Study offers streetscape vision By AMY BRISSON Cope Linder Architects presented the results and recommendations of their Chestnut Hill Streetscape Design study, sponsored by the Chestnut Hill District, to a public audience last Tuesday evening, June 21, at the Chestnut Hill Library. The study was solicited by the Chestnut Hill District, a business improvement group, to assess Chestnut Hill’s commercial district and to provide recommendations that would both beautify and enhance the future viability of the neighborhood. The presenters, Gerald Cope and Barry Esslinger, emphasized that Chestnut Hill is already a place with a unique combination of attributes that gives it charm, a sense of community, and a “pedestrian-friendly” feel. Their goal is not to change that character, they said, but to enhance it by addressing current liabilities.
Funding cuts force Mt. Airy USA into 'crisis mode' Despite remarkable successes, the community development corporation has seen its city funding shrink in the last year. "We're building on a house of cards," the group's director said. by MICHAEL J. MISHAK For Farah Jimenez, the gushing news of what many call the Mt. Airy renaissance is bittersweet. As executive director of Mt. Airy USA, the nonprofit community development group that in large part laid the foundation for the neighborhood's commercial and residential real-estate boom, she is waging a behind-the-scenes battle to maintain momentum in the face of recent funding cuts. While the group's work, from streetscape improvements to housing development, has attracted a bevy of new restaurants and shops to Germantown Avenue, its programs are running out of resources.
Run for the Hill of It beneficiary ‘very determined’ by JAMES STURDIVANT Run for the Hill of It beneficiary Nathaniel Makowicz and his family were formally introduced to the community at last week’s meeting of the Chestnut Hill Rotary Club — with Nathaniel himself serving as MC. Every year, the Friends of Erik, a group of local residents and businesspeople, hold a 5K race on Forbidden Drive on the last Saturday in July and a dinner dance in the fall, with all proceeds going to the family of a severely ill or disabled child. Invited to the podium at the Rotary meeting by Friends of Erik co-chair Beth Breault, 8-year-old Nathaniel, who struggles with cerebral palsy, hydrocephalus, cortical visual impairment and epilepsy, introduced his family: parents Dave and Heather, little brother Noah, 3, and new baby sister Hope. Born premature at 23 1/2 weeks, the most amazing thing about Nathaniel is his spirit of determination, Dave Makowicz told the audience.
Bocce Club celebration brings patriotic fun by AMY BRISSON What do you get when you add 2,000 hotdogs, a hoard of tricycles and a magician? Fun! It’s the Bocce Club’s annual Fourth of July celebration, which kicks off with the national anthem just before 9 a.m. at Germantown Avenue and Hartwell Lane. There will be the traditional float and bicycle parade, magic show, pony rides, free lunch and lots of other fun for kids and their parents. The event will begin with a poem read by “Patriot Poet” Tom Woodruff, who has conducted the opening of the ceremony for 14 years, wearing an American flag T-shirt for the occasion. Last year, Woodruff read a poem about the importance of knowing and taking pride in the nation’s history.
