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 12, 2021

Restrictions

Indoor dining at Philly restaurants can resume in limited capacity on Jan. 16

by Michael Tanenbaum

Philadelphia restaurants will be permitted to resume limited indoor dining on Saturday, Jan. 16, when the city eases some additional COVID-19 restrictions. As the vaccine rollout continues, the health department also clarified the various phases of distribution to different populations.

January 12, 2021

Business

Moorestown Mall to get a hotel and 1,065 apartments, PREIT says

by Michael Tanenbaum

Mall owner PREIT will lead the development of 1,065 apartments and a hotel at the Moorsetown Mall in South Jersey. After emerging from bankruptcy last year, PREIT aims to diversity the uses of its mall sites with between 5,000 and 7,000 residential units across its portfolio. The company is the largest mall owner in the Philadelphia area.

January 12, 2021

Addiction

Philly plan for opioid overdose prevention site shot down in federal court reversal

by Michael Tanenbaum

A federal appeals court ruled Tuesday that the non-profit organization Safehouse cannot open an overdose prevention site in Philadelphia, reversing an earlier district court ruling. The Third Circuit Court of Appeals cites federal drug laws as a reason for overturning the decision. Supervised injection sites embrace a harm-reduction strategy to combat the opioid epidemic, reducing fatal overdoses by allowing those with opioid-use disorder to safely consume their drugs under medical supervision.

January 11, 2021

Restaurants

Fink's Hoagies cleared to reopen after owner accuses health department of 'shakedown'

by Michael Tanenbaum

Fink's Hoagies, a popular shop in Northeast Philadelphia, has been cleared to reopen by the Philadelphia Department of Public Health after the restaurant was cited and fined for violating the city's COVID-19 protocols. Owner Dennis Fink said the city's enforcement of the policies amounted to a "shakedown" of his restaurant.

January 11, 2021

Universities

Penn professor under fire for giving Nazi salute during virtual conference

by Michael Tanenbaum

Robert Schuyler, an anthropology professor at the University of Pennsylvania, gave a Nazi salute and shouted "Seig Heil to you" during a virtual conference of the Society for Historical Archaeology on Jan. 6, 2021. Schuyler could face discipline for the incident, which occurred after a disagreement with another speaker in the virtual conference.

January 11, 2021

Eagles

Eagles Twitter reacts to firing of head coach Doug Pederson

by Michael Tanenbaum

Doug Pederson is officially out as head coach of the Philadelphia Eagles, ending a five-year run that peaked with a victory in Super Bowl LII and ended with a disastrous 4-11-1 record in 2020. His tenure was capped by the humiliation of an overt tank-job in his final game.

January 11, 2021

Government

Biden nominates La Salle alum Bill Burns as next CIA director

by Michael Tanenbaum

Veteran U.S. diplomat William Burns has been nominated by President-elect Joe Biden as the next director of the CIA. Burns, an alumnus of La Salle University in Philadelphia, was formerly deputy secretary of state during the Obama administration and most recently served as head of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.

January 8, 2021

Police

U.S. Capitol Police identify New Jersey native as officer who died in D.C. riot

by Michael Tanenbaum

U.S. Capitol Police officer Brian D. Sicknick died Wednesday after physically engaging with rioters in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2021. Sicknick, from East Brunswick, New Jersey, was a veteran who joined the USCP in 2008. Authorities are investigation Sicknick's death as a homicide.

January 8, 2021

Business

Wawa opening first Pa. drive-thru location in Bucks County on Friday

by Michael Tanenbaum

Wawa's first standalone drive-thru location in Pennsylvania opened Friday in Falls Township, Bucks County, at 549 West Trenton Avenue. The company opened a New Jersey drive-thru store last month in Westhampton Township, Burlington County.

January 8, 2021

Politics

Pennsylvania Lt. Gov. John Fetterman mulling U.S. Senate run in 2022

by Michael Tanenbaum

Pennsylvania Lt. Gov. John Fetterman is exploring a run for the U.S. Senate in 2022, targeting the seat that will be vacated after GOP Sen. Pat Toomey announced that he will not seek a third term in office.