OCCA

Buy Fresh Buy Local Week | Through Sunday, July 20th

Wed, 16 Jul 2008 08:50:00 PDT

Buy Fresh Buy Local (BFBL) chapters from Greater Philadelphia, Chester, and Lancaster counties are joining forces to celebrate the availability, unparalleled freshness, and economic and environmental benefits of food grown within 150 miles from farm to plate.

Buy Fresh Buy Local Week features several unique events, including the annual Kickoff Party, live music, a celebrity chef pie contest, special Happy Hours, an Ice Cream Festival at Reading Terminal Market, the Grand Opening of Farmers' Markets in Overbrook Farms and North Hills, Festivals and more!

Most events are free! For more information, visit www.localfoodphilly.org

Ben Franklin Bridge Surface Prep And Steel Painting To Begin

Sat, 12 Jul 2008 08:08:00 PDT

The Delaware River Port Authority is in the final phase of the Ben Franklin Bridge Steel Painting Project. The final phase is focusing on the Philadelphia approach to the bridge.

Surface preparation and painting will begin the week of July 14th.

The DRPA has established a toll free hotline which can be accessed 24 hours a day 7 days a week throughout the entire project to register any concerns or obtain additional information. The phone number for the hotline is 1-866-321-2475. Monday through Friday the number to call between 9:00am and 5:00pm is 215-218-3750 ext. 2255. The DRPA can also be contacted electronically at info@lists.drpa.org. Information on the project is also posted on the DRPA website, www.drpa.org.

DRPA Chief Executive Officer, John J. Matheussen, says "The Authority remains committed to keeping the public informed about this final phase of the Ben Franklin Bridge Steel Painting Project and we will continue to work hard to make sure there is as little inconvenience as possible."

The project should be completed by the end of next year at a cost of around $20-million.

The Delaware River Port Authority is a regional transportation agency. DRPA owns and operates the Benjamin Franklin, Walt Whitman, Commodore Barry and Betsy Ross Bridges, and PATCO, the Philadelphia Cruise Terminal and the RiverLink Ferry.

Featured Business | Greenable

Tue, 8 Jul 2008 20:53:00 PDT

In a city that aims to boast its greatness through the widespread greening of its programs and communities, the demand for eco-sensible materials and services has never been greater. It's no surprise then that OCCA newbie, Greenable - an eco-building supply company and design studio nestled in the former Metropolitan Bakery - is helping usher in a new standard of responsible building. "People are realizing that going green can be easy, save them money, and be more beautiful than doing things the traditional way," says Greenable's co-founder and veteran designer Lynne Templeton.

Although building green can at first seem like a daunting task to the inexperienced, Greenable takes the guesswork out of the process. From beautiful high-performance non-toxic/zero voc paints; long-lasting, glass-infused, dimensional lumber; green household cleaners; and CFL light bulbs, quality concerns and accessibility are now frustrations of the past.

But doesn't green mean that the products will be expensive? Not anymore. Greenable supplies nearly everything necessary to green or maintain your home or commercial space, and often at tremendous discounts, thus debunking the enduring myth that green costs more. "It's important that everyone have the opportunity to live and work in healthy environments. Most people don't realize the impact conventional materials can have on their health," says Angelo Anastasio, Greenable's co-founder and recent University of the Arts grad. "So finally it makes economic AND ecologic sense to do things this way."

So what if you have no idea where to start with this whole "green thing"? For its neighbors in the region, Greenable doubles as an educational hub, offering free "how to" workshops, educational seminars, and one-on-one customer service from a diverse team of local green experts.

What's especially convenient about the company is that it offers a wide range of services from consulting and design to product and facility support as well as installation and fabrication of all their materials. These added features mark Greenable as Philadelphia's premier resource for green building products, materials, and services. Whether it's simply a can of paint, a green roof installation, or an entire design/build project, Greenable does it all.

Store/Showroom/Design Studio located on Market Street between Front and 2nd.

Senate Committee Sneaks Amendment Stripping Municipal Power to Regulate Billboards

Sun, 6 Jul 2008 09:37:00 PDT

Senate Committee Places Sneak Amendment onto HB 780 Stripping Municipal Power to Regulate Billboards that will strip the rights of Local Governments to regulate Billboard Industry.

Members of the Senate Appropriations Committee indulged in late night mischief yet again. The Committee added a sneak amendment to HB 780 which is a bill amending the municipal planning code . HB 780 is expected to come back from the Senate on concurrence this morning (Wednesday) with amendments to help billboard companies circumvent local zoning.

This is an outrageous attempt to strip the rights of Pennsylvania residents and their local and municipal governments, planning commissions and zoning boards to regulate outdoor advertising signs.

The Senate Appropriations Committee is the same committee responsible for stripping away the rights of Philadelphia citizens to legally challenge zoning board decisions that violate the zoning code. Many community leaders remember the amendment to HB1954 in November which was also a sneak attachment during a midnight committee session at the request of the billboard industry.

As a result of that deception, South and West Philadelphia community groups were denied the right to appeal zoning decisions affecting their neighborhoods. A bill to restore the language has been languishing in a House committee for 3 1/2 years.

Clearly, the billboard industry has friends among our elected leaders! We cannot allow this to happen to our neighbors in suburban, rural areas and the City of Pittsburgh.

Inform your friends and call your state senators and representatives to alert them of this dishonest attempt to change a law that protects Pennsylvania's visual environment and the zoning rights of our local government.

Email or Call SCRUB at 215.731.1796 if you have any questions or if you have new information to share.

SCRUB, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, is Philadelphia's public voice for public space. SCRUB's mission is to promote healthy, vibrant, beautiful public spaces throughout Philadelphia by using advocacy, public awareness and education, community mobilization and legal action.

For more information, visit www.urbanblight.org/

Action Plan for the Central Delaware Waterfront

Sat, 28 Jun 2008 08:15:00 PDT

At an encouraging meeting at the Philadelphia Seaport Museum in late June, Penn Praxis received overwhelming support from Mayor Nutter for its Action Plan for the Riverfront.

At this public meeting, we were reminded that it is our collective responsibility to ensure that the development of the central Delaware is consistent with the goals and values of the thousands of us who shared in creating A Civic Vision for the Central Delaware. The plan of action action will guide public, civic and private actions that will determine the character and quality of the central Delaware for generations to come

Philadelphia is ready to move forward with the bold civic vision for a revitalized waterfront and has formulated an action plan that sets out the steps to implement that vision.

It is intended to guide the actions of Mayor Nutter, City Council, our future waterfront manager, riverfront developers and our civic and nonprofit leaders as we take the bold steps required to achieve a world-class waterfront.

For more information visit www.planphilly.com/actionplan