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Heard in the Hall
Fumo's late moves rankle some
Though it is his last year in office, State Sen. Vincent J. Fumo is not going quietly into the night.
The legendary South Philadelphia lawmaker caused pains for Philadelphia officials - Mayor Nutter, for one - with some last-minute moves in Harrisburg before the break.
Fumo added some controversial language to an already-controversial bill regarding tax-free areas known as Keystone Opportunity Zones (KOZ). Nutter personally pushed it to help entice big financial firm BlackRock Inc. to move 1,100 employees here from central New Jersey.
The Fumo amendment, one paragraph in the 16-page bill, would have prohibited the KOZ designation on land within 1,001 feet of any parcel with a project that had received $20 million or more in state assistance in the last four years.
Fumo's spokesman did not return a call or e-mail to shine any light on what this language was all about.
But some political insiders suspect it had nothing to do with BlackRock. Rather, it might have been aimed at preventing Philadelphia's newest proposed skyscraper, the American Commerce Center, from being eligible for the city's 10-year tax abatement on new construction. At 1,510 feet, it would be Philadelphia's tallest building - and just a block from the Comcast Center, now the city's tallest.
Approved in the Senate, the Fumo language disappeared in the House version, bringing relief to senior Nutter aides, who feared it might jeopardize the whole bill.
-Marcia Gelbart
Two take pension deal
Council members Jack Kelly and Donna Reed Miller have joined five of their colleagues in the city's deferred retirement option plan (DROP), a controversial pension perk that critics say wasn't meant for elected officials.Kelly, 70, and Miller, 61, will begin accruing their pensions over the next four years while being paid their City Council salaries of $110,000. They can collect those four years of payments in a lump sum at the end of four years or when they leave office. Councilwoman Joan Krajewski, who joined DROP four years ago, collected her lump sum without leaving by retiring for one day in January, then beginning another four-year term in office.
Seven Council members are in DROP. Council President Anna C. Verna, Majority Leader Marian B. Tasco, Frank DiCicco, and Frank Rizzo joined. It's not clear whether all will retire or seek office in 2011.
Critics say DROP was intended to keep valuable, veteran employees working and not as a plum for elected officials (Mayor John F. Street, District Attorney Lynne Abraham, Sheriff John Green, and City Commissioner Margaret Tartaglione also joined DROP). But legislation by Councilman Bill Green to bar public officials - his senior colleagues would be grandfathered - has gone nowhere. It appears his opposition is approaching the majority of nine that would make sure it remains there.
- Jeff Shields
Critter discomfort
Councilman Bill Greenlee's staff has been out of the office for a week, spooked by a break-in by a masked intruder. A broken ceiling panel, paw prints on a sink, and claw marks up a wall were clues that a raccoon had fallen into the fifth-floor office, taken a drink of water, and scrambled back into the ducts between June 27 and 30, perhaps even returning Monday night. The staff moved into Council chambers, and didn't want to go back until the critter was captured. Specialists from the "Vector Control" unit were called, as well as the Philadelphia Animal Care and Control Association. A cage trap baited with cat food was set over the weekend.
- Jeff Shields
