Burholme talks about
the new curfew center

The Burholme Community Town Watch and Civic Association discussed the proposed Fox Chase Cancer Center expansion, the soon-to-open curfew center in the 2nd Police District and the mayoral race at last week’s monthly meeting.
There will be a grand-opening celebration for the new curfew center on Tuesday at 5 p.m. at Max Myers Playground, at Oakland Street and Magee Avenue. The center will officially open on Friday, Nov. 23.
Al Taubenberger, president of the Burholme group, thinks the curfew center will be a welcome addition to the community. He visited a center in Frankford during his unsuccessful run for mayor and left impressed.
The curfew for teenagers 13 to 17 years old is 10:30 p.m. on weeknights and midnight on weekends. The time is 9 p.m. on weeknights for anyone age 12 and younger.
Police who see curfew violators will transport them to a center, where they will be interviewed by staff of the city Department of Human Services. Their parents will be called and must speak with DHS officials before being allowed to take their children home. To report a curfew violator, call 215-683-5770.
Also at the Nov. 8 meeting, supporters and opponents of Fox Chase Cancer Center’s proposed expansion into Burholme Park debated the latest development in the continuing saga.
There will be a City Council hearing on Nov. 26. Councilman Brian O’Neill (R-10th dist.), who won re-election last week to an eighth four-year term, has introduced legislation that allows the cancer center to proceed.
The state Department of Transportation has approved a traffic study that calls for various changes to Cottman Avenue to allow for a better flow of traffic. The changes include the elimination of parking on the south side of the street, which is in Cheltenham Township.
"It’s high time that changes," Taubenberger said.
Taubenberger agreed to invite Charlie Trainor, a retired city Department of Streets traffic engineer who conducted the study, to an upcoming meeting.
Taubenberger also announced that he would invite Mayor-elect Michael Nutter to a meeting.
Looking back at the election, Taubenberger said he enjoyed the experience. He campaigned in all neighborhoods of the city.
The problem, he said, was a lack of money. He said fund-raising suffered after Sam Katz, the GOP mayoral nominee in 1999 and 2003, said no Republican could win City Hall.
Taubenberger was proud to have run a positive campaign, adding that the mayoral race was more civil than New Jersey legislative elections, which featured nasty negative television commercials.
"I believe we have set the standard for what mayoral campaigns ought to be," he said.
Burholme Community Town Watch and Civic Association will meet again on Thursday, Dec. 13, at 7 p.m., at United Methodist Church of the Redeemer, at Cottman and Lawndale avenues. ••