Jun 29 2013

Pottstown’s Funky Lil’ Kitchen Is Still Open

This was on Facebook and they asked that it be shared. We too were under the impression the restaurant was closing so they could do a food truck. This is NOT so. Please see their post below:

Hey Friends…

Funky Lil’ Kitchen is still OPEN!!! 🙂

Yes, we are opening HEART Food Truck, but Funky Lil’ Kitchen IS NOT CLOSED. Since the announcement of our plans to open HEART came out, Funky Lil’ Kitchen has experienced a severe decline in business. 😦

WE ARE HERE, and planning some of the season’s best menus! We need YOU, our customers and friends, to come dine with us & pass the word along that Funky Lil’ Kitchen is still open…so we can stay open…

Please SHARE, SHARE, SHARE!

Thank you! ♥

Jun 29 2013

Scranton-Wilkes-Barre Region Cleans Up After Deluge

Locator map of the Scranton-Wilkes-Barre Metropolitan Statistical Area in the northeastern part of the of . (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Heavy rain closed roads, jammed storm drains and pushed the Lackawanna River above flood stage Friday morning to the highest level it has reached since recording began at Scranton’s Parker Street Bridge in 2009.

AccuWeather meteorologist Tom Kines said parts of Northeast Pennsylvania saw 2 inches of rain on average over a period of six to eight hours. Rainfall was heaviest between 7 and 11 p.m. Thursday, Mr. Kines said.

National Weather Service meteorologist Ted Champsey said water near the Parker Street Bridge crested at 9.46 feet at 5 a.m. Friday. By 4 p.m., the river had fallen to 5 feet – below the flood stage of 6 feet, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

Jun 29 2013

Macungie Mayor Resigns, Moves Out Of Town

Map of Pennsylvania highlighting Lehigh County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Controversial Macungie Mayor Rick Hoffman has officially resigned from his seat and has left the borough, weeks after announcing that he was moving out of town.

Hoffman, 59, who was scheduled to close this week on the sale of his house at 61 S. Sycamore St., submitted his resignation Friday. Police Chief Edward Harry Jr. said Hoffman, who was at odds with the police force for much of his three-plus year sin office, has left the borough.

Borough Council is expected to accept the resignation at its Monday night meeting.

“Obviously, we are going to miss his oversight and his tutelage between now and the time a new mayor is appointed,” Harry said with a chuckle. “We’ll try to do the best we can without having his guidance.”

Jun 29 2013

Homicides On Track For 45-Year Low In Philadelphia

Homicides in Philadelphia in 2013 are on pace for the lowest midyear total in nearly half a century, police figures show, putting the city in reach of a modern-day low at year’s end.

As of Friday, with three days left in the six-month period, police had recorded 115 homicides, a 38 percent drop from the same period last year.

The half-year figures are a promising sign for a city that in recent years has held the dubious distinction of being the nation’s most violent big city.

Mayor Nutter, top police officials, and prosecutors, along with criminal-justice experts, say the decrease in homicides reflects a new emphasis on data-driven policing, a crackdown on gun criminals, and sweeping reforms in the criminal courts.

Jun 29 2013

Fishtown Baseball Factory To Become 30 Homes

Map of Pennsylvania highlighting Philadelphia County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The Zoning Board of Adjustment voted Wednesday to grant a handful of variances to Domani Developers, which is planning to convert a former baseball factory at 1701 Tulip Street in Fishtown into a 30-unit apartment complex. (Yes, that’s an empty factory that used to make baseballs: the A.J. Reach sporting goods company.)

The building has been vacant since 2004, according to developer Roland Kassis, and he was unable to find a viable industrial use for the property, which is zoned I-2. Kassis said that the city in general and Fishtown in particular have seen a growing demand for small, one- and two-bedroom apartments, which is what he intends to put in the building. According to the zoning application, the developer intends to build a fifth-story addition, roof deck space, and a canopy over the first floor.

The project, designed by architects at Cecil Baker Partners, won the support of the local RCO, Fishtown Neighbors Association, by a vote of 107 to 77. A quick calculation shows that that is not a unanimous vote, and the reason seems to be parking: the planned apartment complex contains none.

Jun 29 2013

Sears, Penney Sever Ties With Paula Deen

Sears Essentials (Kmart) logo (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

NEW YORK — Paula Deen’s media and merchandising empire is collapsing.

Sears, J.C. Penney and Walgreen said Friday that they’re cutting ties with Paula Deen, adding to the growing list of companies severing their relationship following revelations that the Southern celebrity chef used racial slurs in the past.

Meanwhile, Paula Deen’s publisher has canceled a deal with her for multiple books, including an upcoming cookbook that was the No. 1 seller on Amazon.com and Barnes & Noble.com.

Ballantine Books announced Friday it would not release “Paula Deen’s New Testament: 250 Favorite Recipes, All Lightened Up,” which was scheduled for October and was the first of a five-book deal announced early last year. Interest in it had surged as Deen, who grew up in Albany, Ga., and specializes in Southern comfort food, came under increasing attack for acknowledging she had used the N-word.

Jun 29 2013

Reading School Board Uses Deep Staff Cuts To Balance Budget

Map of Berks County, Pennsylvania, United States Public School Districts (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The Reading School District‘s long and winding road to closing a more than $13 million gap in its 2013-14 budget has finally come to an end.
In a process fraught with frustrations, surprises and boiling tempers, the final act provided more of the same.

Apologizing to the staff, students and public for an experience they called “deficient,” “baffling” and “sad,” the Reading School Board approved the $213.6 million spending plan Friday night at the end of a 4 1/2-hour meeting. But not without some fireworks first.

Coming into the night, the district was already faced with a more than $300,000 deficit after deciding Wednesday night not to cut kindergarten to half-day and not to raise the property tax from its current rate of 16.92 mills.

Jun 28 2013

Standard & Poor’s Increases Pittsburgh’s Credit Rating To A

A map of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania with its neighborhoods labeled. For use primarily in the list of Pittsburgh neighborhoods. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The credit rating agency Standard & Poor’s has bumped up Pittsburgh’s credit rating three notches to A, a move that could save the city money on future borrowing by improving the city’s credit profile.

The agency cited a number of factors in moving the city’s credit rating up from BBB. First, it said the city’s resilient economy and “deep and diverse economic base” which allowed the city to fare relatively well during the economic downturn. It also cited the presence of two state-appointed oversight boards that have kept close tabs on the city’s budget since the state of Pennsylvania declared it financially distressed nearly a decade ago.

S&P analyst Andrew Teras also cited the city’s debt management, increase in reserves and ability to manage long-term liabilities, like pensions.

Jun 28 2013

Some Roads Reopen As DuBois, Nearby Locations, Begin Flood Recovery

Map of Pennsylvania highlighting Clearfield County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Water receded in some areas overnight and main thoroughfares have reopened in DuBois, Clearfield County, emergency officials said today.

Clearfield and Jefferson counties declared disaster emergencies after about 6 inches of rain fell by 3 p.m. Thursday, leaving as much as 4 feet of water on some streets and forcing the closure of all roads going into DuBois.

Between 7 and 8 inches of rain fell in some parts of Jefferson County, Department of Emergency Services director Tracy W. Zents said at a press conference this morning.

“Right now, we’re getting out of the response mode, and into the recovery mode,” Mr. Zents said.

More flood coverage: http://www.post-gazette.com/stories/local/state/4-feet-of-water-close-all-roads-into-clearfield-county-city-693413/

Jun 28 2013

Wilkes-Barre Barber Shop Alleged Hub Of Drug Trafficking

Map of Pennsylvania highlighting Luzerne County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

WILKES-BARRE — Undercover drug agents believe Ramon Colon was providing more than haircuts from The Master Barber Shop on Hazle Avenue.

Billed as the “The Best Cut in Town,” the barbershop that opened within the last year was “the hub” of a major cocaine and marijuana trafficking organization, said state Deputy Attorney General Tim Doherty.

Colon, 26, and his wife, Alexandra Mateo, 21, of Mayflower Crossing, Wilkes-Barre, were described by Doherty as the alleged ring leaders that peddled hundreds of pounds of marijuana and several kilos of cocaine from New York City to Luzerne County for the last eight months.

About 15 drug agents armed with assault rifles and wearing bulletproof armor served search warrants early Thursday morning at the barbershop and across the street at Idley’s Furniture Store. The apartment of Colon and Mateo at Mayflower Crossing on South Empire Street was searched, as was a residence on Coplay Place in Mountain Top.

Jun 28 2013

Pottsgrove Manor To Host Symposium On Colonial Iron Industry

Pottstown, PA (June 28, 2013) – On Saturday, July 20, 2013 from 10:00am to 3:00pm, historic Pottsgrove Manor will host a symposium on the production of iron in early Pennsylvania.

The symposium, entitled “Making Iron in Colonial America,” is being held in conjunction with Pottsgrove Manor’s current exhibit, “Forging a Lifestyle: Ironworking with the Potts Family,” which explores the early Pennsylvania iron industry and the Potts family’s integral industry involvement.

Those interested in the area’s early industrial roots will not want to miss this symposium. At 10:00am, Rick Brouse, one of Hopewell Furnace National Historic Site’s most experienced colliers, will give a talk on the process of making charcoal, the fuel of early American ironworks. After his presentation, a tour of the mansion and Pottsgrove Manor’s iron exhibit will be offered. Participants will enjoy a boxed lunch, provided by Pottstown’s own Positively Pasta, and have time to shop in the museum store before the afternoon presentation. At 1:30pm, local historian Robert Wood will give an illustrated presentation on the process of making wrought iron in early charcoal-powered ironworks, describing the steps involved and giving a sense of the huge expenditure of resources that went into iron production in the colonial era.

The symposium is open to participants ages 12 and up. There is a fee of $20.00 per person, which includes a boxed lunch with a choice of sandwich. Spaces are limited. Registration and payment are required by July 16, 2013. Registration forms are available at Pottsgrove Manor or can be downloaded from http://montcopa.org/DocumentCenter/View/4379.

The “Forging a Lifestyle” exhibit can also be viewed on a guided tour of Pottsgrove Manor during regular museum hours Tuesday to Saturday from 10:00am to 4:00pm, and Sunday from 1:00pm to 4:00pm. Tours are given on the hour. The last tour of the day begins at 3:00pm. The site is closed Mondays and major holidays. Groups of ten or more should preregister by calling (610) 326-4014.

Pottstown Manor is located at 100 West King Street near the intersection of King Street and Route 100, just off Route 422, in Pottstown, Pennsylvania. Pottsgrove Manor is operated by Montgomery County under the direction of the Parks, Trails, and Historic Sites Division of the Assets and Infrastructure Department. For more information, please call (610) 326-4014, or visit the website at www.montcopa.org/pottsgrovemanor. Like Pottsgrove Manor on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/pottsgrovemanor.

Jun 28 2013

Snowden’s Father Says Former Contractor May Return If Conditions Met

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The father of former U.S. spy agency contractor Edward Snowden said in an interview that while he has not had recent contact with him, he is reasonably confident his son would return to the United States if certain conditions were met.

Those conditions could include not detaining Snowden before trial, not subjecting him to a gag order and letting him choose the location of his trial, NBC News said on Friday.

The NBC report added that Lonnie Snowden plans to make those points in a letter to U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder to be sent through his lawyer later on Friday. Representatives for the Justice Department could not be reached immediately for comment on the letter.

Jun 28 2013

Allentown Schools Cut 151 Jobs, Hike Taxes 8.2 Percent

Map of Pennsylvania highlighting Lehigh County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Allentown School Board approved a final 2013-14 budget Thursday that spares full-day kindergarten and most elementary school related arts positions but cuts 151 jobs, sending a ripple effect throughout the district.

School directors voted 5-4 to adopt a spending plan that slashes 127 teachers, 14 administrators and 10 maintenance/custodial workers from the district’s payroll. The cuts are accompanied by an 8.2 percent tax increase and a $10 million contribution from the district’s savings to keep the district afloat for another school year.

The only change to the $242 million budget was elimination of two vacant administrative positions — director of special projects and director of professional development. That decision saves about $200,000.

Full-day kindergarten and elementary school music, art and gym teachers, originally in jeopardy of being cut, are retained in the final budget. But the district will eliminate all five of its elementary librarians along with 19 middle-school related arts teachers.

Jun 28 2013

Target Cuts Ties With Deen; Drugmaker Distances

English: Logo of Target, US-based retail chain (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

NEW YORK — Paula Deen’s merchandise and media empire is fast unraveling.

Retailers Target Corp. and Home Depot Inc. and diabetes drug maker Novo Nordisk became the latest companies to sever ties or distance themselves from celebrity cook Paula Deen as fallout builds from revelations that the Southern celebrity chef used racial slurs in the past.

Target, based in Minneapolis, said Thursday that it will phase out its Paula Deen-branded cookware and other items, which were sold on its website and in its stores.

“Once the merchandise is sold out, we will not be replenishing inventory,” said Molly Snyder, a Target spokeswoman.

Jun 28 2013

Berks Commissioners Expand Hotel Tax To Include Entire County

Map of Pennsylvania highlighting Berks County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

All hotels and motels in Berks County must begin collecting a 5 percent room tax starting Oct. 1.

The county commissioners in a 2-1 vote Thursday extended the tax to facilities beyond the 15-mile radius of the Sovereign Center established when the tax went into effect March 1, 1997.

The tax currently produces about $1.7 million annually, with 80 percent going to the Berks County Convention Center Authority to repay money borrowed to build the center and 20 percent going to the Greater Reading Convention & Visitors Bureau.

The expansion is expected to bring in an additional $310,000 in 2014.

Jun 28 2013

Pennsylvania Officials Warn About Potentially Fatal Heroinlike Drug

State officials have issued a warning about a heroin like drug that has caused 50 deaths in Pennsylvania already this year, including four in Berks County.

Berks District Attorney John T. Adams confirmed Thursday that toxicology reports have shown that four overdose deaths reported earlier this month all involved the drug fentanyl.

The state Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs said Thursday that fentanyl and its derivative, acetyl fentanyl, has been blamed for at least 50 deaths in 15 counties. Five nonfatal overdoses also have been reported.

The state also is awaiting toxicology reports from overdose deaths in several other counties.

Jun 27 2013

Fight, Shots Fired Lead To Arrest In Pottstown

Editor’s note: This crap is WAY out of hand and there are two more months of hot weather left. Turn this guy in if you know who he is! Somebody could have easily been killed. As for the male in custody…beating up a young girl! Your mother must be so proud.

POTTSTOWN — Police have charged two men in related incidents, including shots fired at a vehicle.

According to police, a fight planned between two juvenile girls happened near the Ricketts Center at 672 Beech St. at 3:25 p.m. on Tuesday.

When the large group was chased from Beech Street, police said they moved to the intersection of Lincoln Avenue and North Warren Street.

The crowd of 40 to 50 people watching the fight included adults and children, police said.

Jun 27 2013

Pottstown Police Find 932 Bags Of Heroin In Apartment Of Parolee

Editor’s note: Earth to borough council. You better get a grip on the pervasive drug problem in town!

POTTSTOWN —Police arrested a man on parole after they found a gun and more than 900 bags of heroin in his apartment.

Dashawn Smith, 22, of Pottstown was charged with one count of felony intent to manufacture or deliver and one count of felony possession of a firearm after Pennsylvania State Parole agents searched his Elm Street apartment on June 19.

During the search of Smith’s apartment, officers found a large yellow plastic bag under the kitchen sink that contained “numerous bundles” of red wax bags, and white rice, police said.

Jun 27 2013

A Legal Blow To Sustainable Development

Official 2007 portrait of U.S. Supreme Court Associate Justice Samuel Alito (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Editor’s note: This is so bad!

STRAFFORD, Vt. — LOST amid the Supreme Court’s high-profile decisions on affirmative action, voting rights and same-sex marriage was another ruling that may turn out to have a profound impact on American society. The court handed down a decision on Tuesday that, in the words of Justice Elena Kagan, will “work a revolution in land-use law.”

While that may sound obscure, the decision in Koontz v. St. Johns River Water Management District will result in long-lasting harm to America’s communities. That’s because the ruling creates a perverse incentive for municipal governments to reject applications from developers rather than attempt to negotiate project designs that might advance both public and private goals — and it makes it hard for communities to get property owners to pay to mitigate any environmental damage they may cause.

The court’s 5-to-4 decision, with Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. writing for the majority, arose from an order issued by a Florida water management district denying an application by Coy A. Koontz Sr. to fill more than three acres of wetlands in order to build a small shopping center. The district made clear that it was willing to grant the permit if Mr. Koontz agreed to reduce the size of the development or spend money on any of a variety of wetlands-restoration projects designed to offset the project’s environmental effects. Because Mr. Koontz declined to pursue any of these options, the district denied the permit.

Jun 27 2013

POW/MIA Flags To Be Hung In Downtown Pottstown

In preparation for ArtFusion 19464’s fall educational exhibit When We Were Soldiers, downtown Pottstown will soon be flying POW/MIA flags. The flags will be hung the week of July 4th and be on display through Veterans Day.

This display was made possible through the support of the greater Pottstown community and beyond. Representative Mark Painter’s office donated 2 flags. Generous donations were also made by the following individuals and organizations: David Garner , Esq., Pottstown Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund, Positively Pottstown, Federation of Concerned Organizations, POW/MIA Forget Me Nots, American Legion Post 244 and Jack and Cathy Paretti, Theresa Orlosky, Sharon Shulby. Billy Worrell, member of American Legion Post 244 and a Vietnam Veteran, was very instrumental in getting the donations and arranging the purchase of the flags.

When We Were Soldiers will focus on the personal recollections of veterans of the Vietnam War. The show will open September 20 with a Welcome Home reception and run through Veterans Day. As part of the reception, local motorcycle clubs will be participating in a welcome home ride. The reception will run from 5-8pm. Light refreshments will be served. While this reception is free, ArtFusion will be collecting donations for a free arts program for veterans as well as to fund maintenance for the Pottstown Vietnam Memorial.

The Pottstown Keystone Chapter 565 of Vietnam Veterans meets the first Tuesday of every month at 7PM at the VFW located on High Street in Pottstown. Anyone is invited to attend a meeting.

ArtFusion 19464 is a 501(c)3 non-profit community art center located at 254 E. High St. in downtown Pottstown. The school offers day, evening and weekend classes to all ages. The goal of these classes is to help students develop their creative skills through self-expression and independence. ArtFusion’s gallery hosts rotating shows featuring local artists. The gallery also sells handcrafted, one-of-a-kind gift items. The gallery is open Tuesday through Friday from 10am-5pm and Saturday 10am-3pm. The gallery is closed Sunday and Monday.

Attached: POWMIA flags.jpg: presentation of flags at Borough Hall; Frank Strunk, President of Pottstown Keystone Chapter 565 of Vietnam Veterans of America; Billy Worrell, of American Legion Post 244; and Mark Flanders, Pottstown Borough Manager.

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Monthly Archives: June 2013

Pottstown’s Funky Lil’ Kitchen Is Still Open

Scranton-Wilkes-Barre Region Cleans Up After Deluge

Macungie Mayor Resigns, Moves Out Of Town

Homicides On Track For 45-Year Low In Philadelphia

Fishtown Baseball Factory To Become 30 Homes

Sears, Penney Sever Ties With Paula Deen

Reading School Board Uses Deep Staff Cuts To Balance Budget

Standard & Poor’s Increases Pittsburgh’s Credit Rating To A

Some Roads Reopen As DuBois, Nearby Locations, Begin Flood Recovery

Wilkes-Barre Barber Shop Alleged Hub Of Drug Trafficking

Pottsgrove Manor To Host Symposium On Colonial Iron Industry

Snowden’s Father Says Former Contractor May Return If Conditions Met

Allentown Schools Cut 151 Jobs, Hike Taxes 8.2 Percent

Target Cuts Ties With Deen; Drugmaker Distances

Berks Commissioners Expand Hotel Tax To Include Entire County

Pennsylvania Officials Warn About Potentially Fatal Heroinlike Drug

Fight, Shots Fired Lead To Arrest In Pottstown

Pottstown Police Find 932 Bags Of Heroin In Apartment Of Parolee

A Legal Blow To Sustainable Development

POW/MIA Flags To Be Hung In Downtown Pottstown