There’s a nasty little fight brewing in the tiny town of Eddystone.
You can read all the details here.
It surrounds a proposal to allow a company to locate at the former site of the Foamex plant.
That’s a good thing, right? It would bring jobs – and tax revenue – to an abandoned commercial site. That’s what every town hard hit in this economy is looking for, isn’t it?
That depends. A very vocal group in Eddystone want no part of the metal-shredding facility run by Camden Metal & Iron.
They fear property values could go down as a result. They cite potential air pollution and lots of truck traffic.
It will be debated again at the May 10 council session. They are thinking of moving the meeting to Lighthouse Hall, which can accommodate a bigger crowd.
Keep an eye on this one. It has Eddystone buzzing.
A year without Harry
The faithful returned to Citizens Bank Park yesterday.
On a glorious spring afternoon, the place was again packed to the rafters for the Phillies home opener.
The listed attendance was 44,791.
But one person was missing.
Harry Kalas was not there.
It was exactly one year ago today that the Phillies lost their voice.
Kalas collapsed and died in the announcing booth before a game with the Nationals in Washington.
A new exhibit honoring Kalas has been established at Laurel Hill Cemetery, where the legendary announced is buried.
And work continues on a 7-foot bronze sculpture that will eventually be forged at Chester’s Laran Bronze and should be ready for placement outside Citizens Bank Park later this summer.
But none of them do justice to what we lost when Kalas’ perfectly blended baritone was silenced.
Maybe the best way to gauge the effect Kalas had on Phillies baseball and their fans is how we react every time a guy in those red pinstripes hits a home run.
The chant can be heard every time.
“Outttaheeeeere.”
It’s been a year since we lost “The Voice of Summer.”
Hard to believe, Harry.
If you build it....
In a game that is all about numbers, here is one that leaped out at me from baseball yesterday.
9,129.
That is not the number of people who were turned away as another packed-to-the-rafters crowd descended on Citizens Bank Park for the Phillies opener.
That is how many people – total – were in the house as the Baltimore Orioles hosted the Tampa Bay Rays at Camden Yards.
It was just a few years ago when the “throwback” ballpark on the harbor in Baltimore was a regional destination point. People thought nothing of making the short drive down I-95 to see a game there. The Orioles routinely sold out or played to near capacity crowds every night at Camden Yards.
At the same time, the Phillies were a bad team playing in an even worse facility, creaky cumbling Veterans Stadium.
Then, with Camden Yards as the blueprint, the Phillies built a retro park of their own.
In the process they once again proved the point driven home in the Kevin Costner baseball flick “Field of Dreams.”
“If you build it, they will come.”
No kidding.
The Phillies and their park are now the hottest ticket in town.
Yesterday’s opening day sellout of 44,791 was the first of what likely will be a summer full of them. The Phillies very well may sell out their entire home season. In fact, most nights, with the addition of standing room only tickets, they sell more tickets than there are seats.
Citizens Bank Park took the best parts of Camden Yards and then improved upon them. Ashburn Alley is the place to be in the summer.
Winning baseball doesn’t hurt. The Phillies have now won one World Series and returned to the Fall Classic last year. They are 6-1 in the new season – thanks in part to playing only the lowly Nationals and Astros - and look every bit like they are intent on a “three-peat.”
But a quick glance down I-95 will tell them how fast things can change.
Citizens Bank Park no doubt will continue to draw fans. It’s simply a magnificent place to watch a game, even if you could care less about baseball, which is clearly the case for a fairly good chunk of those attending the party there every night.
For now, the Phillies and their fans are content to “let the good times roll.”
So long as they don’t roll in the direction of the lowly Orioles, who now play lousy baseball in a great facility – which is almost empty most nights.
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