant monies recently received, MNC will be addressing this issue directly. As always, they are looking for help from volunteers for information not found in public records. Call Liz Turella at 482-4698 to help out and report any illegal houses you may be aware of.

In response to community complaints, MNC will continue to push the issues of sidewalk parking and cone use. We need to look ahead to what happens when we run out of sidewalks? The American Disabilities Act required that sidewalks have curb cuts for wheelchair accessibility. The City has complied throughout the neighborhood, but a handicapped person would be hard pressed to get around all the cars on the sidewalks. Let's wise up! Support MNC in its effort to acquire local parking areas for Municipal Parking Lots. Call any member of the MNC Board for details.

Manayunk New Land Marks

The Fairmount Park Art Association, a year old nonprofit organization, may be funding the Manayunk New Land Marks Project. Artists Diane Pieri and Vicki Scuri have come up with a proposal for public art to be integrated with urban design. The proposal included working with children. The campers at the North Light Community Center Day Camp helped come up with designs last summer that depicted life in Manayunk. The proposal also had to include seating elements. The artists discovered through canvassing the neighborhood that the stoop has been an important part of Manayunk's social history.

The project would involve the construction and placement of ten stoops, located along the Canal Towpath. Cast in concrete, the treads would have inlaid tile work transferred from the children's drawings. The addition of ready-made planters modified with artwork by the children and the planting of daylilies would create quiet resting niches in which to relax, reflect and enjoy the surrounding nature.

Eighteen communities around the City have completed proposals, of which three will be chosen. If Manayunk is chosen, this will be a wonderful addition to the public land.

The Truth is Out There...

...About Living in a Floodplain

The May/June issue of the Sierra Magazine featured an article titled "Unnatural Disasters" by Bob Schildgen, managing editor of Sierra. The article began "We can't stop rivers from flooding, but we can stop making the floods worse." The article questioned the naming of these disasters "natural". It said that rivers always have and always will overflow their banks but brought to light evidence that reckless development of flood-plains clearly aggravates flooding. Larry Larson, Executive Director of the Association of Floodplain Managers was quoted as saying "Inappropriate development in floodprone areas occurs because many city councils say, 'if we don't let them build, they'll go elsewhere.' I don't blame the developers as much as city officials."

The article reinforced the recent presentation made by Wendy Lathrop, a member of Friends of the Manayunk Canal. Ms. Lathrop reported that resources, both land and dollars, are not best spent by encouraging unwise land use development on Venice Island. History has shown that the area is regularly subjected to flooding of varying intensity. Her research identified twenty floods affecting this area between 1757 and 1996.

We are well aware that Venice Island floods frequently. The most recent flood is still fresh in our memories, as it reached Main Street in January of 1996. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) dispensed over $16 million in aid to Philadelphia since the blizzard of '96. That was a "small" flood in comparison to the cost of the 1972 flooding. Following Hurricane Agnes, flood peaks in excess of 100-year recurrence frequency levels were observed at many sites along the Schuylkill.

According to FEMA, the vast majority of Venice Island is not only within the 100-year or regulatory flood zone, but also within the designated floodway of the Schuylkill River. The floodway is the area carrying the bulk of floodwaters, water traveling at the greatest velocity and of the greatest depth. The floodway is subject to the most stringent controls to prevent damage both in the Special Flood Hazard Area and areas beyond those limits that floodwaters might extend if obstructed within the floodway.

Because of this kind of danger, the City of Philadelphia's ordinances prohibit construction within the floodway. Section 14-1606 (5)(a)(1) specifically states: "No encroachment (including fill, new construction, or any development) is permitted except that public utilities are permitted as long as they cause no increase in the One-Hundred (100) Year Flood level." We interpret this to prohibit the kind of construction being proposed for Venice Island.

With all this information regarding floodplain regulations, one wonders why developers are rushing to Venice Island with proposals for extremely dense residential developments. Other planning issues, such as transportation and traffic conditions, hazardous waste materials in the soil, possible further degradation of habitat, and the community's needs must be conidered in any plans for the Island.

Heavy rains will fall and unrelenting torrents will flow. We will never control them completely. But with a combination of respect for nature and responsible planning, we stand a better chance of riding out the storm. Congress will soon be reauthorizing the Water Resources Development Act, and conservationists want it to include a 100-year moratorium on floodplain development. Active involvement by well-informed citizenry is vital to improving our quality of life. Our concerns are for the best use of an area closely connected to our dense neighborhood and known to be floodprone.

NORTH LIGHT NEWS

"WaterWorlds!"

North Light Community Center will conduct its Day Camp and Extension Program for eight weeks, on weekdays from July 6 through August 27, 1999. The regular Day Camp Program will run from 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM with the Morning Extension covering the hours from 7:30 to 9:00 AM and the afternoon Arts Extension covering 3:00 to 6:00 PM. The theme for the summer is "WaterWorlds!" and camp will be broken into four, two week units, each one with it's own set of explorations and experiences. Units one and two will focus on the water which we use daily, "Water In the City", and how we make it dirty and how we clean it up. Unit three will explore the notion of a watershed and how they are diminished and replenished. Unit four will talk about the importance of wetlands in the overall cleaning of the aquatic environment.

Each week campers will travel to sites that reflect each of the lessons in each of the units. On days when they are not visiting a waterway, campers will engage in a variety of age appropriate activities designed to first establish then enhance their understanding and appreciation of that unit's focus. Crafts, games, event days and even the swimming sessions themselves will provide participants with built in opportunities to explore and play with water. Campers will investigate sites ranging from the Philadelphia Waterworks to the Marine Mammal Stranding Center in Brigantine N.J. For information or a brochure call Art, Nadine, Jill or John at (215) 483-4800.

LETTER TO THE EDITOR

Hi, my name is Liz Turella. I am Vice President of Manayunk Neighborhood Council. I was recently a cast member in the North Night Players production of Fiddler on the Roof. It was great! It was the first time I was ever involved in anything like this and I found it a very rewarding experience. Even though I was a villager in the play and therefore rather insignificant as a character, I felt very significant in the play since all the people involved in producing the play, in particular Arte Verbrugghe and Guil Fisher, made each participate feel equally vital to the play. I hope to remain involved with this worthy group in any way I can. At 58 my ingenue days are gone, but I can still paint or hand out a prop. Thank you North Light! Arte - you the man!

CITY RECYCLING

Beginning the week of May 3^rd 1999, please start setting your recycling out for collection on the same day as your trash day each week. Please keep your recyclable materials separate from your trash at curbside.

What to Recycle

Newspaper: Place in paper bag or tie in bundles.

Do not place paper in plastic bags or put in container.

Mixed Paper: Mail, cereal type boxes (without wax paper), catalogs, telephone books, home office paper, magazines, stationery. Place in paper bag or tie in bundles.

Glass Food & Beverage Containers: Rinse out and remove lids. Do no recycle jar lids.

Steel Aerosol Cans: Empty, no lids.

Aluminum Beverage Cans: Rinse out (crush if possible)

Metal Food and Beverage Cans: Rinse out (crush if possible)

Empty Paint Cans: Air-dried, lids off

NO Plastics! Plastic bottles, jars, & bags are NOT recycled by the city. Do not put them out!

Please use city recycling containers only for bottles and cans. Call 685-RECYCLE (685-7329) to get a container.

Do not put trash in recycling buckets! Pass the word to neighbors if you see improper procedures. Let's keep Manayunk a neat place to live!

1999 MANAYUNK CALENDAR OF EVENTS

June 4 & 5, 1999, Friday & Saturday Manayunk Cycling Celebration

June 6, 1999, Sunday U.S. Pro Cycling Championship

June 26 & 27, Saturday & Sunday 10th Annual Manayunk Arts Festival

September 11, 1999, Saturday MNC Picnic in Pretzel Park

September 26, 1999, Sunday 8th Annual Indian Summer Feast (Rain Date October 3)

October 31, 1999, Sunday Annual Trick or Treat Street

The council crier and then left off Main to Cotton:x May 1999 Issue

Next Meeting: Wednesday, June 2^nd at NLCC 7:30 PM

Parking available in the lot at St. Mary's Church