November 30, 2006 Issue                                       

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©2006 The Chestnut Hill Local

Opinion

Where’s the money?

Two of the biggest stories in the city during the last couple weeks have had to do, at least tangentially, with budget shortfalls.

The school district announced in October that it expected to have a $73 million shortfall. Public hearings were announced and public school parents, students and advocates showed up to make sure that no one cut the already reduced dollars available for important programs.

And it sounds like they have to stay vigilant. Proposed cuts in summer school, accelerated education programs, special education services and alternative school funding are still on the table.

Then, Thomas Jefferson University started a brouhaha after it announced its board had voted to sell “The Gross Clinic” by one of Philadelphia’s great art figures, Thomas Eakins. It turns out that the university felt it was a good time to cash in on the painting, but what really outraged art supporters was the buyer: Alice Walton, heir to the Wal-Mart fortune and proprietor-to-be of the Crystal Bridges museum in Bentonville, Arkansas. That’s right — a Philistine from the Ozarks had offered to buy the painting unless the local arts community could raise $68 million to keep the work in Philadelphia.

I have not seen these two stories juxtaposed elsewhere but I’m sure I’m not the only one who sees a bit of irony in the situation they have created in Philadelphia: While the art community scrambles to raise the money to buy “The Gross Clinic,” the city’s public school officials are scouring their balance sheets trying to scrub a similar amount of money from its annual expense commitments.

There is nothing wrong for art supporters to be outraged at the sale of an incredibly important work and its imminent removal from the city in which it was created (and a city that always seems to fight harder than it should to retain its culture). There’s nothing wrong with rallying the donors around the issue and trying to raise the funds needed to keep that work here.

It would be nice, however, to see similar outrage from people when school officials talk about cutting summer school funds. It would be even nicer to see people mobilize to raise funds for those programs.

It seems many of the most important things, not just in this city, but everywhere, are left without proper funding and management while less consequential —yes, “The Gross Clinic” is nice, but it’s not the education of hundreds of thousands of the city’s children — issues attract attention and dollars that might be better spent elsewhere.

It’s long past time to pay attention to that which really matters.

Pete Mazzaccaro

Opinion: PennDOT propaganda sidesteps sound judgment
by JIM FOSTER

The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) held meetings in Northwest Philadelphia on Nov. 20 and 21, purportedly to discuss and inform the affected communities about its upcoming plans for the long-overdue repairs to two sections of Germantown Avenue.

The choice of these dates, during one of the busiest weeks of the year for most families — one when the difficulty of attending is much higher than average leading up to the Thanksgiving holiday on the 24th — should not go unnoticed. This is a well-worn political tactic when a public body or government entity wants to get something done with as little input from the affected as possible.

Despite the announced fact that the federal government is paying 80 percent of the estimated project cost and the state 20 percent, I do not believe one representative of our city, state or federal elected officials attended the Mt. Airy/Chestnut Hill meeting, and I am told only one individual representing the 8th Council District Office was present at the Germantown meeting. Naturally, they have their family holiday priorities as well.

The short section of roadway at the extreme northern end of Mt. Airy connecting to Chestnut Hill at Creshiem Valley Road was to be discussed at the United Cerebral Palsy on Mermaid Lane on Nov. 21, but one wonders how much advance advertising there had been in the communities at large. Nonetheless, a significant turnout that included near neighbors, community focused organizations and impacted businessmen were in attendance and they were already informed on the essential details.

Two individuals from PennDOT, one apparently from engineering and one from public relations gave the presentation and took questions. No one from that organization with any higher-level decision making authority was in attendance.

The serpentine section of Germantown Avenue from Gowen Avenue to Cresheim Valley Road has been a glaring example of neglect and irresponsible maintenance management from both SEPTA and PennDOT for the last 15 years. From the late 1970s through the mid-1980s, all of Germantown Avenue from Wayne Junction to the top of Chestnut Hill was substantially rebuilt with new trolley tracks, road surface and related upgrades. Two segments, one short section in Germantown, (Church Lane to Ashmead) and the above-mentioned Mt. Airy portion were left in the traditional granite block from curb to curb, while the rest of the roadway was converted to tracks in concrete with blocks in parking lanes.

Even that work was done with some inconsistency and different contractors over the seven to eight-year time frame. The early roadway failures on some of this work, particularly the Chestnut Hill portion, is not lost on those who want valid answers on how these final sections are to be repaired.

Before commenting on the meeting and explanations, it is important to understand that the responsibility for maintenance of a roadway with streetcar tracks is that of SEPTA for the portion of the highway the tracks occupy; this applies to whether or not trolleys are currently running on that highway on a regular, irregular basis, or not at all. The portion from the tracks to the curb is the responsibility of the city, state or federal entity that claims the roadway.

Having lived in this neighborhood most of my life and traveled that section many times a week, I can state without hesitation that the maintenance of that highway was among the worst in my experience for an artery with as much regular through and local traffic demands on it. Trolleys stopped regular service in 1993, but weekend, excursion and historical tours continued for many years thereafter.

I believe it is safe to say that not one segment of rail or its supporting roadbed was serviced after 1993 except when large segments of track actually broke off, and that PennDOT did nothing to correct the irregular road surface, sinking granite blocks, and the like, except emergency patches in asphalt that frequently only added to the roughness of the trip.

Accidents on this section became frequent, partially because of the driving habits of some residents (see recent reports in the Chestnut Hill Local on traffic in general), both because of the irregular roadway and the fact that traffic controls in this area do not meet the needs of a section with sharp curves, downhill travel, and a school zone. The traffic controls are another area where PennDOT could have easily implemented remedies years ago.

The film presentation by the PennDOT officials at the meeting could not have been more shallow or better designed to keep the spotlight off the years of negligence that led to the emergency partial paving of this section of highway last year. We were treated to photo after photo of accidents, some close-ups of the road condition (no mention of how long it had been that way) and then a short overview of how it will look when the proposed project is completed.

A review of the detours and complete shutdown of this vital artery were also outlined. The shortsighted approach, second-rate engineering and lack of concern for travel and commerce should outrage local residents and businessmen alike.

With some personal knowledge of the issues involved, I asked to be recognized first and made a couple of points that resounded through many of those in attendance. First, I conveyed my outrage at how long the responsible authorities let this road deteriorate. Incredibly, their defense was: “PennDOT and SEPTA have been arguing for 10 years over who was responsible for the work!” — and that is a direct quote. The law is clear, the responsibility is there, and their excuse is that it took this long to argue it out. Your tax dollars are at work keeping those lawyers and bureaucrats at the table.

Part of their presentation was that repair of this section was to provide “consistency” with the upgraded segments on either side done in previous years. This meant the use of concrete in the track section and block on the sides of the highway. When I asked what type of rail was to be used, however, they admitted that it would not be consistent with the girder rail (read trolley rail) used in all of the other sections, but would be “T” rail or light railroad track which is cheaper and considered substandard for street operation (particularly on curves), and which SEPTA has only recently been slipping in on repair work when it can get away with it.

Girder rail serves street operations better for many reasons, not the least of which is present in Philadelphia where our trolley gauge is 5’21/2”, a full 6 inches wider than railroad gauge which can allow auto tires to be “trapped” inside the rails if the roadway is not perfectly matched with the rails. Girder rail, with a flat flange on both sides, goes a long way in preventing this condition. Girder rail is used worldwide for trolley operations and is readily available.

While there are many aspects of this plan that need community input and review, none supersedes the prospect of closing down the street entirely to through traffic for months at a time. I raised this point, along with others, spelling out that the topography and roadway network in this particular area makes it extremely difficult to get to parallel highways in order to make the trip from Mt. Airy to Chestnut Hill. At the very least this project should be done in two halves (one track and one shoulder) with bi-directional traffic never interrupted.

Of course, this is more costly to the project, but there seems little concern, as PennDot is more concerned with short-run costs and convenience to contractors than closing the most vital artery in the Northwest.

These concerns and several others were amplified loudly by those in attendance, as they should have been. The absence of our elected officials or their direct representatives only tells us one thing: They consider it a “done deal” or “the public be damned,” to use a historical phrase. When these concerns were repeated to the PennDOT presenters, the answer we got was along the lines of, “Look, we are spending $16 million for this project, including new sewer, gas and related work, we are ‘giving’ this neighborhood more than most get, we could just blacktop and do it a lot cheaper.”

They neglected their responsibility for years and now that they are spending our tax dollars here, they see it as a favor.

The cost of 15 years of neglect is lost on these folks, and probably more so on those who make the decisions further up the line. Although they promised to take our recommendations back, much more is needed if a sensible approach to engineering, safety and longevity is to be a primary concern here.

Call and write your public officials at all levels. That is the only way practicality trumps bureaucracy. A unified effort works best, and I will be glad to lead the charge.

Once you dig this highway up, you want to do the best job with the best materials possible. Past history shows public projects can be done without full shutdown. Hopefully, you only do this once every 70-75 years. The last time was 1938.

From the Desk of the (Interim) Community Manager
by ED BUDNICK

Unlike the malls, shopping on the Avenue started around 10 a.m. on Black Friday, befitting a genteel countrie towne. But the crowds quickly grew, same on Saturday. It looks like this might be a good year for the retailers. Shopping may not be considered a manly sport, but I generally enjoy it. 20 years ago, I was an efficiency-minded shopper, proud to get it all done in one 12-hour day at South Coast Plaza (a 400-store mall in Southern California). I typically wouldn’t bother to shop at the malls I built; 160 stores were not enough. Retailing has changed a bit in those 20 years — more “Big Box” malls, more electronics and Al Gore hadn’t invented Internet shopping (yet). Back then Tower Records was booming; now they are bust. And I didn’t have 160 or so shops on the Avenue as I (we) do now.

My definition of a good shopping experience has generally been the right thing, at the right price, hopefully with a side helping of good will. As I’ve gotten older, the good will portion has gained in importance. My first thought in using the term “good will” is in “good will to men”… the holiday spirit if you will — the best wishes and the helping hand to charities. As I look at the dictionary, I am reminded that “good will” is also a salable asset from the reputation of a business. Maybe there is a potential connection here.

We certainly have a number of merchants, restaurateurs, and service providers on the Hill who have the intangible asset of goodwill. I think we can find the best wishes and helping hands, I think we might also find “the right thing at the right price,” all worthy goals, attainable (perhaps) within walking distance. I took a stroll on Saturday to see what I could find.

First, let’s look at everyday values: The bargain shelves at Borders Books offer books at more than 80% off list. Fabrics on the Hill (formerly Bryne Fabrics) are offering selected fabrics at 40 percent off.

Next, special deals. Mention this column to the good guys at Chestnut Hill Sports and you can buy an Eagles jersey for $59.95 (adult) and $44.95 (youth). The big deal is in Flyers player Jerseys, with name and number of your favorite for $99.95. These specials are good for one week (until December 6th)… more specials to follow.

The helping hand offer comes from Ten Thousand Villages. On selected evenings between now and Christmas, they will donate 15 percent of their proceeds to local non-profit organizations. In this next week, we have (Wed, Nov. 29) Philadelphia Citizens for Children and Youth; (Thu, Nov. 30) SCAN, Inc.; (Fri, Dec. 1) Keystone Hospice; and (Tue, Dec. 5) Sisters of St. Joseph Welcome Center.

The helping hand is also extended from Top of the Hill Fabrics … Fabrics on the Hill is a proud sponsor of ConKerr Cancer, making pillowcases for kids with cancer. Purchase fabrics from the shop and receive 20 percent off your next purchase at the store.

Finally, a way you can help the Community Association/Fund and get to enjoy the new Tavern on the Hill. A $100 donation to the Community Fund will get you a certificate good for “A Pint and a Pie” (That’s a pint of beer and a filled pastry ie: Shepherds Pie, Beef Pie etc), good for anytime in 2007 (after the kitchen is completed). Donations can be made through our Town Hall office anytime. Certificates will be available next week.

In the weeks that follow, I hope to bring you news of exceptional shopping values on the Hill. I especially want to note opportunities to share with the needy both locally and around the world. Hill businesses are encouraged to e-mail me any ideas for these issues. Our local Blankets for the Homeless Program continues. Please drop those blankets off at the Water Tower; 1:30-10 p.m. (M-F); Saturday, 8:30 a.m.-4 p.m.

The lighting of the Community Tree at the Top of the Hill (Fountain) Plaza is on for Thursday, Nov. 30 at 7 p.m. Our State Representative, Rosita Youngblood will be joining us as we recognize her for her assistance in securing the $15,000 grant that enabled us to join with the Business Improvement District in the lighting of the street trees along the Avenue. Everyone is invited, refreshments will be served.

Penn Wissahickon Hospice invites the community to join them for the Light Up a Life festivities, Sunday, Dec. 3, 4 p.m. at Christ Ascension Lutheran Church (8300 Germantown Ave). Proceeds from these celebrations go to support their Needy Patient Fund, which provides care and comfort to patients with life limiting illnesses regardless of their ability to pay.

Wherever your holiday shopping takes you, please take care. Leave a little earlier. Drive a bit slower. Heed the ringing bells. We often look for the magic of the season, but unfortunately the local and world problems cannot be solved by magic. Hunger, poverty, violence and homelessness cannot be solved in weeks, but through our generosity, some of the symptoms may be temporarily alleviated.

Opinion: A Prologue, some Philosophy and a Questionnaire
by Ed (You can love me or hate me, but you CAN ignore me) Feldman

Note to Kathy Jones: I will NOT mention the individual to whom you refer. I will instead use the phrase, He-who-cannot-be-named, or HWCBN. And I will refer [Local Forum, Nov. 23] to him minimally. I will instead address to those who choose to refer to my work as “more offensive” than the signs.

I can’t help it. I’m just an old empiricist. Hume, Locke, Berkeley, they’re my boyeez. Perception is all. For, in a world where the view beyond our backyard comes entirely from media that we have no control over, what other philosophy makes, well, empirical sense? And, if any philosophy can be said to be at the core of a political movement that created a nation, it would be empiricism and the United States. “We hold these truths to be self evident,” not given by a god or a monarchy, but by the manifestation of being that, regardless of its origins, resides, along with the creator, in ourselves. Besides, it gets to solve the “If a tree falls in the forest and nobody hears it does it make a sound?” thing. Good. I always hated that one. (The answer is NO, by the way.) So our choices are clear, if you don’t like what you perceive, change the channel. And in a world of almost infinite choices of pixilated perception, from the reasoned sobriety of John Stewart to the wacky comedy of Bill O’Reilly, our thumb is the only bodily aspect that needs to be taxed, unless you use some other appendage to operate the remote, you kinky weirdo. Or turn the page. That’s all you have to do for it not to exist.

It’s so easy. It’s not denial; it’s a choice. Just like the choice you made when you moved to Chestnut Hill. You chose a neighborhood that, because of geography and demographics, may seem to some a denial of the very essence of the American melting pot. It is an appendage of a multicultural city that exists in a state of perpetual geographic Limbo, between suburb and city, not quite one and so very far from the other. Once a suburb, now incorporated, but not assimilated, a Limbo that exists out of its time as well. A 19th-century village in colonial drag, monstrous blockhouses that pass design muster because of red brick facing, like a hippo in a tutu. So if you can choose to ignore all of this, and all the reality of the world south and east of Cresheim Drive, why can’t you just ignore my column?

But here we have a paradox. As I stroll the fairyland community of our dreams, I hear only positive comments about my scrawlings, and hostility towards HWCBN. The mixed-media additions to his signage seem to add an avant-garde ingredient to the discussion. Found Art meets Pop Art. I applaud the ongoing kineticism. But I will only indulge when the following question is answered. If HWCBN is offering a $2,000 dollar reward to anyone with information leading to the arrest and conviction of these New Artists, and if the fine is considerably less than the reward, can someone turn me in so we can split the difference?

Back to the Paradox. I’ll make it simple. If the majority likes what I write and hates HWCBN, why are so many of the other side in positions of what passes for power in our quaint yet increasingly Lynchian (Hitchcockian for you older folks) White Countrie Towne? Some of these “leaders” arrived at their status without benefit of any constituency. They just walk in, sit down and start making ground rules — in secret, no less. Instant power brokers. Just own some stuff, have similar friends, and add water (or six Manhattans, very dry, three cherries). This requires a detailed examination of the nature of power, and the attending hindrance of morality as detrimental to its attainment. Sorry, not enough room. So to expedite matters, I offer a Questionnaire:

Ed Feldman should NOT write anything in the Local that I don’t like because:

A. The rude, corporeal realities of the outside world have no place in our neighborhood and the Local should confine itself to such headlines, as “Bake Sale/House Tour/Pot Luck/Slave Auction was a GREAT SUCCESS Thanks to ALL who helped.”

B. People who have attained wealth and status through dint of proper womb selection deserve greater respect and deference than “the help.”

C. It is apparent from his hair, dress and demeanor that Feldman takes his orders directly from Comrade Stalin and the Central Committee of the Politburo and he therefore rightfully belongs in Mt. Airy.

D. He killed Our/their Lord.

A and B

C and D

Ed Feldman SHOULD keep writing in the Local because:

A. His wacky yet erudite prose keeps the whole family giggling, even the cat. SOMEONE with the balls to take on the powerful, the corrupt, and the arrogant, is necessary for a free press to fulfill the commitment that the creators of this nation made to each and every one of us. Anything else is treason.

B. Stalin is dead, Russia belongs to the Mafia now, Mt. Airy has no good Chinese food, and Feldman admits that Michelle Malkin makes him hot.

C. We know he didn’t kill Our/their Lord, it was his Uncle Morty, we found the note.

A and C

H and R

So, fill it out and send to: Post Office Box: “I don’t care, I’m having too good a time to stop,” Old Barn in the Holler, 19118.

Or else just turn the page when you see my name; it’s easy, just like when you “shun” me on the street with attendant icy stares. It’s so effective — the ruling class version of emotion, perfected by generations of those whose impassivity was necessary for the efficient administration of Empire, even when administrative decisions were of the life and death variety. Or as one of my favorite contemporary philosophers, Charles Barkley, said in a beautiful use of the rhetorical question, “See why I hate white people?”