DN Editorial: Don't bank on it

CITY COUNCIL is the place where Philadelphia's future goes to die.

In a city desperate for leadership and a new way of thinking, what we get is a chamber that, collectively, is wedded to the politics of the past; far more interested in preserving its prerogatives than in moving the city forward.

For the most recent example, look at the bill to create a vacant land bank in the city. The far-reaching legislation is the product of five years of work by a coalition of community groups, builders, civic leaders and others.

As introduced by Councilwoman Maria Quinones-Sanchez the bill offered the hope of turning a tortuous process of sale of vacant property - one that now involves multiple agencies and can take three years or more - into a streamlined process that could get sales done within nine months.

Everyone agrees on the root problem. Philadelphia has more than 40,000 vacant parcels that have sat fallow for years, blighting neighborhoods and hampering development and revival.

Everyone also agrees that something had to be done to stop the glacial movement of that property into private hands: neighbors who want to buy side lots; community groups seeking common land or gardens; developers who want to build on the land and bring it back into the tax rolls.

The bill was poised to pass when it hit a roadblock. Council President Darrell Clarke, though publicly a supporter of the bill, moved to insure that Council members retain their control over development in their districts by invoking their right to "hold" properties - that is, refuse to have them sold or developed until they decide to move.

Supporters of the land bank realized that they would never convince Council to give up this prerogative. So, the original bill did include a provision that a sale must go through Council.

But, Clarke added another layer, reinserting the Vacant Property Review Committee as a second agency to review and approve all sales. It should be mentioned here that the Council President serves as chair of that committee. It puts Clarke squarely at the intersection of any land transaction that will take place under the new system.

Sanchez has invoked Clarke's anger by saying that she will offer an amendment to remove the review committee from the bill. Here's hoping enough of her colleagues have the backbone to support her.

State Rep. John Taylor, of Philadelphia, who was instrumental in getting state law changed to allow the land bank, has written to Clarke, urging him to remove the additional hurdle set up by the review committee. The land bank, Taylor said, should be as free of the "current, stagnant political process as possible."

Clarke responded, saying that the problem of the current system was not the review committee - it was multiple agencies with multiple policies on the sale of land. He is right about that.

He is wrong about the need to keep the review committee. It is a bureaucratic and political hurdle that will delay the flow of sales. It should be removed from the bill so the vacant-land legislation can be passed before Council leaves for the year on Dec. 13.

We've had enough of the old ways. It is time for this city to move forward.