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Friday, July 3, 2009
What Your Council Member is Working on...

Because we can’t fit all the details on what Council members are doing for the summer into the newspaper, we like to provide them on the PhillyClout blog. Here’s what we learned from this week’s check-in with the city’s legislators.

* When we stopped by Councilwoman Janie Blackwell’s office, she was meeting with a staffer from The Netter Center for Community Partnerships at the University of Pennsylvania. Blackwell said they were talking about housing and education issues. She said she also had a meeting this week regarding the work of Dr. Gary Kao, who is accused of mishandling radioactive seed implants at the Philadelphia veterans hospita.

* Councilman Curtis Jones Jr. held a “Block Captains Boot Camp” last weekend, which drew about 100 people. He said he continues to research the best way to expand Philadelphia’s community courts. And he is about to start making door to door visits in his district, to talk with constituents about what services they need.

* Council President Anna Verna is back in the office after the death of her husband. Yesterday she said she was catching up on meetings and phone calls. She said she expects the review of the Board of Revision of Taxes ¬– that Council is doing in collaboration with the Mayor’s office ¬¬-- to be a big issue this summer.

* Councilman Frank Rizzo was not in the office but he told us he was out meeting with constituents worried about a new plan to charge $500 to pick up trash from businesses.

* Councilman W. Wilson Goode Jr. told us he was reviewing a report from the Congressional Research Service from November 19, 2008 on the debarment and suspension of government contractors. The report looks at federal law which relates to legislation he introduced two weeks ago.

* Marian Tasco said she has been monitoring a task force convened by council and the mayor’s office to examine problems in the Board of Revision of Taxes, along with scheduling events in her district and preparing legislation for the fall session.
 

Posted by Catherine Lucey @ 9:00 AM  Permalink | 9 comments
Comments   
Posted 09:58 AM, 07/03/2009
philafan
and Counsilman Darrel Clarke is out trying to get support to ensure city counsil members get their 5% pay increase this year
Posted 11:57 AM, 07/03/2009
CleanupPhilly
That's six. There are 11 others. Why not put their activities up too in a later post?
Posted 12:01 PM, 07/03/2009
CleanupPhilly
That the Council didn't fix the BRT or even one small piece of legislation to start to fix the BRT, such as removing it from the Philly School District budget, helped to completely sink all credibility Nutter might have had in Harrisburg. Why can't Council let the BRT put AVI in place, and simply pass a resolution to change the millage in the upcoming legislative year? That would have been at least something. Do they see how bad it looks that they can't even do that but the city has to beg the state for money? No one takes them seriously.
Posted 03:35 PM, 07/03/2009
PhillyBestCity
Councilman Clarke, Blondell Reynolds Brown, Bill Greenlee and Curtis Jones joined the Mayor when he announced the new Park & Recreation Commissioners. 200 people applied for 9 slots. Council and the Mayor should be congratulated on doing this selection process right. There was a good public campaign to request applications, multiple days of public hearings by Council to winow the list to 25 and a timely appointments by the Mayor. It's a good example of the way Philadelphia should fill all it's Boards and Commissions.
Posted 08:56 PM, 07/03/2009
DisappointedDemocrat
THOSE PEOPLE AREN'T DOING A DARNED THING! THEY OUT ON SUMMER BREAK. IF THEY WERE THERE, I'D LIKE THEM TO TELL US WHAT THEY ARE DOING FOR THE HOMELESS PROBLEM IN THIS CITY. YOU WOULD THINK WITH ALL OF THE VACANT BUILDINGS IN THIS CITY, ALL OVER, AND IN EVERY SECTION OF THE CITY, THEY COULD COME UP WITH A WORKING PLAN. OPERATIVE WORD HERE IS [WORKING]. THE MAYOR, CITY COUNCIL, AND STATE LEVEL OFFICIALS FROM THIS AREA MUST MAKE IT A HABIT OF WEARING BLINDERS, OR MAYBE THEY JUST DISCONNECT WHEN IT COMES TO REALITY IN THE UNDERGROUND OF THIS CITY. THE USE OF PROPERTIES ALREADY HERE, VACANT, OR IN NEED OF DEMOLITION AND FINDING OUT WHAT BELONGS TO WHO IS A LOT OF HOMEWORK. I'VE GOT AN IDEA; WHY NOT HIRE PEOPLE WHO ARE WILLING TO WORK TO DO THE RESEARCH FOR YOU GUYS? YOU CAN TAKE THE CREDIT AFTER THE WORK IS DONE. OR, WOULD YOU SAY, LET 'EM EAT CAKE LIKE SOME OF YOUR OFFICIALS WHO TRICKED THEIR WAY INTO OFFICE? MAYOR, CITY COUNCIL, STATE REPS., AND GOVERNOR ALIKE; ENJOY YOUR HOLIDAY, HAVE A NICE VACATION, AND MAY YOUR BLESSINGS BE THOSE YOU TRULY DESERVE.
Posted 05:50 AM, 07/04/2009
FJG JR
I personally am going to investigate two of them. I just hope I don't get locked up for bumming.
Posted 08:25 AM, 07/04/2009
philly_girL_215
I'm appalled that these BUMS took a pay hike before going on summer break. In these tight financial times the give back should start at the top of government, and work it's way down.
Posted 06:48 PM, 07/04/2009
stevejeltz
philly girl- Im not aware of any pay hike Council members accepted. In fact, many took a pay cut. Before you post, you should double check your facts
Posted 06:29 PM, 07/07/2009
cityslicker
once again the biggest idiot on these blog lpages is spreading his cancer cleanup philly is a rasist and a bigot,and he acts like he knows what he is saying DONT LISTEN TO HIS BULL!@#$
9 comments
About Chris Brennan and Catherine Lucey
PhillyClout
Chris Brennan, a native Philadelphian and graduate of Temple University, joined the Daily News in 1999. He has written about SEPTA, the Philadelphia School District, the legalization of casino gambling, state government, the mayor, the governor, City Council and political campaigns.

Catherine Lucey joined the Daily News in 2002. Since then she has written about murderous drug gangs, political protesters and Harry Potter. For the past two years, she covered the 2007 mayoral election. Now that the battle is over, she has moved down to the City Hall bureau where she will report on the Nutter administration.

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Catherine Lucey
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