Outgoing Councilman DiCicco ready to lobby and consult

City Councilman Frank DiCicco has a little more than three months to go before his fourth and final term in office comes to an end.  But don't look for DiCicco to cash his Deferred Retirement Option Plan check and then quietly retire.  The South Philly politician is already handing out business cards for his next gig: Lobbyist and political consultant for Philadelphia Strategies Group LLC.

Never heard of it?  That's because DiCicco registered the new company in late July after deciding in March to drop his bid for a fifth term.  DiCicco had been dogged on the campaign trail about his decision to enroll in the DROP program, which became a flash-point of controversy after the city Law Department said it was legal for elected officials to take a DROP payment, retire for one day and return to the city payroll.

DiCicco noted today that he had a consulting business on the side during his first term in office but dropped it because he became too busy with City Hall work.  Now DiCicco will have the time to focus on lobbying and political consulting.

"There's life after Council, they tell me," DiCicco said with a chuckle.