Archive: December, 2010

Call for snow pics: submit yours to CP's photostream

POSTED: Monday, December 27, 2010, 8:36 PM

Filed Under: The CLOG

All right, you've had a good twenty-four hours to get those cameras out: now send us your best snowstorm 2010 pics â and we'll try to publish the best one in this week's paper.

To submit, visit City Paper's Flickr group and submit (you'll need a Yahoo account, unfortunately). By submitting, you agree to let us publish the pic on our Photostream or, just maybe, in the paper.

Submit now â don't force me to publish this:

Posted by Isaiah Thompson @ 8:36 PM Permalink | Post a comment

Merry Christmas: For you, pictures of a broken wine kiosk.

POSTED: Sunday, December 26, 2010, 3:52 AM

Filed Under: News | The CLOG

Only in Pennsylvania.

On Tuesday, wine kiosks â that just so incredibly Pennsylvania Liquor Control Boardian response to the inconvenience of not being able to buy a bottle of wine at a grocery store âwere shut down all over the state. The problem: a glitch that caused the machines to fail to dispense wine. Auditor General Jack Wagner plans to audit the kiosks â and that will be a good read.

One of City Paper's many spies sent us this picture of a kaput kiosk at the Fresh Grocer in West Philly.

Said spy also delivered a disturbing report on the difficulty of using the things in the first place â including, but not limited to, a computer system that offered a discounted white wine under neither the "white" nor "discount" category.

It's a little hard to make out the text above, so we dutifully transcribe it here:

There have been occasional glitches with the wine kiosk. One example: a transaction is approved, but the wine doesn't dispense from the machine.

Although the glitches have been few and far between, incredible customer service is important to us.

We have temporarily shut down the kiosk while the manufacturer updates the software and installs new sensors.

We hope this will be resolved quickly so can continue to offer this great convenience to our customers.

We've got an idea for an even better way to offer great convenience to Pennsylvania customers ... but, after all, it's Christmas.

Bless you, PLCB â and all your faulty wine kiosks, too.

Merry Christmas: For you, pictures of a broken wine kiosk. – Philadelphia Citypaper (blog) by Colocation Data Center Hosting Costs

Posted 2010-12-25 23:07:17

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Posted 2010-12-28 02:59:19

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Holiday News As It Happens » Blog Archive » holiday movie christmas cupid

Posted 2010-12-28 08:54:17

[...] Merry Christmas: For you, pictures of a broken wine kiosk. – Philadelphia Citypaper  We’ve got an idea for an even better way to offer great convenience to Pennsylvania customers … but, after all, it’s Christmas. Bless you, PLCB ÃÂ¢Ã¢ÂÂ¬Ã¢ÂÂ and all your faulty wine kiosks, too.    Dec 13, 2010 3:15am [...]

Is the PLCB reopening its wine kiosks? :: Meal Ticket :: Food Blog :: Philadelphia City Paper

Posted 2011-01-20 14:42:02

[...] would appear that the answer is yes, they are! After a brief closure around Christmas due to what were characterized as âmechanical and technological issues,â the Pennsylvania [...]

Merry Christmas: For you, pictures of a broken wine kiosk. – Philadelphia Citypaper (blog) « HOA Management USA

Posted 2011-02-07 19:32:01

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Posted by Isaiah Thompson @ 3:52 AM Permalink | Post a comment

The Anna Verna Crackdown and more in the latest Philly From Scratch.

POSTED: Wednesday, December 22, 2010, 10:47 PM

Filed Under: Philly From Scratch

Philadelphia City Council president Anna Verna displays her councilmanic might; attorney Darrell Zaslow gives his two cents on the new public comment period in Council; and in this week's new "The one that got away" feature on under-reported news, we look at Sugarhouse Casino's lower-than-expected earnings â all in the latest episode of our highly-experimental podcast! (download the mp3 here).

*note: The original post contained an MP3 with a bit of missing material; I swapped files at about 7:00PM.

Want regular updates? The podcast is finally, finally, finally fully subscribable!

Click here to subscribe with itunes.

Click here to get the raw rss feed.

Or check for updates manually at citypaper.net/podcast.

Posted 2010-12-23 12:29:58

anna verna

Isaiah Thompson

Posted 2010-12-23 13:50:09

Corrected, and apologies: I am, in this era of unedited online chaos, a serial misspeller of names. I will endeavor to improve in 2011.

Happy Holidays, - Isaiah

Posted by Isaiah Thompson @ 10:47 PM Permalink | Post a comment

Barney Frank schools some Philly-born future Fox correspondent who thinks he's has a point about showering with gay people

POSTED: Wednesday, December 22, 2010, 8:08 PM

Filed Under: Gay Stuff | Media

First, the video, helpfully posted on CNSNEWS.com (stands for Cybercast News Service, formerly Conservative News Service):

And now why not check out reporter Nicholas Ballasy's Wikipedia page, which appears to have been written by his mom, who is very proud of every blip he's made on the right wing radar. Sheesh. A lot of people who've done more than catch Jessica Alba saying something dumb have way shorter entries than that.

(h/t Gawker)

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Posted 2010-12-26 12:32:04

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Posted by Patrick Rapa @ 8:08 PM Permalink | Post a comment

Saturation point? Even without Foxwoods, Sugarhouse is way behind projections

POSTED: Tuesday, December 21, 2010, 10:43 PM

Filed Under: Casinos | News | The CLOG

Since having its license finally revoked by the Pennsylvania gaming Control Board last week, the Casino Formerly Known as Foxwoods has been much in the news.

But another story seems to be slipping through the cracks: even without the (presumed) competition from a second Philadelphia casino, Sugarhouse Casino, which opened in September, has shown a surprisingly poor performance.

City Paper finds that Sugarhouse is bringing in less than half the revenue it told the state to expect just six months ago.

In two presentations in May, Sugarhouse offered the Gaming Board revenue estimates that bear little resemblance to the business the casino has brought in so far.

On May 13, Sugarhouse officials made a presentation estimating $240M in net slots revenues for its first year in business with $132M going directly to the state or city in taxes and local share assessment. On May 19, Sugarhouse repeated those projections in another presentation.

Let's do some math: 240 million expected total slot revenue / 52 weeks = 4.6 million per week â right?

And $132 million in tax revenue for the state and city / 52 weeks = $2.5 million weekly â right?

But Sugarhouse isn't bringing in close to that much.

Even during its opening week, Sugarhouse reported just $$3.6M in revenue â still less than the target $4.6.

Since then, slot revenues have dropped by half: last week, they raked in $1.86 million before taxes: that's about forty percent what they're supposed to be making.

To be fair, Sugarhouse's table games are actually ahead of schedule, bringing roughly double the projected amount. But they account for much less of the casino's total earnings: even if table games bring double the expected revenue, it would amount to $5 million dollars extra. The current slots earnings, meanwhile, suggest the casino may bring in as much as $38 million less than expected.

As state officials prepare to bid another casino license for Philadelphia, maybe it's worth asking whether a second casino â or even a first â is even remotely viable.

Tweets that mention Saturation point? Even without Foxwoods, Sugarhouse is way behind projections :: The Clog :: Blog Archive :: Staff Blog :: Philadelphia City Paper -- Topsy.com

Posted 2010-12-21 18:18:03

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Posted 2010-12-24 02:38:29

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Posted 2010-12-24 11:22:12

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Posted 2011-01-01 20:10:31

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Posted by Isaiah Thompson @ 10:43 PM Permalink | Post a comment

Police tell "Catch the Kensington Strangler" Facebook group to remove picture

POSTED: Monday, December 20, 2010, 6:47 PM

Filed Under: News | The CLOG

Philadelphia Police just sent out an advisory to the media, alerting us that a Facebook group called "Catch the Kensington Strangler Before He Catches Someone You Love," had posted a picture of ... someone ... that is not the Kensington Strangler:

From the advisory:

Attention Facebook Users: This message is an official message from the Philadelphia Police Department. The photograph of a male displayed on this Fan Page, Triz Jefferies which has been posted as a suspect wanted in the Kensington Strangler case IS NOT CORRECT. According to the Philadelphia Police Department, this male is NOT a suspect and is not wanted in reference to these crimes.Â

To administrators of this site and users: please remove, and refrain from posting any photographs of individuals who are not officially identified as suspects by the Philadelphia Police Department. Failure to take appropriate actions may subject you to liability.

As of about three minutes ago, another picture appearing alongside the familiar police sketch that's been circulating was removed.

Posted by Isaiah Thompson @ 6:47 PM Permalink | Post a comment

If you missed the end of that nutburgers Iggles/Jints game...

POSTED: Monday, December 20, 2010, 5:28 PM

Filed Under: Iggles | Sporting Life

Here it is, as it would have looked on Tecmo Bowl.

Tweets that mention If you missed the end of that nutburgers Iggles/Jints gameâ¦ :: The Clog :: Blog Archive :: Staff Blog :: Philadelphia City Paper -- Topsy.com

Posted 2010-12-20 13:20:07

[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by lyfords, Philly News Now. Philly News Now said: If you missed the end of that nutburgers Iggles/Jints gameâ¦: Here it is, as it would have looked on Tecmo Bowl. ... http://bit.ly/eGDNs9 [...]

Posted by Brian Howard @ 5:28 PM Permalink | Post a comment

Photostream: Call for photos and this week's "Pic of the litter"

POSTED: Friday, December 17, 2010, 10:08 PM

Filed Under: Arts | The CLOG | Web Junk

Harry Byrne

Here's our "Pic of the litter" â the litter being City Paper's flickr group, submissions to which can be seen as an ever-evolving slideshow on the City Paper Photostream.

So please submit â you might even find your pic in this week's paper, as did this photograph of a guine Philadelphia bald eagle, shot by Harry Byrne on a stroll through the John Heinz National Wildlife Refuge by the airport. This eagle is one of three that inhabit the park, Byrne told us.

Keep 'em coming!

Tweets that mention Photostream: Call for photos and this weekâs âPic of the litterâ :: The Clog :: Blog Archive :: Staff Blog :: Philadelphia City Paper -- Topsy.com

Posted 2010-12-17 18:06:32

[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Philadelphia, Philly News Now. Philly News Now said: Photostream: Call for photos and this weekâs âPic of the litterâ: Harry Byrne Hereâs our âPic of the litterâ â ... http://bit.ly/gTcWE3 [...]

Posted by Isaiah Thompson @ 10:08 PM Permalink | Post a comment

So long â¦ but not goodbye

POSTED: Thursday, December 16, 2010, 11:03 PM

Filed Under: The City Paper

It's with no small amount of trepidation that I declared today my intention to step down from the editor's chair at City Paper. As of January 23, I will take over as the editor of two magazines published by local Red Flag Media: Cowbell, a relatively new music magazine with a glossy cover and an indie rock feel, and Grid, an excellent magazine dedicated to creating a sustainable Philadelphia.

It's hard to say goodbye to the publication I've spent most of my career hustling for; but when an opportunity comes along to dig into two subjects you're really passionate about, it's difficult to say no.

I'll leave behind one incredibly talented staff at City Paper for another at Red Flag. City Paper's incoming publisher Nancy Stuski and departing publisher Paul Curci will begin searching immediately for my replacement, and will be looking for someone to guide an award-winning staff (Pennsylvania's non-dailyÂ Newspaper of the Year 2010!) to greater heights.

Tweets that mention So longâ¦ but not goodbye :: The Clog :: Blog Archive :: Staff Blog :: Philadelphia City Paper -- Topsy.com

Posted 2010-12-16 19:07:32

[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Philly City Paper, andrew mendelson, PhillyChitChat HughE, Philadelphia, Philly News Now and others. Philly News Now said: So longâ¦ but not goodbye: Itâs with no small amount of trepidation that I declared today my intention to step do... http://bit.ly/ftGsT4 [...]

David G

Posted 2010-12-16 23:49:27

Congrats and good luck, Brian.  You helmed a seaworthy ship.

Brian Howard

Posted 2010-12-17 10:08:38

Thank you, sir.

Rob Wright

Posted 2010-12-17 11:06:28

Working with you for two years and seeing the amount of passion that you have for CP was always inspiring. I wish you nothing but the best in the future!

Marc Steel

Posted 2010-12-17 11:40:03

This news is stunning, but I'm very excited for you. And for those magazines. It was a pleasure and an honor working with you.

Brian Howard

Posted 2010-12-17 13:03:20

Thanks rob

Brian Howard

Posted 2010-12-17 13:03:39

Back at you, Marc.

Paul Boni

Posted 2010-12-17 15:51:58

Thank you for all your good work and best wishes on your new endeavors.

Felicia D'Ambrosio

Posted 2010-12-18 18:13:41

Congratulations on your new opportunity, Brian!  You have been a superlative editor and fearless leader.

bruce Schimmel

Posted 2010-12-19 14:44:26

BH, As I said on the phone i'm ecstatic. There's such a renaissance in real and good community media. Thx, Bruce

Brian Howard

Posted 2010-12-20 10:07:50

Thanks, Flea!

Natalie Hope McDonald

Posted 2010-12-20 12:51:55

Congratulations, Brian!

Deidre Wengen

Posted 2010-12-21 15:51:43

Congrats on the new opportunities Brian!  I wish you the best of luck in both endeavors.

Posted by Brian Howard @ 11:03 PM Permalink | Post a comment

Foxwoods license revoked

POSTED: Thursday, December 16, 2010, 6:50 PM

Filed Under: Casinos | Gambling | News

The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board revoked the license for the proposed South Philly casino (formerly known as Foxwoods Casino), after investor asked â yet again â for an extention to find financing.

The decision does not, however, mean that the state has decided against building a second casino in Philadelphia, as directed by Act 71, the 2004 surprise legislation that legalized casinos in Pennsylvania in a single late-night session.

The Board will, presumably, seek new proposals for a new casino. This news comes, however, amid surprisingly low performance by Sugarhouse Casino, which saw a drastic decline in revenue after opening and has been significantly below state goals â all raising the question of whether the proliferation of casinos has reached a saturation point.

Casino Free Philadelphia, a grassroots organization that opposes casinos in the city, issued the following statement via email:

We know the fight is not over. Assuming the Foxwoods revocation stands, the PGCB will now seek to solicit new bids from other companies for a second casino in Philadelphia. We'll continue to fight against a casino anywhere in the city.

Our objective now is to prevent the casino rebidding process from taking place -- all while keeping pressure on SugarHouse through our Casino Town Watch, exposing the casino's predatory tactics and making clear the community opposition any casino in Philadelphia will face.

Reports: Foxwoods Casino plan apparently dead – Bizjournals.com | Popular Gin

Posted 2010-12-16 14:56:45

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Tweets that mention Foxwoods license revoked :: The Clog :: Blog Archive :: Staff Blog :: Philadelphia City Paper -- Topsy.com

Posted 2010-12-16 16:15:52

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Posted 2011-01-01 20:10:07

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Posted by Isaiah Thompson @ 6:50 PM Permalink | Post a comment

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About this blog

Here at The Naked City, you'll find breaking news, analysis, gossip and surprises about everything from crime and politics to the beating pulse of city life itself. We're good listeners, too:

Daniel Denvir: daniel.denvir@citypaper.net

Ryan Briggs: ryan.briggs@citypaper.net

Samantha Melamed: samantha@citypaper.net

The Naked City on Twitter: @CPNakedCity @danieldenvir @rw_briggs @samanthamelamed