In The News

NYT likes how Philly food trucks roll

The New York Times Friday, May 11, 2012

The New York Times dives into Philadelphia's rapidly growing food truck culture, which still has plenty of room for growth.

In fact, the indie food-truck operators who tweet their location of the day to those in the know in Philadelphia have been retweeted by the likes of Le Meridien, a luxury hotel in Center City across from a plaza where many trucks set up.

That a hotel would promote trucks across the street in addition to its own upscale brasserie is an indication that food trucks, as overexposed as they seem, have their merits: they churn out reliably good, affordable food that you wouldn’t find on an average menu. And in Philadelphia, the scene is far from reaching its saturation point.

Original source: The New York Times

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A chat with Interface Studio Architects principal Brian Phillips

Jetson Green Tuesday, May 08, 2012

Jetson Green talks shop with Brian Phillips, principal of Philadelphia-based Interface Studio Architects, which gained notoriety for its work on the 100K house.

The 100k house sits in the middle of the timeline for our firm, but serves as the clearest thesis statement. We received a 2011 Pew Fellowship in the Arts allowing us to focus more on experimentation, research, and design competitions. We are beginning to expand geographically while also scaling up the ‘100k thesis’ on bigger projects in Philly. Recent assignments include Net Zero housing in Boston (through the Mayor’s E+ Housing initiative) and a theoretical project for what a 100k house might be for Detroit.

Original source: Jetson Green

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New Haverford College president coming from Lafayette

The New York Times Tuesday, May 08, 2012

The New York Times reports that Haverford College will get a new president next year -- Daniel H. Weiss,who has held the same position for the last eight years at Lafayette College.

Mr. Weiss, who said he was announcing his decision with "mixed emotions," plans to leave Lafayette at the end of the 2012-13 academic year, according to the letter.

Original source: The New York Times
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WaPo writer's carless vacation to Philly should have been planned better

Washington Post Thursday, May 03, 2012

A Washington Post writer ventured to Philadelphia to assess the virtues of a carless vacation, although as our own Development News editor Andy Sharpe points out, she couldn't have picked two more out-of-the-way spots to visit.

I looked at the schedule on my phone. The bus that would have taken me to Woodford Mansion, a historic home in the city’s vast Fairmount Park, had come and gone. The next one wasn’t far behind, but it would drop me off just 15 minutes before the house closed at 4 p.m. Provided I could find the stop.

Original source: Washington Post

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DailyWorth founder and CEO raised millions

Forbes Thursday, May 03, 2012

Philadelphia's Amanda Steinberg is profiled by Forbes as she shares five lessons from an unconventional entrepreneur.

Launched in January 2009, the 14-employee site–which sends out free emails on finance in a model similar to DailyCandy’s–has raised $3 million in equity capital from investors such as Dave McClure‘s 500 Startups and Google executive chair Eric Schmidt‘s Tomorrow Ventures. While $3 million is not a record-breaking figure, plenty of entrepreneurs would be happy with that amount of cash to grow their business.

Original source: Forbes

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Philly duo among entrepreneurs buying online businesses

Entrepreneur Tuesday, May 01, 2012

Entrepreneur writes about Randall and Matt Caldwell's purchase of PitchingMachinesNow.com in a story about investors who buy existing online businesses.

Similarly, the entrepreneurial father-and-son duo, Randall and Matt Caldwell from Philadelphia used Flippa to find PitchingMachinesNow.com, a site that fit the pair's criteria -- which included cash flow, price-to-earnings ratios, profit margins, search rank and scalability. In 2011, they spent $149,000 on the online baseball equipment retailer, which had almost 10,000 unique visitors each month.

Original source: Entrepreneur

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Addressing satellite dishes that make Philly look like 'Area 51'

Wall Street Journal Tuesday, May 01, 2012

The Wall Street Journal digs into the "epidemic" of satellite dishes overwhelming the residential landscape in many cities.

Along some streets in East Boston, satellite dishes protrude from nearly every house, with some multifamily structures decked with as many as eight. Other cities are reporting a similar outbreak. "We have blocks that look like NASA or Area 51," said William Carter, a chief staffer for the Philadelphia City Council.

Original source: Wall Street Journal

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Inside Viridity Energy's microgrid moves

GreenTech Tuesday, May 01, 2012

GreenTech revisits Philadelphia-based Viridity Energy's cutting-edge projects that aim to put a value on energy saved from SEPTA's regenerative braking system.

Viridity is already bidding battery-backed power into frequency regulation markets with partner and battery supplier Axion Power, which has installed Viridity’s system at its New Castle, Pa. manufacturing plant.

Original source: GreenTech

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Fast Company ponders Philly as America's next big tech town

Fast Company Monday, April 30, 2012

Fast Company talks to Technically Philly's Sean Blanda and DuckDuckGo's Gabriel Weinberg, among others, about Philadelphia's bustling technology sector.

"Like many cities, Philly has seen a significant increase in all aspects of the startup lifecycle--start, growth, exit," says DuckDuckGo founder Gabriel Weinberg. "I think we're riding the global trend here, but also we've had great community leaders as well." He continues: "Our community is very tight-knit, which means it is very easy to connect with the top people in the scene."

Original source: Fast Company

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Women draft their way to the front of craft brewing

Washington Post Tuesday, April 24, 2012

The Washington Post profiles prominent ladies of the craft brew scene, including Rosemarie Certo of Dock Street Brewing Co. iN West Philadelphia.

Certo’s interest in beer started when she began making beer at home because she wasn’t happy with what was available domestically at the time. She started Dock Street in 1985 and remembers in the early days going to make a sales pitch to a distributor and being the only woman in a room of more than 50. “I remember not being bothered by it,” she recalls.

Original source: Washington Post

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Science Leadership Academy's Lehmann weighs in on on tech in education

Slate Tuesday, April 24, 2012

Slate's report on the Education Innovation Summit in Arizona includes some time with Science Leadership Academy principal Chris Lehmann.

Lehmann expressed concern that too many in the burgeoning education sector hope to replace teachers with tech. "Before we rush to embrace the idea that the market might do education better than educators," he says, he wants to see a lengthy conversation about the “worst consequences of our best idea."

Original source: Slate

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How the Community College of Philadelphia opens door to four-yeear degrees

The New York Times Tuesday, April 24, 2012

The New York Times spotlights the Community College of Philadelphia's role as a pathway to more selective four-year institutions of higher learning.

Increasingly, the students here are making that jump. Dawn-Stacy Joyner, a former hospital cook, will also attend the University of Pennsylvania. Nine women graduating this spring have been accepted to Bryn Mawr. Larry Thi, who hopes to become a teacher, transferred to the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.

Original source: The New York Times

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Why Philadelphia police are embracing Twitter

Governing Tuesday, April 24, 2012

Governing talks with Philadelphia Police Department communications director Karima Zedan about its officers use of Twitter to fight crime.

Our driving philosophy has been: Why not try to pave the way and use [Twitter] as a great tool to connect to people and put a face to the men and women who serve in the department. That's really what Twitter allows us to do. We've been on Twitter (@phillypolice) since September of 2009. It's been a great way to respond to people's questions, to give information to highlight programs that the police department is doing [and] to highlight the good works of people.

Original source: Governing

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The crime-fighting trees of Philadelphia

Stanford Social Innovation Review Tuesday, April 24, 2012

The Stanford Social Innovation Review writes about a study led by University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine epidemiologist Charles Branas that showed greened vacant lots decreased gun assaults.

"We see it happening," says Robert Grossman, director of the PHS Philadelphia Green Program. "The neighborhoods where we’ve done a lot of this work are really transformed." The vacant lots host weddings and barbecues, instead of drug dealers and prostitutes, he says.

Original source: Stanford Social Innovation Review

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