Holmesburg residents
are feeling more upbeat

By Jeannie O’Sullivan
Times Staff Writer

Holmesburg residents concerned about low-income housing, burglaries and neighborhood zoning issues felt progress in the fight against blight after the May meeting of Holmesburg Civic Improvement Association.
A staff of 10 detectives investigates disturbances stemming from the city’s low-income residences, some of which are located in Holmesburg, said Gwen Thomas, a spokeswoman for the Philadelphia Housing Authority (PHA) who addressed the crowd at the Holmesburg Community Center.
Last year, investigations of more than 400 complaints led to 130 terminations, said Thomas.
Under the Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) housing choice voucher program, also known as "Section 8," low-income families and elderly residents spend no more than 40 percent of their income on rent, and landlords are reimbursed for the remainder. Those who qualify receive a voucher for seven years’ worth of privileges, Thomas explained.
All applicants undergo full criminal background checks, and "other household issues" are investigated as well, said Thomas. Residents who receive eviction notices are privy to a hearing and arbitration, but are never admitted back into the program if evicted, Thomas said. The PHA exempts those who are age 55 or older, disabled or caretakers for the disabled, she added. The PHA complaint hotline is 215-684-3700.
In other neighborhood improvement news, civic president Fred Moore discussed a neighbor’s proposal to convert a three-story brick home into a quadruplex at 4200 Rhawn St.
In a letter to the property’s owner, the civic board stated that it would not mind a triplex, but would oppose a quadruplex that could possibly "set a precedent for other properties" in the neighborhood.
On the crime front, the 8th Police District has received numerous reports of car theft, burglary and graffiti, announced Tom Bein, civic association vice president and 8th district liaison. Bein warned residents to beware of a new burglary scam in which thieves cut the phone lines outside of a residence to alert the police department, and then break into the home after the officers have come and gone.
All burglary reports should be directed to the 8th district, not 911, said Bein.
The civic association will meet next at 7:15 p.m. on Tuesday, June 14, at the Holmesburg Community Center (Rhawn and Ditman streets.) It will be the last meeting before the civic association’s summer recess. ••
The Holmesburg Civic Improvement Association’s May membership drive is still underway. The annual fee is $5 per family. Applications are available at the Holmesburg Recreation Center. Send a completed application (available at the Holmesburg Community Center) or name, address, phone number and check or money order to: Holmesburg Civic Association, P.O. Box 39295, Philadelphia, Pa., 19136. The civic hotline is 215-332-6781.
Reporter Jeannie O’Sullivan can be reached at 215-354-3038 or osullivanj@phillynews.com