Members of City Council just wrapped up a meeting where their legal counsel provided a briefing on the amendments added by the state Senate to House Bill 1828, the legislation that provides budget relief to the city.

HB 1828 grants the city permission to temporarily raise the sales tax and to defer some pension payments. The new version of the bill includes amendments that would bar elected officials from the controversial Deferred Retirement Option Plan (DROP) and would require the city to freeze the pension plan and create a lower-cost plan for all new city employees, which would have to be negotiated with municipal unions.

Union officials have slammed the plan, saying it would damage the collective bargaining process.

Six Council members attended the session, along with several staffers for other members. Afterwards, many said that speedy passage of HB1828 was best for the city.

"We are frankly speaking, bleeding to the tune of $10 million a month," said Councilman Darrell Clarke. "We're interested to have this come to a conclusion very soon."

Councilman Bill Greenlee said: "Get it done and get it done in the time frame where we don't have to go to Plan C."

»  More Council Meets to Discuss Harrisburg Legislation

As the city anxiously awaits a Sept. 8 vote on legislation that would provide budget relief, Finance Director Rob Dubow says he is carefully watching the city's bank balance.

"As you know, our cash flow situation is pretty tight," Dubow said today. Last month, the city started withholding most vendor payments in an effort to preserve cash. Only payroll, benefits, debt service and payments deemed emergencies are being made at the moment.

Dubow said that because they are withholding cash, the city should be able to last several months. But he stressed that they hope state relief will happen soon.

Next week, the state House of Representatives will vote on House Bill 1828, which would allow the city to temporarily raise the sales tax and defer some pension payments. Those items -- worth $700 million over five years -- are key to balancing the city budget. If the state doesn’t approve the city's budget requests, the mayor will have to implement a dire budget that would prompt layoffs of 3,000 city workers.

But in addition to the hold-up on HB 1828, the city has been strained on two other financial fronts, Dubow said. The unresolved state budget is holding up reimbursements that the city counts on for social services provided. And because the city budget is in flux, officials have been unable to do some standard short-term borrowing to cover bills.

If HB1828 passes, the city should be able to borrow money, Dubow said. But state reimbursments won't happen until the state budget is resolved, which means the city's finances will still be under some pressure.

At a press conference this morning, District Attorney Lynne Abrahm expressed her condolences to the family of Larry Frankel, the longtime local American Civil Liberties Union figure who was found dead in Washington, DC on Friday.

Saying the two had worked together for decades, Abraham called Frankel a respected friend and colleague. "Larry and I had lots of heated discussions about philosophy and which way the law should go," she said.

"It's very sad that at 54 his life is over, but his legacy is not," Abraham added.

The Department of Human Services is short $40 million in reimbursements for services. Is a new state billing system to blame?

A fugitive who reads the DN is captured by the U.S. Marshal's Fugitive Task Force.

A man is killed when a fire escape pulls out from a Center City building and falls four stories. The accident happened in the building which houses Monk's Cafe.

Longtime local ACLU figure Larry Frankel is found dead in a stream in a Washington, DC park.

STATEMENT FROM MAYOR NUTTER ON TODAY’S PENNSYLVANIA GAMING CONTROL BOARD DECISION

Philadelphia, August 28 – Mayor Michael A. Nutter has issued this statement following today’s Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board decision:

I am disappointed by today’s ruling. My Administration has been working diligently with both Foxwoods and Sugarhouse over the last year and today’s news is a step backwards.

I support having two casinos opened in Philadelphia but the location of these facilities remains critically important. I have supported the Foxwoods casino at the 8th and Market site not only because it is a location that will allow for the fastest start of its operation but also because that site will allow the City to receive greatly needed tax revenues almost immediately.

»  More Mayor Nutter: Foxwoods Ruling "A Step Backwards"

State Sen. Larry Farnese and State Rep. Mike O'Brien just put out this news release about today's ruling by the state Gaming Control Board about the Foxwoods casino:

HARRISBURG, Aug. 28 – State Rep. Mike O'Brien and Sen. Larry Farnese today chided the state gaming control board for granting the Foxwoods casino developers a two-year extension on their slots license and insisting they get the casino up and running at its originally proposed location on Columbus Boulevard in South Philadelphia.

The board approved the extension at a public hearing in Harrisburg today.

“It is improbable that Foxwoods will be up and running within 21 months at the Columbus Boulevard site,” O’Brien said. “By granting this extension the board has failed in its fiduciary obligation to the people.”

»  Read more of the news release

Statement from City Councilman Frank DiCicco on Gaming Control Board's ruling:

From the beginning, I have believed that gaming, if done well, will be a great benefit for Philadelphia. However, if enacted poorly, I have no doubt that gaming will irreparably harm the City and damage our neighborhoods.

Unfortunately, the extension of Foxwoods’ license and the condition that the project must be built at its waterfront location is a poor decision that damages Philadelphia’s fabric. Current traffic problems will be exacerbated making it difficult for customers to arrive and driving down gaming revenues. If revenue is lower than expected, Foxwoods will likely fail to expand retail, food or hotel services; those services would render important City taxes and improve job offerings. Likewise, the traffic problems that negatively impact Foxwoods will also impact the surrounding retail establishments and port-related facilities in South Philadelphia. While casino development could enhance surrounding businesses, Foxwoods Casino on the river would hinder its neighbors.

In contrast, a Center City location may have provided an economic engine to help revitalize Market East. More people on the street would have allowed for more commercial opportunities. Better transit systems would have eased traffic concerns. The proximity to the Convention Center would have guaranteed a continuous stream of patrons as well as improved the likelihood of expanded hotel rooms and other businesses. In short, the casino would be a driver for redevelopment and new jobs.

While I recognize that an attempt to relocate the license may have generated law suits and delayed Foxwoods’ initial opening, those short-term challenges would have been in the City’s and the Commonwealth’s long-term best interests.

It is disappointing, although not surprising, that the Board failed to see these benefits and instead sought the fastest and easiest route.

Brian Ford, CEO of the local investor group pushing to build the Foxwoods casino in Philadelphia, said they would follow an order from the state Gaming Control Board today to build something "substantially similar" to the project approved by the board in December 2006.  Foxwoods, which toyed with the idea of moving to Center City, was also ordered to stay put on its original location at Christopher Columbus Boulevard at Reed Street in South Philly.

The board ordered Foxwoods to hit a series of benchmarks, including advance warning of any changes in the casino license ownership or bankruptcy by any of the owners.  That seemed to be motivated by the news this week from the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation, partnered with the local investors in the casino project, was trying to restructure more than $1 billion in debt.  Ford said that should not impact the local project.

"Anytime anyone has difficulty in the family, it creates a distraction," Ford said. "We've been assured by our partners at Foxwoods that this won't be the case here."

Ford also said it was difficult to imagine the investors walking away from the casino license since they've sunk $160 million so far in the project.

"We can't imagine such an event," Ford said. "How do you walk away from an investment of that magnitude."

The investors considered moving to Center City due to interference from city officials, including Mayor Nutter's administration, which had concerns about the original site.  Ford said the investors are confident that the city will cooperate on casino plans for South Philly.

The state Gaming Control Board and its staff just made perfectly clear that it expects Foxwoods, granted a casino license for Philadelphia in December 2006, to push forward at its original location on Columbus Boulevard in South Philly.  Foxwoods has flirted with a relocation of the project to Market Street in Center City since last fall but finds itself unable to get that project moving, three months after its one-year deadline to open the casino passed.  This all was predicted in yesterday's Daily News.

PGCB Chairman Greg Fajt called any further attempt at re-location a "fool's errand" that would lead to the Foxwoods casino license being revoked.

“I believe if you try to move we would have to take your license back and reopen the bidding process," warned PGCB member Ken McCabe, who expressed concern that the casino investors had tried to move the project. “I expect you to deliver the project that you promised, which is Columbus Boulevard.”

Foxwoods agreed last fall to consider moving at the request of Mayor Nutter and Gov. Rendell, based on concerns about the South Philly site.  Brian Ford, CEO of the local investor group, told the board financing is not in place for South Philly but he pledged to return as soon as possible with details about that and how the concept on Columbus Boulevard will be changed.  Foxwoods is now pitching an interim casino to start that eventually be the center of a larger facility, similar to the plan now for the SugarHouse casino up the river in Fishtown.

The board's Office of Enforcement Counsel proposed that Foxwoods be required to hit 10 "benchmarks" if the board approves a request from the investors for a two-year extension on its deadline to open the casino.  That would include written monthly updates on the project's plans to open by May 2011, a six-month deadline to nail down financing and meetings with South Philly neighborhood groups to mitigate impacts of having a casino nearby.

If those benchmarks are not met, the PGCB staff vows to seek a hearing to revoke the Foxwoods casino license. The board is expected to vote later in the meeting on the Foxwoods request for the two-year extension to get the casino open.

Fred Jacoby, a Foxwoods attorney said the investors have sunk $160 million so far into the project.  “Regretfully at the end of the day you’ve got their attention because they have so much time and money committed," Jacoby said.

Anti-gaming protesters from Philadelphia charged up to the railing of the hearing room, chanting "Pull the plug" and "shame" as the board retreated for a brief recess to let the commotion die down.  Many of the protesters are from Chinatown, which objected to a Foxwoods plan to open a casino at the nearby former Strawbridge & Clothier department store at 801 Market Street.  Those protesters have linked efforts with Casino-Free Philadelphia, which opposes casinos anywhere in the city.

UPDATE, 1:30 pm:  The board just voted unanimously to grant the Foxwoods extension.  Fajt repeated his warning to Foxwoods on relocation efforts.  “We do not want to hear that there are other sites out there that you will look at, either ones you’ve looked in the past or ones you will look at in the future," he said.