The Mayfair Civic Association had a relatively light agenda for its bimonthly meeting on Jan. 23, but the neighborhood still got a lot out of the session. Nine community nonprofit organizations collected a combined $16,000 in public funding.
City Councilman Bobby Henon distributed Philadelphia Activities Fund checks to the civic association, as well as representatives for the Holy Terrors youth sports program, Pennypack Music Festival, Mayfair Recreation, Mayfair Memorial Playground, Mayfair Clean Sweep, Mayfair Community Development Corporation, Mayfair Business Association and the Mayfair Holmesburg Thanksgiving Parade.
The civic association is the primary registered community organization for Mayfair and holds public meetings on the third Monday of odd-numbered months at the Mayfair Community Center. The Pennypack Music Festival holds free concerts on Wednesday evenings throughout the summer at the bandshell in Pennypack Park. Mayfair Clean Sweep is a neighborhood beautification program sponsored by the CDC, which also rehabs abandoned houses and produces the bi-weekly Mayfair Night Market on Thursdays from June through October.
Mayfair Memorial Playground is a grassroots effort by parents to build and maintain play equipment for younger children on the grounds of Abraham Lincoln High School. The playground also hosts seasonal gatherings like a Halloween festival. The Thanksgiving parade celebrated its 40th year on Frankford Avenue last November. The business association presents the annual Mayfair Fallen Heroes Run and Mayfair May Fair, among other community events throughout the year.
“I want to thank you all for what you do for the community on a daily basis,” Henon said.
In other meeting business:
• Civic Association President Donny Smith announced that the annual Christmas Decoration contest was a huge success with hundreds of residents and businesses nominating homes for prize consideration. A panel of judges including Northeast Times Editor Tom Waring and reporter William Kenny evaluated the homes on a scale of one to 12. The civic association awarded lawn signs and gift bags to three winners in each of three categories: row homes; singles, twins or corner homes; and businesses.
• Smith said that the Shamrock Shuttle is scheduled to tour neighborhood bars on March 11 from noon to 6 p.m. It will stop at the Sheffield Tavern, Pub 36, Hammerhead’s, Coach’s, Harrington’s and other tap rooms.
• A representative from the 15th Police District Advisory Council reported that police plan to expand bicycle patrols into the Torresdale Avenue corridor in Wissinoming and Tacony. Last summer, the 15th district created a bicycle squad to patrol the Frankford Avenue corridor from Brill Street to Margaret Street. Police reported a subsequent reduction in crime for that area.
• Nance Kerns of the Friends of Pennypack Park said that she is unaware of any progress in the restoration of the Little City footbridge in the park. The city closed the bridge to all traffic early last year as a safety measure due to its deterioration. The bridge is the only pathway between the Little City parking area and the band shell amphitheatre. City officials have assured the park friends group that the bridge will be repaired and open before the first concert of the 2017 Pennypack Music Festival, Kerns said.
• CDC Director Luka Lakuriqi reported that the new mayfaircdc.org website will be online within about a week. The site will include information about the Mayfair Night Market, Mayfair Business Improvement District, home rehab projects and other activities. Seravalli Inc. general contractor has become the CDC’s new principal corporate partner, Lakuriqi said.
• Mia Hylan of the Mayfair Memorial Playground said that her organization’s annual Easter Egg Hunt is scheduled for April 8 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.
• Firefighter Brian Deal from the Engine 36 and Ladder 20 station at Frankford and Hartel avenues reminded motorists not to park in front of fire hydrants. Deal and his colleagues have seen an increase in the problem recently, he said. Firefighters can’t get water onto a fire if a parked car is blocking their access to the nearest hydrant. Call 911 to report a car that’s parked in front of a hydrant. ••
