TBW Daily Diary

The author of The Blue Orchard, the book about Harrisburg that just about everyone is reading or has read, will be speaking on Saturday, June 26, at 7 p.m. in the Midtown Scholar book store on North Third Street. Should be quite a turn-out . . . Dan Miller has offered his leadership to the CAN community in its fight with City Council over new restrictions on parking at meters in our neighborhood. Council recently rescinded decade-long privileges to permit holders at certain meters, anticipating a monthly income of $130,000+ which I find exceedingly optimistic. Even with neighborhood privileges many of the metered spaces stand empty during the day. Dan is compiling a list of the meters in question and will formulate a proposed amendment to the ordinance that council recently adopted. We applaud his efforts on our behalf and are annoyed with members of council which voted unanimously for the changes . . . Mode Magazine this month features a large picture of a trash-strewn street in the Uptown area. It notes that this area is the mayor's own Adopt-a-Block responsibility. While the mayor's oversight is worth noting, I have noticed in my travels that there are many blocks in this program which are no longer maintained. Several, in fact, had been "adopted" by businesses or organizations long defunct, and the signs merely add to the streetscape litter. If there is someone at City Hall responsible for this project he/she ought to monitor the program more closely and make adjustments where necessary. Otherwise the program is a sham . . . (The North Street Cafe went out of business years ago and was succeeded by at least two others; the space is now empty. Click to enlarge.) . . . I have been doing this diary for nearly a year now thanks to Eric Webb (our "anniversary" is June 23) and yesterday's little blurb about JJ and Bear generated more phone calls and e-mails than anything I have written previously. Bear was rescued from a pound when quite young, lived for 10 and a half years and eventually was incapacitated by arthritis. He is remembered fondly by many, many people . . .