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Enter Kenney

Jim Kenney completed his journey from South Philadelphia to the threshold of the mayor's office Tuesday, propelled by hope for his city and an inclusive coalition. Now Mayor-elect Kenney must draw on his skills as a unifier to build a government that not only reflects the city but makes it better.

Democratic mayoral candidate Jim Kenney walks out of the Old First Reform Church at 11 a.m. Tuesday after voting on election day in Philadelphia. Kenney won election and will be Philly's 99th mayor.
Democratic mayoral candidate Jim Kenney walks out of the Old First Reform Church at 11 a.m. Tuesday after voting on election day in Philadelphia. Kenney won election and will be Philly's 99th mayor.Read moreMICHAEL BRYANT / Staff

Jim Kenney completed his journey from South Philadelphia to the threshold of the mayor's office Tuesday, propelled by hope for his city and an inclusive coalition. Now Mayor-elect Kenney must draw on his skills as a unifier to build a government that not only reflects the city but makes it better.

The people the longtime councilman chooses to help him lead the city and his early policy initiatives will signal what Philadelphians can expect from their 99th mayor. They should certainly expect him to take dramatic steps to turn around Philadelphia's schools. Too many young residents are leaving when their children reach school age. The city, whose population declined for decades, can't afford to lose them.

Kenney also must use his political clout to ensure that Philadelphia's delegation in Harrisburg isn't hobbled by corruption and inefficacy. The city's ability to secure fair funding for schools, reasonable gun laws, and anything else it needs from the state depends on it.

The next mayor also should work to reform city taxes by more aggressively cutting business and wage taxes that choke the local economy. Simplifying business taxes and continuing to work toward a market-based property-tax system are essential. So is moving deadbeat property into the Land Bank for sale under a smart land-use plan.

Kenney's early talks with unions should lead to reining in pension costs so the city can continue to provide adequate services to residents and harbor any hope of funding his plan to attack poverty with universal prekindergarten, reentry assistance for ex-convicts, and measures to boost employment through port and energy infrastructure.

He would be wise to hire a strong managing director who can pull together the city's departments and take a holistic approach to problems. One priority true to Kenney's history would be to keep his promise to enforce safe passage for pedestrians during construction projects, which currently block sidewalks at will. It may be a relatively small issue, but it symbolizes the goal of running the city first and foremost for those who live and work here. On a much larger scale, the same goal requires an overhaul of the city's troubled Department of Licenses and Inspections.

The mayor-elect's insider candidate for police commissioner must continue the current chief's tough stance on corrupt cops while employing modern policing tactics and respecting individual rights. The next commissioner will have to continue the fight against the kind of pervasive gun violence that took the life of a 16-year-old shot as he rode his bicycle Sunday.

In announcing his candidacy, Kenney said, "We can find the common ground and compromise necessary to help us achieve what we all know we're capable of achieving." Those hopeful words are about to be tested.