Later this morning, Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter will make architecture professor Alan Greenberger the city's 
A 
The chief executive officer of the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia will lead Pennsylvania's State Board of Education. Gov. Ed Rendell 
One day after 
Earlier this year, Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter and the Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce pledged to get businesses across the 11-county region to provide 2,000 paid internships this summer for the city's youth. At a press conference in March, Nutter announced he would double the number of internships compared to last summer's total of 1,049 internships. Here's what the Mayor said: "I put out an ambitious goal of essentially doubling what had been done in the past. We cannot be afraid of challenging ourselves. We are a great city and region and we have the resources to do this kind of thing. As good as we did last summer, we know that there are still young people out there that need these opportunities." 
Mary Kalyna hopes this afternoon’s protest in front of Philadelphia’s embattled Department of Human Services will mean that her message will finally be heard.
The chief of staff of a Philadelphia city councilman has been indicted on federal corruption charges. In a 
What do you think the Greater Philadelphia region will look like in 30 years? If you had asked a South or West Philadelphia resident that same question back in 1949, it is doubtful that they would have been able to envision the sprawled out metropolitan region that we have today. The "American Dream" -having been put on hold for nearly two decades by the Great Depression and World War II - was transformed by the spread of the automobile. The late 19th century and early 20th century glorified the frontier mentality that led hundreds of thousands of settlers to "go west" in the hope of finding some land to farm, some gold to pan and few cows to raise.
More details are coming out on state senator Vince Fumo's corruption trial next month. The U.S. Attorney's office in Philadelphia released a 
Yesterday's news conference by Mayor Michael Nutter was the real deal, a city leader who rightly expressed how outrageous the Department of Human Services mishandled the case of Danieal Kelly in 2006. Here's WHYY reporter 
Yay, Finally crosswalk timers for one of the area's most dangerous roads. The Philadelphia Inquirer says nearly 500 crosswalk signs that have a countdown clock on them 
Philadelphia District Attorney Lynne Abraham will discuss the fatal DHS case of Danieal Kelly tomorrow on 91fm's Radio Times at 10am. Last week, her office released the Grand Jury report detailing the horrible circumstances that resulted in a 14-year old girl with cerebral palsy to starve to death. The DN’s blog Clout has more details 
August 26th will be 
Philadelphia's blue collar union rejected the City’s one-year contract offer. Today's Philadelphia Inquirer has this 
Gone are the days when you could light up in a bar or restaurant in Philadelphia. For the last two years, the city has had a smoking ban that Mayor Michael Nutter championed when he sat on City Council.
by Stephanie Marudas
The days of separating recyclables in Philadelphia are over. The City of Brotherly Love has evolved. Philadelphians can now toss recyclables like paper, plastics, glass, cardboard, and aluminum into one bin.
The city of Philadelphia may have shiny new voting machines that make it easy to track election night returns nearly instantaneously. But if you're looking for updates on election night, you're better off tuning into a local newscast than checking the city web site. Because you won't find them there. In fact, more than two months after the April 22nd Pennsylvania primary, the city commissioners still have not posted election returns online. 
US Attorney Pat Meehan is stepping down on July 15th. While there's been speculation that the Republican prosecutor might run for political office (perhaps for Governor in 2010), Meehan says his goal for now is to enter private practice.
Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter still has work to do to bring down the city's crime rate, according to an 
State Senator Dwight Evans has joined Vincent Fumo in his quest to bully the Foxwood and Sugarhouse casino developers into finding new locations for their gaming halls. 
This week, City Controller Alan Butkovitz released an audit of City Council. There's nothing particularly shocking in the document. But it does point out a number of areas where City Council policies differ from those in other branches of Philadelphia government. Many of those differences seem designed to make life a little easier for Council members and their staffers. But honestly, most of the recommendations in Butkovitz's report seem like common sense. 
Philadelphia has a $4 billion budget. So a $5 million shortfall might not seem like that much. But City Finance Director Rob Dubow says every dollar counts because there are some items in the budget that are non-negotiable, like debt services. The Nutter administration is also still involved in contract negotiations with the unions representing city employees. 
Philadelphia's new superintendent is reshaping the school district to reflect her priorities. Arlene Ackerman started the job a month ago and now we hear she's eliminating some jobs. To find out more, It's Our City caught up with WHYY's education reporter Bill Hangley for the latest.... 
Mayor expected to announce overhaul of Penn's Landing Corporation.
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Around the City: AM Aug 19, 2008 By Alan Tu Five residents of the now burned out Riverwalk at the Millennium complex in Conshohocken are suing the developer, its builder, the property manager, and a subcontractor over last week's fire. The class-action suit alleges that the parties were careless and did not take the proper safety precautions at the construction site. The fire has been ruled an accident. Investigators say the fire began
after workers from Cavan Construction of Aston, Pennsylvania used acetylene torches to remove steel frames among the largely wood-constructed apartment buildings. According to firegroundaudio.com, a website that tracks firefighting calls, Cavan Construction once had a fire at its own headquarters. On October 21, 2005, engine companies responded to an automatic fire alarm. The website reported the following: A plan to save the interior of the historic Boyd Theater will be debated at today's 1pm Philadelphia Planning Commission meeting. City Council will have the final say on the proposed ordinance change. But supporters of amending the Philadelphia code are hoping for a strong endorsement from commission members. The plan seeks to grant historic designation to the public interior portion of buildings. Under current law, only the exteriors of buildings can receive historic protection. A City Council bill expected to be introduced next month in Philadelphia would make it illegal to talk or text on a cell phone while driving. The bill does allow use of a hands-free device. Both New York and New Jersey have statewide bans in place. The legal question for Philadelphia is whether a city can enact its own ban. The bill is expected to be introduced this fall when council returns. Wall-to-wall coverage of State Senator Vince Fumo's corruption trial has begun. The South Philly legislator is scheduled to go on trial September 8th in Federal Court. He faces 139 counts, including allegations that he defrauded the state and his neighborhood non-profit. Yesterday, prosecutors revealed a bit of their strategy in a request to the judge for permission to use "leading questions" on any hostile witness they call up. Typically prosecutors only play rough with defense witnesses. But in a court filing, the feds say they expect some push back from Fumo loyalists on their witness list. Recent StoriesWhen the message gets lost by the messengersAug 18, 2008 By Dan Pohlig Local uber-blogger Atrios is pretty well known in the blogosphere for his writing about the national political scene, the war in Iraq, economic issues, and federal/state/local policy on land use, planning and transit. His insights into these polices often hit pretty close to home. In a post from yesterday, Atrios comments on Suday's Inquirer Editorial regarding the use of mass transit and makes one simple, but potentially very enlightening, suggestion: ...I also generally assume that people don't need the Philadelphia Inquirer to decide whether they should take it or their cars. Sure there are some people who, if they could be prodded to give it a try, would decide that mass transit worked for them. But most people are evaluating the options and making choices based on time, cost, and personal preferences. Such exhortations should be accompanied by the commuting methods of everyone on the editorial board. The commuting choices of the editorial board wouldn't necessarily have to keep them from being able to advocate for mass transit and exhort people to take it, but it would give the reader a valuable piece of information and open the door to a healthy discussion between readers and writers. In the interest of full disclosure, I fall into the category of folks who would be described by one Republican congresswoman as wanting "Americans to move to the urban core, live in tenements, take light rail to their government jobs." Although, I really don't care if they live in tenements, high-rise condos, or town/rowhomes. Nor do they necessarily need a government job, unless creating more of those jobs would shorten my hold time when I call the Water Revenue Bureau. I do like the idea of more folks on light rail, buses, trolleys, trains, bikes, skateboards, feet, and segways. And, for the record, my commuting method is a bright red, circa-1986 model, Schwinn Traveler that came from a trash heap. Email WHYY's Dan Pohlig at dpohlig@whyy.org with your thoughts on the relative merits of urban and suburban living - a subject of deep interest to him. Around the City: PMAug 18, 2008 By Stephanie Marudas It's a scorcher today compared to last week. But that didn't stop a group of protesters from staging a sit-in outside the Philadelphia Nursing Home earlier today. The Philadelphia chapter of a national disability rights organization called ADAPT is calling on Mayor Michael Nutter to relocate about 50 disabled nursing home residents, and close the facility for good. The group's main appeal to the Mayor is that the home's living conditions aren't up to par, and people with disabilities should have better access to affordable housing. Think before you idle. That's the latest message from Cherry Hill lawmakers. Out to do good for the environment, the township has authorized police to write you up for idling in your car for more than three minutes. The fine could be anywhere between between $250 and $1000. Around the City: AMAug 18, 2008 By Stephanie Marudas It might be the dead of summer, but government is still at work. Here's a look at what's happening around town this week: Today: Philly Stat 1:30 - 3:30 PM, 1515 Arch Street, 18th Floor The topic at today's education-focused meeting will be drop out re-engagement, which is a big issue issue for Mayor Nutter. He's pledged to reduce the high school drop out rate by 50% over the next five to seven years. Will he be able to do it? Attend this meeting to find out what steps the Nutter administration is taking. Wednesday: The Delaware River Port Authority 10am - 12pm, 11th Floor Board Room, One Port Center, 2 Riverside Drive, Camden, NJ. The DRPA is scheduled to vote on proposed bridge and PATCO toll hikes at this meeting. That means future trips across the Ben Franklin and Walt Whitman Bridges could cost you more. If you can't make it to this meeting, you can watch it streamed live online at www.drpa.org. Thursday: Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell Meets with Foxwoods Casino. Rendell is trying to convince Foxwoods to give up their Delaware River waterfront site and build elsewhere in the city. But the governor is the first to admit that's unlikely to happen.
Around the City: PMAug 15, 2008 By Stephanie Marudas Another blow for Vince Fumo. KYW is reporting that a computer staffer close to the indicted state senator from Philadelphia will plead guilty and cooperate with federal prosecutors. Last week, another one of Fumo's closest aides pleaded guilty. Federal prosecutors have charged Fumo with fraud, conspiracy, tax evasion, and obstruction of justice. In case you want to brush up on some reading, here's the link to the indictment. The weekend is here and maybe you're planning to chill out at the Philadelphia Folk Festival. But if you're in the mood to hear a new genre of music called gospel hip hop, you might want to head over to West Philadelphia on Saturday. From 11 am to 7pm, the West Philadelphia Community Center at 3512 Haverford Avenue will be the staging ground for performers singing in support of a Nonviolence Rally and Resource Fair. Around the City: AMAug 15, 2008 By Stephanie Marudas
Philadelphia public school students are making academic strides. That's according to the latest figures released by state education officials. The Daily News has the story. The Inquirer reports today that Nutter is using his campaign funds to finance his trip to the Democratic National Convention in Denver later this month. But he's not going alone. Nutter is taking along five staffers on city taxpayer money. And that decision is drawing criticism from the Committee of Seventy, a local government watchdog group in town that says using public dollars to pay for staffers' trips is a no-no. Around the City: PMAug 14, 2008 By Alan Tu 
A squabble between Bucks County Commissioners has led to a strange situation. Two republican commissioners in this Philadelphia suburb won't let the sole democrat commissioner have access to documents involving employee use of cars. The Bucks County Courier Times says Commissioners Jim Cawley and Charley Martin won't let Diane Marseglia have copies of the documents because they fear she'll leak them to the press. It's Our City asked Marseglia why she thought she was being shut out on this matter she replied, "I suppose they are hiding this and other documents because they are ashamed at the gross mismanagement that has occurred over the years and the cost this means to the taxpayers." KYW 1060am reports that gas cards will no longer be kept in Philly Car Share vehicles. Higher gas prices have led to a rash of break-ins of that company's cars that always include a gas card with the pin number displayed on the dashboard. The cards work like a credit card but only at specific gas stations. A major study will begin soon to determine the impact that non-profit companies are having on the Philadelphia region. The Philadelphia Foundation said it has commissioned the Economy League of Greater Philadelphia to determine the financial health and economic impact of southeastern Pennsylvania's nonprofit sector. Initial findings from the report will be released in December. Around the City: AMAug 14, 2008 By Alan Tu
SEPTA, the region's commuter rail provider, has announced it will dramatically expand its service on many bus and rail lines. Thanks to four-dollar per gallon gas, SEPTA ridership has soared and the agency wants to be ready for even higher demand expected in the fall. This move will mean more buses, more drivers and expanded service at night on weekends for some of the heaviest used routes. The Philadelphia School District is revamping how it evaluates the performance of individual schools. Instead of a pass/fail grade for schools based on student test scores, the district will expand its criteria to determine if a school is improving. Now, things like attendance, safety, and class size will be taken into account, and be used for a report card on a school that will be released online every June. Today's Daily News story explains more about the additional criteria that will be used. Around the City: PMAug 13, 2008 By Alan Tu
Surprise hearing on Unisys sign scheduled for tomorrow morningAug 13, 2008 By Alan Tu ZBA hearing 9:00am The opponents to Unisys Corporation's plan to hang its name on Liberty Two Tower were caught off guard today. With little notice, a continuation hearing by the Philadelphia Zoning Board of Adjustments scheduled for September has been moved up to tomorrow. The city somehow forgot to post the hearing date till this afternoon. That gives residents of Liberty Two Tower and others who are opposed to the Unisys sign very little time to gather their forces. Around the City: AMAugust 13, 2008 By Alan Tu Governor Ed Rendell says relocating two casinos sited along the Delaware River is unlikely to happen. Rendell tells KYW 1060am that his August 21st meeting scheduled with Foxwoods Casino is to explore whether moving the casino away from the river could expedite the slot parlor's opening. But he says moving the casino could result in new problems like reopening the bidding for Philadelphia's two licensed casinos. In other words, don't expect Foxwoods or Sugarhouse to move. This whole discussion of relocating is academic. And last week's three-day review of the casino designs might end up with little more than planting a few trees near the casino's planned parking garages. Former Pennsylvania house speaker John Perzel is pushing a bill that would rewrite the state's gaming legislation to steer revenues to seniors. Under current law, state residents are supposed to get property tax reductions, except in Philadelphia where the wage-tax would be lowered further. The one thing that's clear is when a state approves gambling, the original intent always seems to get lost down the road. If you remember, slots were originally proposed to resuscitate the down in the dumps racetrack industry. Instead, we got mega slot palaces. And lawmakers, albeit unsuccessfully, have already tried to expand slots into video poker and table card games. In Colorado, when they legalized casinos, it was designed to help three struggling former mining towns. Since then, mountain sides have been carved out to build mega casinos, and the towns that once featured wood planked sidewalks with shops selling bags of rock candy and fools gold, now look like a mini Vegas strip. The Vince Fumo trial witness list looks like a political convention of Pennsylvania's power brokers. The Daily News has a story today that lists some of the big whigs expected to make an appearance at the Philadelphia state senator's federal corruption trial. Can we get a webcam in the courtroom? This is going to be entertaining. The trial is scheduled to begin September 8th. A Coatesville city official is blaming Section 8 low-income residents for its crime rate. City Manager Harry Walker says his city gets more than half of the county's housing vouchers and his police can't keep up with "the dark forces of lawlessness that fester within the blighted recesses of our city." Around the City: PMAug 12, 2008 By Alan Tu
Big changes are on the way for Philadelphia's schools. Beginning September 4th Arlene Ackerman, the school district's superintendent says for the first time all schools will have to meet additional criteria. One that she mentioned is principals and regional superintendents' will be judged on graduation rates under their control. The Philadelphia Inquirer has a good story outlining many of the challenges the district is facing and the changes Ackerman is introducing. Also, the school district plans to pour $12 million dollars into 23 poor performing schools. WHYY's Bill Hangley had more about this plan earlier on 91FM. Hey build that casino near me. It's raining money in Bensalem thanks to the windfall revenue from Philadelphia Park Casino. This year, the Township will get more than $3.5 million dollars from the horse racetrack slot parlor, and that means homeowners there will each be mailed a $250 dollar check. But whatever you do though don't get caught being a litterbug in that town. While looking for interesting facts on Bensalem I came across this: If you get caught tossing trash, you'll get hit with a $300 fine and they will publicly embarrass you by publishing your name in a city press release. Also, a note of clarification the Governor's meeting later this month to plead with the casinos to move is apparently only with Foxwoods Casino. I wrote this morning that it would be with both but when I asked Leigh Whitaker a spokeswoman with Sugarhouse Casino whether they were going to be there she replied: "It is my understanding that the August 21st meeting is with representatives of Foxwoods. We are working with the Governor to schedule a meeting to discuss our project." So expect another announcement of when the Governor and city officials will meet with Sugarhouse, the casino planned on the north end of the entertainment district along Delaware Avenue. Guest Commentary: Just What We Need Another Concrete BlockAug 12, 2008 Brady Russell has spent alot of time thinking about what makes great cities work. He's even done some reading on it. So with expansion of the Pennsylvania Convention Center underway, he decided to put to the test. Will a bigger convention center mean a better city? Brady Russell is a local activist who blogs at YoungPhillyPolitics and This Too Will Pass. (full bio) This video was originally produced for CollateralNews.tv Around the City: AMAugust 12, 2008 By Alan Tu A meeting to discuss whether Philadelphia's two licensed casinos should move is set for August 21st. This may be the last big political push to get the casinos to abandon their plans to build their gaming sites along the city's Delaware River business district. Daily News columnist Elmer Smith says if Philadelphia's two planned casinos refuse to relocate, then it's time to move on. He says if there's blame to be placed, it should be directed at the state, which was so eager for gambling that it essentially bypassed Philadelphia's zoning laws. The DN editorial board also weighs in today by saying the Penn Praxis casino site review held last week may not be enough to get the casinos to overhaul their designs. It does, however, suggest that this should be a lesson for how future projects are designed along the Delaware River waterfront. The parents of a 14-year-old girl, who died while under the supervision of Philadelphia's Department of Human Services, are suing for $50,000 in damages. Daniel and Andrea Kelly, who are themselves charged in their daughter's death, have filed a wrongful death suit against DHS, the City of Philadelphia, MultiEthnic Behavioral Health, the state Department of Public Welfare, and the Commonwealth. The suit blames the various agencies for handling their daughter's case "in a dangerous and reckless manner," which resulted in her death. Around the City: PMAugust 11, 2008 By Alan Tu  Illustration of the Foxwoods Casino as it is currently envisioned Foxwoods dismissed the Penn Praxis report as biased. In the Philadelphia Daily News blog Clout, it quotes a casino official as saying,"The conclusions reached by Penn Praxis only confirm that Foxwoods Casino Philadelphia was correct in our suspicion that the outcome was predetermined." Foxwoods and Sugarhouse casino officials declined invitations to last week's casino site review forum saying it was well known that Penn Praxis didn't want the casinos along the riverfront. Foxwoods put on a price tag on its efforts so far saying it has already spent 100 million-dollars. "While Penn Praxis spent three days reviewing and revising our plans, Foxwoods Casino Philadelphia has spent nearly three years and more than $100 million developing and designing a world-class entertainment facility." If Foxwoods is built with the current design, the project is expected to cost over a billion dollars when it's finished. Zack Stalberg wants to know when Mayor Michael Nutter will deliver on his promise to fix loopholes in the city's campaign finance laws. In a letter published in today's Philadelphia Daily News, Stalberg, who heads the election reform group Committee of Seventy, says Nutter promised during the campaign to name an independent panel to look at problems in the current city campaign finance laws. Hey thanks for responding to our Twitter call for guest bloggers. I got a lot of response and tomorrow we'll be featuring a video commentary from Brady Russell who many of you know as bradydale on the blog YoungPhillyPolitics. Around the City: AMAugust 11, 2008 By Alan Tu The Daily News has an editorial that gets to the heart of what we really want to know. Can Philadelphia's Department of Human Services really change? The editorial points out that "reforms" are already underway, but changes don't always mean things improve: "Over the past two years, the department has adopted new policies that focus on quicker and more complete responses to reports of abuse and neglect. But how to ensure follow-through on those policies? As close-up observers of the department tell us, new rules often don't make it from headquarters to the front lines in the battle to protect children. A peculiar disconnect has developed between caseworkers and their young clients." Let's hope that DHS has both the resources from the city and enough public support for the workers faced with keeping families intact and rescuing abused children when the evidence is clear, as it was in the Danieal Kelly case. One of 11 unions representing workers at The Philadelphia Daily News and The Philadelphia Inquirer voted against taking a wage increase to support the papers cash-strapped owner. Teamsters Local 628, representing drivers and other workers for both papers, voted 193 - 7 to forego a $25-a-week raise scheduled to begin in September. A recent article in Philadelphia Magazine highlights the latest financial problems at Philadelphia Media Holdings, which owns both papers. Mayor Michael Nutter was prominently featured in yesterday's New York Times Magazine cover story on "The State of Black Politics." If you missed it, here's the link.  On the Calendar: A PhillyStat meeting on Transportation and Utilities is scheduled for 1:00 pm today at 1515 Arch Street in Philadelphia. Around the City: PMAugust 8, 2008 By Alan Tu  Foxwoods Casino as currently envisioned by its developer Penn Praxis tells Mayor Michael Nutter that two proposed casinos sited along Philadelphia's Delaware River should be relocated away from the waterfront. At the request of the Mayor, the group held a three-day forum to assess whether the two casinos' current designs fit in with the city's future vision for the area. In its final report, Penn Praxis says the casinos are too big for their planned sites. The report does say there are things that could be done, such as forcing them to break apart their gaming, retail, and parking areas into taller structures. A move that would minimize their footprint. But Penn Praxis says even these changes do not fit with the Civic Vision for the Central Delaware waterfront plan. This report, however, is non-binding and the casinos legally don't have to accept any of the recommendations. Both casinos, Foxwoods and Sugarhouse, have maintained that they are happy with their locations and designs. But expect heavy political pressure at a meeting tentatively set for August 21st between the casinos and city and state officials. The goal of this meeting is to explore whether the casinos should be relocated. KYW reports that the exterior of the Boyd Theater on Chestnut Street in Philadelphia has been given Historic protection. The Historical Commission unanimously voted to add the Boyd to Philadelphia's Register of Historic Places. It's a win for the nonprofit group, Friends of The Boyd, which wants to save the building. But Live Nation, which owns the Boyd, is trying to sell the theater and most likely will now have a more difficult time trying to find a buyer. Historic preservationists are also waging a battle this summer to get the theater's interior protected, which would require amending current laws. Guest Commentary: DHS Oversight Board Addresses Public Skepticism of Troubled AgencyAugust 8, 2008 We invited Carol Wilson Spigner to weigh in on the latest troubles facing Philadelphia's Department of Human Services. In January, Mayor Michael Nutter named her chair of the city's DHS Community Oversight Board. As board leader, she's tasked to monitor progress of the agency and evaluate if further reforms are needed. Under the previous Street administration, Spigner served on the board and played a key role in putting out the May 2007 Child Welfare Review Panel Report about the agency's practices that led to further reform. Outside her work on the oversight board, Spigner is the director of the University of Pennsylvania School of Social Policy and Practice.  Carol Wilson Spigner Is change possible at DHS? Should the public be skeptical of the promises made by leadership that changes will occur? The answer is yes on both counts. Yes, change is possible but it is hard. Intention to do better is important but not sufficient. Change will require leadership, clarity of purpose, a consistent focus on reform, and a strengthening of child welfare practice and supervision. It will require genuine accountability at every level in DHS and among the providers. It will require measuring the results for children and families. Should we be skeptical? Yes. The Philadelphia community needs to see the impact of the changes on the children who need help the most. We need to see that they are safer and that their lives are stabilized. We need to hold our leaders responsible for these desperately needed reforms. In the two years since the death of Danieal Kelly and the public outrage over the child deaths, the seeds of change have been sown. There is much left to be done, but I find a reason to be cautiously optimistic. Around the City: AMAugust 8, 2008 By Alan Tu Penn Praxis is expected to deliver its final report on a casino site review to Mayor Michael Nutter. The initial drawings that came out of a three-day forum indicate both Sugarhouse and Foxwoods would have to drastically redesign their buildings to fit in with the vision set out by Penn Praxis. The report is non-binding and both casinos have said they have no desire to recreate their designs or to relocate. The It's Our City Twitter following has reached 140 people. You say, What's Twitter? Think of it as an email blast to all your friends and family but the only limitation is you can't send more than two sentences. It's headline writing meets text messaging. The beauty of it is that you can follow only the people you want to, so you have a way of keeping tabs on only the people you love. Which is why I'm thrilled that so many folks are now getting daily updates from us. If you'd like to stay inform, sign up at twitter.com and search for It's Our City. DHS fired the two social workers named in the grand jury report on Danieal Kelly. Seven others remain suspended. The two let go are Dana Poindexter and Laura Sommerer. Both were charged with child endangerment by the Philadelphia District Attorney's office. Also, the Daily News reports that yesterday's rally by Mary Kalyna with DHS -- Give Us Back Our Children attracted about 25 people. Around the City: PMAug 7, 2008 By Alan Tu What if this is how your mayor spent his day. Check this video out. It's Detroit’s Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick apologizing to a judgefor violating terms of his bond before he was sentenced to spend tonight in jail. The debate over homeless in Philadelphia's posh Rittenhouse Square played out on National Public Radio yesterday. On the national heard program Tell Me More, Philadelphia Daily News columnist Christine Flowers was on with Laura Weinbaum of Project H.O.M.E., a local homeless advocacy organization debating whether the homeless using the park are a social or criminal problem. If you missed it, here it is. Also don't miss Christine's column defending the police. Keeping tabs... Mayor Nutter falls short on summer internship goal, Top cop visits young victims of racial tauntsAugust 7, 2008 by Stephanie Marudas
The woman behind the DHS protest rallyAugust 7, 2008 By Alan Tu DHS Protest
Kalyna is a longtime activist and her group DHS -- Give Us Back Our Children wasn’t formed in the last two weeks but rather earlier this year. She has called on the public to join her and a number of mothers who feel DHS unjustly took custody of their children... (read more) Around the City: AMAug 7, 2008 By Alan Tu It's Our Money blogger Ben Waxman has an editorial today in The Daily News that shows citywide recycling is saving Philadelphia money. Turns out the City has worked out a deal where we get paid for our recycling efforts. To help illustrate this, Ben says if you drank 18 cans of beer, (what are they doing over at the DN?) the city would reap the benefits of your consumption. Ben writes: "Putting those aluminum cans in a recycling bin would net the city 2.8 cents. If the cans wind up in the garbage, the city would have to spend 6.1 cents of your tax dollars to dispose of them." We should all thank Ben for doing his "research" to find this out. Now go home and take two aspirin and sleep it off. The Philadelphia Inquirer has a quick wrap up of yesterday's U.S. Conference of Mayor's crime forum in Philadelphia. The mayors suggest that President Bush began shifting federal dollars away from local policing efforts to fight the "War on Terror." Christopher Wright, who is the chief of staff to Philadelphia City Councilman Jack Kelly, entered a plea of not-guilty yesterday to federal corruption charges. In an indictment, Wright is accused of accepting bribes in turn for favorable treatment to two developers and an attorney doing business with the city. Around the City: PMAug 6, 2008 By Alan Tu  Photo: Nigel Parry for The New York Times Mayor Michael Nutter will be featured in this Sunday’s New York Times Magazine. The Daily News blog Clout says the story will be on the state of black politics in America and include a section on Nutter's support for democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton over Barack Obama. The nation’s mayors will be asking the next president to boost federal funding for local police efforts. Specifically the mayors and police chiefs cited a need for additional funding for a program called COPS run by the Department of Justice. This recommendation came out of today’s crime forum held in Philadelphia by the U.S. Conference of Mayors. USCM President Mayor Manny Diaz said Washington no longer invests in its cities and its people. Further, he said, "Washington has lost its values - lost its principles - lost its sense of purpose - engaging in endless debate and partisan bickering while people in this country continue to suffer... Plain and simple, Washington has abandoned us." An aide to City Councilman Jack Kelly was expected to turn himself in to federal authorities this afternoon. A grand jury has indicted Christopher Wright for allegedly taking bribes from two developers and their lawyer while serving as chief of staff to Republican Councilman-At-Large Jack Kelly. WHYY’s Susan Phillips has the latest. Calendar items: Friday, August 8th - The 30 day grace period will expire and Philadelphia will begin enforcement a new gun control law that requires owners to report any lost or stolen firearms. Friday, August 8th - Penn Praxis plans to deliver its final casino site report to Mayor Nutter. Saturday, August 9th - Casino-Free holds a site occupation training session. Around the City: AMAugust 6, 2008 By Alan Tu Mayors meet in Philadelphia today to draft a crime-fighting strategy for the next president. It's part of a five-city tour by the U.S. Conference of Mayors as it sets its goals for the next administration. Among the items the mayors are likely to call for is increased support for the Department of Justice's Office of Community Oriented Policing Services. A program detailed here that provides federal dollars to cities for hiring more cops and developing the 311 system to ease the burden on the 911 emergency call system. The Philadelphia Daily News explains in a nutshell what Councilman Jack Kelly's chief of staff was indicted for. If convicted, Chris Wright could be sentenced up to 48 months in jail. Here's the full indictment. Mayor Michael Nutter took some heat yesterday from DHS workers over his scathing remarks on the agency's 2006 handling of the Danieal Kelly case. In private meetings with agency workers, he hoped to show his support for the social services department's hard work despite the failings of a few cited in a recent grand jury report. Around the City: PMAugust 5, 2008 By Alan Tu
A number of mayors and police chiefs will meet in Philadelphia tomorrow to help develop a national action plan for cities. Mayor Michael Nutter is the host mayor. Among those will be speaking is John Timoney, Miami Police Chief and President of the National Police Executive Research Forum. Timoney is a former Philadelphia police commissioner. Latest on DHS and the death of Danieal Kelly: Hear Philadelphia District Attorney Lynne Abraham’s interview with Marty Moss-Coane on this morning’s Radio Times. Hear Mayor Michael Nutter’s interview with Brenda Jorett on today’s Morning Edition. Hear yesterday’s emotional news conference by Mayor Michael Nutter on DHS. The long national nightmare of big box shopping centers may be coming to an endAugust 5, 2008 By Dan Pohlig
In the second half of the 20th century our manifest destiney became large backyards with swimming pools, 4000-square-foot homes and an SUVs the size of African elephants. All of which was made the availability of cars and cheap gas. (read more) Around the City: AMAugust 5, 2008 By Alan Tu
Lawyers for Fumo, the democratic state senator from South Philadelphia, say they will probably release their witness list next Monday. In April, prosecutors unveiled some of the evidence they plan to use in the trial.
Around the City: PMAugust 4, 2008 By Alan Tu
Seven suspended in fatal DHS caseAugust 4, 2008 12:00pm The Philadelphia Daily News reports on its Clout blog that Mayor Nutter announced this morning that seven city workers named last week in a grand jury report about the Department of Human Services were suspended from their jobs, effective immediately. Around the City: AMAugust 4, 2008 By Alan Tu Mayor Michael Nutter is back on the job after his Aruba vacation. He has a few items on his to do list today including attending Philadelphia's National Night Out event. The homicide rate in Philadelphia is down 23 percent. The City's goal is a 25 percent drop by the end of the year. The Daily News has this update. The DN has a list of 10 rising political stars who are under 40 years old in today's paper. It also has this companion story looking at what it will take for these young pols to succeed. Dave Davies, a frequent face around WHYY points out that the current campaign finance law in Philadelphia could give an advantage to the Republican Party in next year's race for district attorney. Is less really more? The Philadelphia Inquirer says it will cut two regular sections of its paper. Image, the Sunday lifestyles section, and Neighbors in an effort to cut costs, but it also says "we will bolster our coverage of suburban Pennsylvania and South Jersey news in the daily and Sunday Inquirer." Hmm...sounds more like we're getting less. Not surprising considering Brian Tierney's money problems. Last Friday Philly Mag's blog Daily Examiner reported on Philadelphia Media Holdings financial problems. PMH is the owner of the Philadelphia Inquirer and Daily News. One area I hope never changes is the paper's long history of investigative work which according to yesterday's Inquirer helped uncover the shoddy work of the Philadelphia Department of Human Services handling of 14-year-old Danieal Kelly who died under the agency's watch. The paper has a good analysis of Friday's Grand Jury report on the case. The Inquirer also reports that Mayor Michael Nutter is cutting his personal security staff from 14 to 10. Around the City: PMAugust 1, 2008 By Alan Tu A ruling on whether a new condo tower can be built along side Washington Square Park is expected soon. Plan Philly has a write up on last night’s L&I committee meeting on the project that could be built next to the Dilworth House. Please pass the word that we’re now accepting questions for our upcoming interview with Philadelphia Police Commissioner Charles Ramsey. As we reminded you on Radio Times in March, The most pressing issue facing Mayor Michael Nutter during the 2007 election was crime. And much of the responsibility for addressing the city's violent crime problem falls on Ramsey. So don’t think of this as asking some bean counter if he prefers Blackberry over the iPhone, this is someone whose decisions affect the safety of the city’s residents and with it the area’s economic vitality. Send us your questions before next Friday. The video taped interview will be posted on this site and later seen on WHYY digital TV. It’s Our City is working on a massive community calendar project. I want to create one spot where civic and community group meetings are listed. If your organization would like to be listed just send me an email. city@whyy.org Finally if you would like to see Philadelphia through a fresh perspective, check out Phillyskyline.com. I’ve never seen such beautiful pictures of buildings under construction. Around the City: AMAugust 1, 2008 By Alan Tu PA gun control group uncovers NRA spy. Mother Jones magazine has revealed that a woman calling herself Mary McFate worked her way on to the Ceasefire PA’s board of directors. But she’s really Mary Sapone a woman who has infiltrated other gun control groups in the past. Ceasefire PA’s website still has her listed on its board members with this description.
Ceasefire PA is headed by some veterans of Philly politics, Phil Goldsmith who was a managing director for Mayor John Street is the organization’s president and Joe Grace once Mayor’s Street’s spokesman is Ceasefire PA’s executive director. Plan Philly, the blog arm of Penn Praxis, has a wrap-up of its there day summit re-designing the city’s two planned casinos. A formal report goes to Mayor Michael Nutter on Friday, August 8th. Tidbits found on blogs covering Philadelphia "According to the July 28 Intelligencer the Borough of Doylestown is considering an ordinance to require the inclusion of bicycle racks for all new commercial buildings or an existing building that changes its use (i.e. store to restaurant)." by John "Parked the car in center city, 5min. to get change for parking meter and got a ticket from Mr. Rozanski , Badge No. 02-250.. Around the City: PMJuly 31, 2008 By Alan Tu Penn Praxis unveiled new designs for Philadelphia’s two planned casinos today. The Daily News’ Clout blog has the drawings of how both projects would have to be reconfigured to fit in with the Penn Praxis vision for the Delaware River waterfront. The plans emphasize easy access to the waterfront and using condo and retail development to hide the parking garages. The revamped projects are so different from the original plans that it’s hard to imagine the casinos willing to opt in. Penn Praxis delivers the non-binding plan to Philadelphia’s Mayor on August 8th. Two Philadelphia Department of Human Services workers have been charged in the 2006 death of 14-year old Danieal Kelly who was under the agency’s supervision. The charges were included in a grand jury report released today by the District Attorney’s office. The report concluded that Kelly's death was preventable and called on DHS to be better supervised in the future. Philadelphia’s new mayor has already taken a few steps in that direction. In January, Michael Nutter created a new oversight board and named a new commissioner last month. Around the City: AMJuly 31, 2008 by Alan Tu The Philadelphia Daily News has the rundown on day two of the three day Penn Praxis casino site review forum. One of the big issues talked about yesterday is whether the casino parking garages, often multi-storied behemoths, will be an eyesore that could be solved by off-site parking. Philadelphia's Chinatown gate is getting a facelift. WPVI had a nice report yesterday on the $250,000 restoration project that will take about six-weeks to complete. And the Philadelphia Inquirer reports that Republican U.S. Senator Arlen Specter plans to run for re-election in 2010. Specter, now 78, has Hodgkin's disease. Around the City: PMJuly 30, 2008 by Alan Tu Penn Praxis is in day two of its three-day site review on Philadelphia's two planned casinos. The group was asked by Mayor Michael Nutter to see if the casinos as currently designed are a good fit for the Delaware River waterfront. Plan Philly has posted one in-depth story on what's happened so far. Penn Praxis will finish up tomorrow and issue its report within two weeks. Tomorrow is the public's last chance to tell the Philadelphia Water Department what you think of their proposed 30-percent rate hike. To date, turnout has been low at the first four public hearings often with just five or ten people showing up at each meeting. Public input is especially important here, because under the current system the Water Department has the final say on rate hikes. If no one shows up, that must mean no one has a problem with it, right? The Water Department got this god-like power under the 1951 Home Rule Charter. In 2005, City Councilman Brian O'Neil called this model a "sham," and tried unsuccessfully to give Council the final say on water rate hikes. The public hearing is Thursday, July 31st @ 6pm at Holy Family College, 9801 Frankford Ave, Campus Conference Center room 115. If you missed today's Radio Times on the Delaware River Port Authority, here's the MP3. Marty Moss-Coane interviewed Philadelphia Inquirer reporter Paul Nussbaum and Eileen Stilwell of the Courier-Post. They got into the minutia of how Congress allowed DRPA to morph into a regional economic development agency. A move that has left the bridge toll operator with more than one-billion dollars in debt. Also this handy piece of information came up, the last chance for the public to voice its opinion on proposed bridge toll hikes is September 17th at the next DRPA meeting. Don't worry we'll remind you. Around the City: AMJuly 30, 2008 by Alan Tu Philadelphia is overhauling its minority business opportunity agency. Today's Philadelphia Inquirer reports that Mayor Michael Nutter has asked for the resignation of Carolyn Nichols the director of the Minority Business Enterprise Council. Tune in to Radio Times this morning at 10am for the back-story on the Delaware River Port Authority. This is the agency that charges tolls on the bridges over the Delaware River and is supposed to keep them in good condition... unless they are busy doing other things. The "good design" group Penn Praxis concluded last night that the two planned casinos along Philadelphia's Delaware River front are "incompatible" with its vision for redevelopment. This is significant because Mayor Michael Nutter has signed on to the group's long term plan for the area. The Daily News covered last night's meeting. Finally KYW has a report on a recent ranking of cities and their job growth. Unfortunately Philadelphia ranked quite low. I also noticed an older story from the group that did the survey, Newgeography.com, that has a similarly bleak outlook on Philadelphia but goes into more detail about how the city is faring economically compared with its suburbs. Around the City: PMJuly 29, 2008 by Alan Tu Philadelphia becomes a poster child for crime infested cities. The U.S. Conference of Mayors plans to give the next President a ten-point action plan on the needs of America’s cities. To make its point, the mayor's group will be visiting five cities to highlight areas it believes require significant federal investment. The first stop is Philadelphia on Tuesday August 5th where mayors and police chiefs will talk about the problem of crime. Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter says "Philadelphia is honored to be the first of several U.S. Conference of Mayors issue forums." Personally, I'd rather we be showcased for our murals. Here are the other cities that will be visited and the topics that will be discussed: Los Angeles/Poverty, New York/Infrastructure, Chicago/Arts and Miami/Environment. Here's an interview I won't miss. Tomorrow on Radio Times at 10am tune in for the bizarre history of the Delaware River Port Authority's role as a regional economic development agency. Guests will be Philadelphia Inquirer reporter Paul Nussbaum and Courier Post staff writer Elaine Stilwell. Oh by the way, DRPA is planning to boost bridge tolls in September from $3 to $4 to pay for maintenance. See one of Paul’s recent stories. The Mayor's office sent out a press release this afternoon saying the City is now taking applications for the Delaware Waterfront Corporation’s Board of Directors. The DWC replaces the Penn’s Landing Corporation which had a reputation for operating out of the public eye. Philadelphia's Mayor backs a local blogger’s call for public access to vote tallies. KYW 1060 reports the Mayor wants this to happen in time for the November Presidential election. Young Philly Politics blogger Dan Urevick-Ackelsberg successfully used his website to generate public awareness that Philadelphia does not make real time election returns publicly available on a website. Although that could be harder than we think since the Philadelphia Elections website is currently down. Around the City: AMJuly 29, 2008 by Alan Tu The Daily News editorial board backs Unisys move to Center City. The suburban Philadelphia company wants to move its headquarters into one of Philadelphia's signature high rise office buildings. The only problem is not everyone is happy with the company's plan to hang glowing Unisys signs high on the building's exterior. The DN says get over it, these are the type of jobs the City wants to attract. But aren't the DN folks forgetting that if we say yes this one time, future tenants will want the same deal? That'll be pretty. If you missed 91FM's report on why Philadelphia Police Commissioner wants to duplicate a plan from Chicago where academics help police better understand the impact of their crime fighting strategies, you can check it out online. Did you ever wonder why cities keep adding more roundabouts or as I like to call them circles of death? Last night while listening to Fresh Air, I finally heard the rationale for why traffic circles are becoming more popular even though we all hate them. They're safer. If you don't believe me listen to this interview. Around the City: PMJuly 28, 2008 by Alan Tu More gun laws on tap for Philadelphia. I noticed that City Council will vote on four more gun bills on it first day back, September 18th. If you remember Council introduced nine gun bills, and passed five of them. These are the remaining four. If passed, they would require gun owners to register their weapons and ammo, register their weapons if applying for a concealed gun permit, and make it illegal to have a gun if you have been charged in specific crimes. If approved, all would likely be challenged in court. Also, I was late catching up with Brett Mandel who had a meeting last week with the Board of Revision of Taxes. Mandel had threatened to sue the City if it didn't move forward on reforming the property tax formula. The BRT did announce it would re-assess home and commercial values to come up with actual values, which is something close to market value. Mandel says after talking with BRT, he's happy with the plan they have laid out. So if all goes according to plan, Mandel says, the BRT will have preliminary assessments by the end of the year for City Council. Stay tuned for updates. Here's an update on the City's plan to give historical designation to the interiors of publicly used buildings. This could affect any business that is open to the public in a historic building. Jonathan Farnham, the executive director of the Philadelphia Historical Commission said the Committee on Legislation met this morning and decided to give the City Council bill its full support. Farnham says, there will be two more opportunities for public input at the August 8th Historical Commission meeting and the September 16th Planning Commission meeting. Council will likely take up the bill for final reading this fall. Around the City: AMJuly 28, 2008 by Alan Tu Postponing the inevitable. Today’s Daily News editorial asks the question on everyone’s mind, what’s with these one-year labor contracts? Currently the City of Philadelphia has reached agreements with two of the City’s largest employee unions, the police and blue collar workers, without addressing the long term problem of how the city will continue to fund worker health and pension benefits without going bankrupt. Crime mapping for the rest of us. Crime mapping usually means tracking criminal activity so the cops can best decide how to deploy their forces. But under Philadelphia’s new Police Commissioner Charles Ramsey we now have crime maps on the police department's website. The Inquirer has this story. Also don’t forget these useful maps to help you understand the region better. The Policy Map is great for stuff you’d find in a census map. A nice alternative to Google Maps is Microsoft’s Live Search Maps which can be more useful than Google with its birds eye view in identifying buildings. As for today’s meetings. There’s another PhillyStat meeting. This one at 1:30pm at 1515 Arch street. On the schedule are updates on the Fire Department and Administration Services. Around the City: PMJuly 25, 2008 by Alan Tu History heads indoors. Plan Philly lists a pretty interesting meeting scheduled for Monday morning at 9am. At that time, a committee of The Philadelphia Historical Commission discusses whether the interior of public use buildings could receive historical designation. From a developer's point of view that could mean restricting your renovation plans. The proposed change is part of a City Council bill introduced in May and still needs final Council approve in the fall before it could take effect. Currently only the exterior of a historically designated structure can be regulated. Campaign promises, campaign promises. Will this time being any different? When I took this job, One of the mandates was lets do a follow up on The Next Mayor website. That’s a tall order considering last year’s Mayoral race had no incumbent running. So I’m going to need your help. My job is to remind you of all the promises Michael Nutter made and the ambitious goals he’s set out and whether he's doing anything to accomplish them. Your job will be to let me know what issues are important to you and together we’ll keep the pressure on and hopfully we'll get results. Email me at city@whyy.org with your tips or story ideas. Also I’m told next week It’s Our City will be reborn as a blog. That means the door swings wide-open and you’ll be able to leave comments for the whole world to see. Finally did you see our new It’s Our City timelines? We found a cool website called CircaVie that helps you put events into a moveable timeline.We’ll keep posting more things over time and if you see something important missing let me know. Around the City: AMJuly 25, 2008 by Alan Tu Mayor Michael Nutter announced yesterday evening that the DC 33 has accepted a one-year contract that offers a one-time bonus but no raise. Say what? No raise? Just yesterday we read that these were the same conditions that were unacceptable to the union. While we all love a big bonus it doesn't raise your salary and it doesn't mean a larger contribution to your pension or 401k. Obviously, there's more to learn. here's the latest from the Philadelphia Daily News. Also here's the Mayor's Office Press Release on the tentative agreement. It's packed with details. There other big development is Philly's two casino developers have announced they won't participate in a site review by Penn Praxis. This is the "good design" group that Mayor Nutter asked to do more review on the viability of the sites for the two licensed mega slots parlors. Under state law, Philadelphia is allowed two casinos that can have slot machines only. DN story here. And finally, don't forget to email us questions for Philadelphia Police Commissioner Charles Ramsey. Former Philadelphia Inquirer columnist Tom Ferrick will interview him at WHYY on August 8th. This will be video taped for later broadcast. send you questions to city@whyy.org Around the City: PMJuly 24, 2008 By Alan Tu
Daily News has a story on Phila PD’s radio outage. But after reading this I still can’t get over the odds of the Philadelphia Police Commissioner Charles Ramsey being the guy who called for back-up and having the City's police radio system going down. What are the chances of this? You have a better chance of being hit by lightening. Wait...maybe the chances are equal. The tower where the radio system is based also got hit by lightning earlier in the week. Also from the DN. Its high drama at the Zoning Board meeting. The high-tech company Unisys in Blue Bell, PA is getting flack for its plan to hang two big lighted signs on the Liberty Two office tower. The company plans to move its headquarter to downtown but the lit up signs to be placed on the 37th and 38th floors could be a deal breaker, because Unisys says they were counting on signs as part of the deal. Police Commissioner gets an Earful from South Philadelphia residentsJuly 23, 2008 by Stephanie Marudas
Last night, Philadelphia Police Commissioner Charles Ramsey stood on his feet for more than an hour as he fielded questions and comments from South Philly residents. Ramsey addressed concerns about curfew enforcement for minors, quality of life issues, and how citizens can improve their relationships with the police. He told folks that while illegal gun seizures by police are up this year under his helm, the courts must also do their part and impose stiffer sentences to frighten potential offenders. (read more) Smoking PoliticsJuly 22, 2008 by Stephanie Marudas Since taking effect, the ban has probably gotten some social smokers to kick the habit. But if area politicians were really serious about curbing smoking, would they consider raising the cigarette tax? (read more) Fate of Philadelphia curfew centers uncertainJuly 21, 2008 by Brad Linder Over the past two years, Philadelphia has opened 11 curfew centers throughout the city. The centers are designed to help keep kids off the street late at night, reduce youth violence, and offer social services to youths and families that need them. But two years after the first curfew center opened in South Philadelphia, city officials are wondering whether the millions of dollars spent on the program have been worth it. (read more) Fate of Philadelphia curfew centers uncertain from whyyphila on Vimeo Higher risk for heart attacks and strokes in violent neighborhoodsJuly 21, 2008 by Stephanie Marudas 
Imagine hearing gunshots almost daily, and hitting the floor each time because you're afraid a stray bullet might pierce through your door or window. Most likely, you would be stressed out, and maybe your health would decline as a result. Researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in Baltimore have found this to be the case. In fact, people who live in neighborhoods suffering violence suffer higher stress levels and health problems. (read more) Political activist continues push for open access to election night resultsJuly 18, 2008 by Brad Linder
The software the city of Philadelphia uses to tally election results only allows 150 individuals to log in on election night and see real-time election returns. But political blogger and activist Daniel Urevick-Ackelsberg thinks that's ridiculous. Today he launched a campaign designed to force the city to make election night results immediately available to everyone. (read more) Nutter names new city arts czarJuly 18, 2008 by Stephanie Marudas  Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter announced earlier today that Gary Steuer (pictured left) will be the city's new chief cultural officer. Steuer's job will be to run the newly established Office of Arts, Culture and the Creative Economy that Nutter created under an executive order today. (read more) Property tax reform advocate may sue cityJuly 18, 2008 by Alan Tu and Brad Linder  Philadelphia Forward executive director Brett Mandel is scheduled to meet with members of the Board of Revision of Taxes on Tuesday. The BRT is the agency which helps determine how much Philadelphians pay in property taxes. Yesterday the board voted to support a major overhaul of the city's property tax system that would change the way taxes are calculated. But Mandel says that might not be enough to fix the city's broken tax system. (read more) Southeastern Health Care Survey Expands to Cell Phone UsersJuly 16, 2008
Health care pollsters in Southeastern Pennsylvania are now dialing cell phones as part of the biannual Household Health Survey conducted by PHMC, or the Philadelphia Health Management Corporation. PHMC is Southeastern Pennsylvania's largest collector of information when it comes to finding out about people's health care situation. (read more) City responds to latest population estimate showing lossJuly 15, 2008 by Alan Tu Earlier this month the Census Bureau released an annual population estimate which showed Philadelphia is one of the fastest shrinking large cities. It says Philadelphia likely lost 68,000 residents from 2000-2007. We caught up with City Budget Director Stephen Agostini, about how the city leaders interpret the latest estimate. Agostini is the go to man for census numbers because he served as chief financial officer for the Economics and Statistics Administration at the U.S. Department of Commerce. And the ESA oversees the U.S. Census Bureau. worse. (read more) DC considers handgun restrictions following Supreme Court rulingJuly 15, 2008 by Alan Tu Washington DC’s City Council is considering emergency legislation today that would allow residents to legally own handguns for the first time in 32 years. This follows a landmark US Supreme Court decision that struck down the city’s handgun ban. Under the new law, The nation's capital would allow for citizens to own handguns but they must be kept at home and used only for self defense. Another city pushing for tighter controls is Newark, New Jersey. There Mayor Cory A. Booker is calling for the state Senate to pass a bill that would limit people to buying one handgun per month. Newark might have better luck at the state level, when Philadelphia city leaders tried to enact its own law a Common Pleas Court struck it down in June. The Weekend Crime ReportJuly 14, 2008 by Stephanie Marudas 
Browse through our nation's big city newspapers on Mondays, and you find a recap of the weekend's bloodshed. For instance, the Chicago Tribune writes today about three people fatally shot in the windy city over the weekend. Down south in Miami Herald prints a story about a gunman who opened fire at a graduation party and killed one person. In nearby Baltimore, the Sun reports three men were shot Sunday evening but didn't die. (read more) 
Patriot News: Vince Fumo should resignJuly 14, 2008 by Alan Tu The editorial board of the Harrisburg Patriot News says Vince Fumo should step down
now rather than prolong his time in office. 
Prime real estate for City's newest LGBT liaisonJuly 11, 2008 by Stephanie Marudas Gloria Casarez officially started her job this month. She's the city's second LGBT liaison (a position that was created under the previous Street administration) but the first to report to the Mayor's chief-of-staff and work in City Hall. The Nutter administration's decision to elevate the position has been well-received by the city's LGBT community. Casarez comes to the job after having spent the last nine years as executive director for the Philadelphia-based Gay and Lesbian Latino AIDS Education Initiative (GALAEI). (read Q&A)
Nutter Reopening Defunct Office of Arts and CultureJuly 10, 2008 by Stephanie Marudas image credit: Katie Tegtmeyer When Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter was running for office last year, he promised to reestablish the city's arts and culture office "somewhere between the inauguration and before lunch is served." Now flash forward. It's July- six months after Nutter was inaugurated- and still no arts and culture office. What's with the delay? (read more) 
Nutter Names New Appointees to Philadelphia Commission on Human RelationsJuly 9, 2008 by Stephanie Marudas Mayor Michael Nutter has drafted his dream team for the Philadelphia Commission on Human Relations. At a news conference yesterday, he announced that "This will be the No. 1 human-rights organization in the United States of America." Nutter's eight new picks replace commissioners appointed by former Mayor John Street. However, Nutter is keeping Vine Memorial Baptist Church Reverend, James Allen, as chairperson. (read more)
Philadelphia is considering taxing trashJuly 9, 2008 by Alan Tu The Philadelphia Daily News reports the City of Philadelphia is thinking about charging residents for trash pickup as a way to encourage conservation. The first thing that comes to mind is don't Philly residents already pay for trash pick up through their taxes? Yes they do. The City estimates it costs $90-million dollars a year to pick up garbage. So pay-per-throw would represent a new revenue stream for the City. (read more) Philadelphia launches single stream recyclingJuly 8, 2008 by Stephanie Marudas
Not only is single stream recycling less time consuming than separating, city officials say it's also easier and should encourage more residents to do their part. (read more) Real-time election returns, and why they're so hard to come by in PhillyJuly 8, 2008 by Brad Linder
US Attorney Pat Meehan announces resignation
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  Welcome to It's Our City the sequel to The Next Mayor project. Our mission is to promote a high-level discussion on the Philadelphia region's biggest challenges and what role local governments can play to solve them. WHYY's content partner is The Philadelphia Daily News. This project is made possible by a grant from the William Penn Foundation. |
