This post--with pictures!--originally ran in the September 2012 Cedar Park Neighbors newsletter. Didn't receive a newsletter? Consider becoming a member of Cedar Park Neighbors by clicking here. By Michael Froehlich
You know what my favorite part of the week is in Cedar Park during the summer?
Saturday mornings.
Everyone is out on their porches and sidewalks. They’re sitting at the tables outside the Gold Standard or Satellite or Atiya Ola’s. It’s elbow-to-elbow at the counter at Cedar Park Café. Children are starting to filter into Cedar Park playground. Neighbors are streaming down Baltimore Avenue towards the Clark Park farmer’s market, stopping to talk with one another along the way.
It’s just one of the wonderful things I like about my neighborhood and why I’m excited about serving as the President of Cedar Park Neighbors.
We hope that you were able to come out and enjoy Friday night jazz inCedarParkthis summer. I’d like to give an enormous thank you to Algernon of Elena’s Soul for organizing the series. It certainly would not have happened without Algernon—and your donations in the red buckets during the show! (And speaking of Elena’s, have you heard that their house-made veggie burger is back on the menu? Go try it. It’s the best veggie burger in West Philly.)
Hopefully, SEPTA’s track replacement project didn’t inconvenience you too much this summer. SEPTA came out to our June board meeting to talk about their project. They’re done replacing the section of track in Cedar Park. The whole project should be done by mid-September. At that point, they’ll be removing their trailers from Baltimoreand 49th Street. And we’ll all be riding the trolley once again.
Have you had a chance to drop into the new Seeds Gallery at5011 Baltimore Avenue (owned by the inimitable Saba, proprietor of Aksum on Baltimore Ave) or Starr’s Boutique at 5015 Baltimore? They’ve got some beautiful art and clothing. You need to take a look if you haven’t yet. And speaking of new businesses, we’re excited that Milan Marvelous has moved The Marvelous Records and Music shop to Cedar Park. Need some new records? Check ‘em out.
Finally, I wanted to thank the 48th Street Neighbors Group for the fun Porch Hops that they sponsored this summer. The 48th Street Neighbors group was formed after a tragic crime inCedarPark last fall. They realized that looking out for your neighbors (and your neighborhood) starts with getting to know each other a little bit more. So on two Saturdays this summer, a dozen neighbors held mini-open houses on their porches and invited everyone to drop by. My family and I had a great time at the first one in June. (Sadly, we were out of town for the second one!)
I want to acknowledge Monica Allison one more time for the extraordinary work that she did during the last four years as president of Cedar Park Neighbors. There’s no way that I will ever match her energy and skill at bringing people together to improve Cedar Park. But I’ll give it my best shot. And if you have any thoughts on things Cedar Park Neighbors should be doing to improve your part of the neighborhood, please let me know. You can reach us at 267-531-4147 or by email at contact@cedarparkneighbors.org.
I’m looking forward to being President, because… There’s always something good happening in Cedar Park.