Michael Tanenbaum

Michael Tanenbaum is a senior staff writer for PhillyVoice.com, with interests ranging from technology and behavioral health to local community initiatives and cultural life. Michael has written for the Argentina Independent and Bespoke Magazine and previously served as a news editor for Xfinity.com before joining PhillyVoice. He received his B.A. in The Writing Seminars at Johns Hopkins University.

tanenbaum@phillyvoice.com

January 19, 2023

Food & Drink

Van Leeuwen Ice Cream to celebrate opening of Fishtown shop with $1 scoops

by Michael Tanenbaum

Van Leeuwen Ice Cream's new Fishtown location opens Friday, Jan. 20 at noon. Complimentary tote bags will be given to the first 100 people in line and $1 scoops are available from 4-6 p.m. The scoop shop is the third in Philadelphia for the Brooklyn-based ice cream maker, which has expanded its footprint in recent years.

January 18, 2023

Business

Campbell's to renovate, expand Camden HQ with $50 million investment

by Michael Tanenbaum

Campbell Soup Co.'s announced Wednesday that it will invest $50 million into the renovation and expansion of its headquarters in Camden, where it plans to consolidate the Snacks and Meals & Beverages divisions under one roof. The plan will result in the closure of offices in North Carolina and Connecticut, with most of those employees transitioning to New Jersey. Once completed, the redesigned campus in Camden will get about 350 new jobs, bringing the total number of employees there to 1,600. Construction is set to begin in March.

January 18, 2023

Investigations

Lower Merion police officer, who used Taser on unarmed Black woman during traffic stop, placed on desk duty

by Michael Tanenbaum

The Lower Merion Township police officer who used his Taser on an unarmed Black woman last week has been placed on administrative duty pending the outcome of a department investigation. The department released body camera footage of the incident Tuesday. Earlier videos taken by witnesses prompted community outrage after video surfaced of the incident, which took place in a Wawa parking lot.

January 18, 2023

Real Estate

Greening vacant lots in Philly raised surrounding property values by 4.3% in first year, Wharton study finds

by Michael Tanenbaum

A program to transform vacant lots in Philadelphia into green community spaces resulted in property value increases for homes within a 1,000-foot radius of these projects, according to research from the Wharton School. The study found that on average, homes near these lots increased in value by 4.3% after one year and cumulatively by 13% after six years. The period of the study is from 2007-2017. The lots were greened through the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society's Philadelphia LandCare program.

January 17, 2023

Wildlife

Pennsylvania professor discovers 5 million-year-old fossil of previously unknown, extinct turtle

by Michael Tanenbaum

Fossils of an extinct and previously unknown species of painted turtle were discovered at the ancient Gray Fossil Site in eastern Tennessee. The fossil was found and determined to be a new species by Harrisburg University professor Steven Jasinski. It is named Chrysemys corniculata for the distinctive horn-like points on its shell.

January 17, 2023

Media

Ray Didinger to join SportsRadio 94WIP's new morning show as Eagles contributor

by Michael Tanenbaum

Legendary Philadelphia Eagles writer and broadcaster Ray Didinger will come out of retirement to join the new SportsRadio 94WIP "Morning Show" as an Eagles contributor, the Audacy station announced. Didinger retired last year after 53 years covering the team. He will also return to NBC Sports Philadelphia's "Eagles Postgame Live" for playoff coverage beginning Saturday night after the Eagles face the Giants in the divisional round at Lincoln Financial Field.

January 16, 2023

Adult Health

Millennials' risk of fatal stroke could be higher than past generations

by Michael Tanenbaum

Millennials could be at greater risk for dying from a stroke than past generations, according to a new analysis out of Rutgers University. Although overall stroke mortality in the United States has declined, the rate at which younger people are dying from strokes is increasing. The Rutgers study is the first stroke death analysis to divide patients by their years of birth and the first to identify the steady rise in age-adjusted ischemic stroke risk from the late 1950s to the early 1990s.

January 16, 2023

Investigations

Pa. Turnpike defrauded of $1 million by alleged scheme to sell E-ZPass transponders linked to fake accounts

by Michael Tanenbaum

Two people are charged with defrauding the Pennsylvania Turnpike of $1 million with a scheme involving E-ZPass transponders linked to fake personal and credit card information, federal prosecutors said. Duvany Zambrano, 43, of Hamilton, New Jersey, and Sergio Jara, 37, of Allentown, allegedly began the scheme in 2018.

January 13, 2023

Investigations

'Boy in the Box' gets new gravestone after breakthrough in Philly cold case

by Michael Tanenbaum

Joseph Augustus Zarelli, long known as the "Boy in the Box" and "America's Unknown Child," received a new headstone at Ivy Hill Cemetery in Northwest Philadelphia on Friday, marking what would have been the slain boy's 70th birthday. Zarelli's body was found in a cardboard carton in a Fox Chase field in 1957, when he was 4 years old. His identity remained unknown until last month, when police revealed the findings of a new DNA analysis. The case remains unsolved, but the investigation is still active.

January 13, 2023

Investigations

Burglars stole $60,000 worth of equipment from East Falls construction site, police say

by Michael Tanenbaum

Two men are wanted for stealing $60,000 worth of equipment and material from a construction site at 4300 Ridge Ave. on New Year's Eve, Philadelphia police said. The suspects were captured on surveillance video from the construction site and from neighboring businesses. Anyone with information about the burglary is asked to contact Northwest Detectives.