A rink at risk | Morning Newsletter
🍌 And how Philly cuts grocery costs
The Morning Newsletter
Start your day with the Philly news you need and the stories you want all in one easy-to-read newsletter
Good morning, Philly.
Severe storms are possible today. A flash flood watch is in effect from 2 a.m. Sunday through 2 a.m. Monday. The rains are related to an approaching cold front that will cool things off this week.
A hockey rink in South Philadelphia already operates as if every season could be its last. But this time, it might be for real. Our main read explores the uncertain future for the rink under pressure due to the I-95 reconstruction project.
— Paola Pérez (morningnewsletter@inquirer.com)
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After nearly 50 years in Pennsport, the Rizzo Rink is now searching for a new home.
The club was told they would eventually have to close due to the decades-long effort to rebuild and expand I-95 in South Philadelphia. The rink is tucked just below the highway.
Rizzo has long outgrown the rink, but has been unsuccessful in its efforts to find a new facility. Officials say they have asked the city for help for years, but promises have gone unfulfilled and they are seemingly stuck in limbo.
Between 250 and 300 kids play there every year, and program fees are kept at a minimum to give more kids the opportunity to participate.
Rizzo lifer Jason Brinn has played and coached there for nearly 40 years. His father, Henry Brinn, founded the youth hockey league in the 1980s.
Notable quote: “We know we’re on borrowed time,” Brinn said. “We just don’t know how much time we have left.”
Keep reading for more on the Rizzo’s community clout and to hear what officials are saying about efforts to relocate the rink in limbo.
What you should know today
The first debate between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump will take place in Philly on Sept. 10 at the National Constitutional Center. ABC News has yet to release details on how people can attend the debate, or whether they can attend at all.
Authorities identified four men and a woman charged in connection with a brawl at Chickie’s & Pete’s in South Philadelphia, where one man allegedly hit a police sergeant in the face multiple times. One of the people charged was a reputed mobster.
Donald Trump held a rally in Wilkes-Barre Saturday and said whoever wins Pennsylvania will ‘win the whole thing.’
Rescue crews were searching the Schuylkill for the driver of a sedan that police said veered off Kelly Drive early Friday morning, plunging into the water.
Social media posts featuring photos of a Pennsylvania man are circulating online, claiming that the father and husband is currently missing, sometimes calling him by different names. But he died months earlier.
A 25-year-old man was shot to death Friday night in Philadelphia’s Tacony Creek Park. No arrests have been reported and police said no weapon was recovered.
Leaders of the Old City District oppose a proposal to build a Greyhound station in a South Second Street parking garage, citing “serious concerns” that it would damage the character of the crowded historic neighborhood.
There was a fatal three-vehicle crash on Kelly Drive near Strawberry Mansion Bridge Thursday afternoon. The victim, Steven Moultrie, 41, was hailed as a dedicated servant of the Greek community and a resource for those underserved in Philadelphia and beyond.
Under Philadelphia’s latest property assessments released earlier this month, valuations are rising most rapidly in low-income neighborhoods in West Philly that are near rapidly gentrifying areas.
A brand new, $62 million Philadelphia School District building made its debut on Friday. Take a look inside Cassidy Elementary.
$200 million in federal funds will be infused into new Philly-area biking and walking trails, and will go a long way toward making what’s known as the Spring Garden Connector in Philadelphia a reality.
Inflation overall is cooling, but consumers in Philly and beyond are still feeling the impacts at the grocery store — and the issue is top of mind ahead of the November election.
Food prices are still higher than they were before the pandemic, and the Philadelphia region saw the largest hikes on grocery prices, according to a Consumer Affairs report.
On the campaign trail, presidential candidates are focusing on lower food prices as part of their economic pitch to voters. Economists point out that the White House can only do so much to influence inflation, but it’s clear that this pain in people’s wallets can play a role in how they vote.
Philly-area residents are coping with high costs in different ways: Some do research to find the best deals, while others have changed their diets or cut back on unnecessary items.
Consumer reporter Erin McCarthy caught up with shoppers to see how they’re saving money on groceries.
❓Pop quiz
New Jersey oyster farms have exploded in number in the past few decades — and the renaissance is producing world-class oysters.
How many farms are there today?
A) 20
B) 33
C) 41
D) 62
Think you know? Check your answer.
🧩 Unscramble the anagram
Hint: This football player and brother of a retired Eagle will make his acting debut in Ryan Murphy’s new FX show, Grotesquerie.
CLEAVER SKIT
Email us if you know the answer. We’ll select a reader at random to shout out here. Cheers to Diane Bailey who correctly guessed Friday’s answer: Open Streets. The pedestrian-focused initiative is coming to Rittenhouse as stretches of Walnut and 18th Streets will close to traffic on Sundays in September.
Diners descended on LOVE Park in their most elegant all-white attire for the 12th annual Dîner en Blanc.
🎶 Today’s track goes like this: “These days, I wanna feel it / No simulation, it’s gotta be true.”
👋🏽 Thanks for spending part of your morning with The Inquirer.