City Council
Think Philly Has Too Many Billboards? Too Bad
Just a couple weeks ago, Philadelphia City Council passed a bill that has huge implications for billboard haters and lovers alike. The legislation by Councilman Bobby Henon was expected to […]
The Brief: “We’re Sitting on a Powder Keg”
1. Baltimore, like Philadelphia, is largely led by black elected officials. Why was that not enough to prevent the protests and rioting? The Gist: Writes Adam […]
Could Infrared Technology Vaporize Potholes in Philly?
After this year’s brutal winter, Philadelphia officials say they’re on pace to patch up a record number of potholes. In Pennsylvania, one state lawmaker says the […]
City Pol: I’m Just Like the 1965 Selma Civil Rights Protesters Beaten on Bloody Sunday
City Commissioner Stephanie Singer is feeling pretty aggrieved right now. Aggrieved enough to liken her battle to get back on the May 19 primary election […]
PSA: Mayor Nutter’s Property Tax Hike Would Only Cost You a Cheesesteak a Month
Say, can you spare a cheesesteak? A new ad from the city government says that Mayor Michael Nutter’s plan to raise property taxes by 9 percent would cost […]
3 Arguments For, and 3 Against, Darrell Clarke’s Alternate School Funding Plan
City Council President Darrell Clarke laid out a plan last week to help fund Philadelphia’s cash-starved schools: He wants to sell liens on commercial properties, which he […]
The Brief: Are the Mayoral Candidates’ School Plans “Bogus”?
1. Mayor Michael Nutter said the candidates running to replace him have proposed “bogus” school funding plans. The gist: Nutter made the attack while touring a city school with Gov. Tom Wolf […]
A Quiet Coup in City Hall
Half the audience is sweating before the debate even begins inside the packed, sweltering basement auditorium of Greenfield Elementary School. There are at least 400 […]
Mayor Nutter and City Council: LGBT People Living in RFRA States Are Welcome in Philly
Councilman Mark Squilla (pictured, standing row, third from right) drafted an open letter inviting folks and businesses living in the 20 states affected by anti-LGBT Religious Freedom […]
Squilla Rewriting UED Law Ahead of Expected Nutter Opposition
The debate over 3-D billboards in Philadelphia isn’t over. City Councilman Mark Squilla is proposing amendments to legislation allowing two digital ads — known as “urban experiential displays” — near […]
City Commissioner Stephanie Singer Gets A Chance To Fight for Her Political Life
A judge has scheduled a hearing on the motions filed by City Commissioner Stephanie Singer to try to bring her reelection campaign back from the dead, her lawyer says. On Monday, […]
Council to Nutter: Find Your $105 Million Somewhere Else
Close, but no cigar, Mayor Michael Nutter. That was the general message from Council members at their hearing Tuesday on Nutter’s five-year fiscal plan, the first budget […]
Council Skeptical of School Funding Plan
The City Council will begin two months of budget hearings today — with the biggest question being whether it will approve Mayor Nutter’s request to […]
Philly Council OKs Massive 3-D Billboards in Center City
Philadelphia City Council passed legislation Thursday to allow large-size digital billboards in a part of Center City near the Reading Terminal Market and Convention Center. Critics […]
Council Candidates Line Up for a Share of Philadelphia 3.0 Dark Money
Here’s the thing about dark money in politics: a lot of candidates will tell you it’s a malevolent, undemocratic force—but that doesn’t mean they don’t want the […]