One city crisis down …
Mayor John Street met the City Charter's deadline and signed off on a five-year, $3.4-billion budget last Thursday, avoiding a citywide fiscal meltdown. He also dealt a devastating blow to the tax-reform movement,...
Fanning flames
Two South Philly fire companies originally scheduled to close July 1 will remain open at least another few days. At a Common Pleas Court hearing Tuesday, Judge Matthew Carrafiello extended the temporary restraining...
Fab food for the fab Fourth
Sunday is America's 228th birthday. Through the years, I've given you recipes for all sorts of barbecue. This time, although many of us will fire up the grill, I thought it would be...
Rockin’ but not Ragin’
Music history is littered with specific sounds attributed to geographic regions. R&B;, for instance, laid claim to Motown and what came to be known as the Philly Sound. In the 1960s and '70s, Philadelphia...
City in the balance
Sad. Nightmarish. Exhausting. All three adjectives have been used to describe the budget and tax-cut quagmire that stands between Mayor John Street and City Council. The City Charter requires the mayor to approve a...
Salvaging recs
Two months ago, the city's recreation centers were bearing the burden of the city's budget crisis. Nearly 50 rec centers and pools -- including at least five in South Philly -- were faced with...
Brilliant pages
The French use the phrase cr�me de la cr�me for "the best of the best." A recent publication and small gem of an exhibition at the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology,...
Placing wagers on wage tax
As the chances for bringing slot-machine gambling to Pennsylvania improve, odds favor some state residents receiving different tax breaks than others. Long touted as a magic bullet for property tax relief, gambling legislation instead...
The Japanese Buick?
Here are Motor Trend's collected scribes damning the Toyota Camry with faint praise: "We all agreed that the Camry is a great car for those whose automotive passions are centered on reliability, value, ease...
Bourbon Blue
More than 20 years ago, Caf� Nola opened on colorful South Street. It immediately became a hit with the critics and the public. It was always Mardi Gras at Caf� Nola. Owners Bill Curry...
