I have a friend, a very smart person who follows Philly politics closely, with whom I often find myself chatting about the men who would be mayor. And as we discuss them, she always says the same thing about Dwight Evans:
"He's walked the walk."
She's not talking about his record in Harrisburg. She means that he's taken the policies he believes in -- that families should be able to choose to leave failing schools, that commercial development is important even in poor neighborhoods -- and put them to work in his West Oak Lane area. His efforts are the subject of a thoughtful Inquirer profile Sunday by Michael Currie Schaffer.
Now, there are plenty of other things to say about Evans (true of any other candidate), too. Embedded in that profile is this assessment by former Joseph P. McLaughlin, formerly the city's lobbyist in Harrisburg: "There are some observers that say he has not been an effective media candidate."
McLaughlin doesn't explain exactly what he means, but Evans certainly can use a lot of words to fail to answer a question.
And then there is the big unknown: As difficult as it may have been to turn West Oak Lane around, is it possible to do the same to the entire city? Or is mayor's scope of work so much broader that hands-on improvement simply isn't possible? To borrow an (icky, but accurate) bit of business jargon, can these techniques be "scaled up"?
In the story, Marian Tasco blithely says it is possible to take the West Oak Lane success story citywide. I'm not so sure. I do think Evans' record will add an interesting element of truth-testing to others' campaign promises.
Comments (35)
I disagree with the notion that these efforts can't be replicated citywide - building better schools, creating more vibrant commercial corridors and making streets safer are things that the rest of the city can use and that can be replicated. It is not a matter of ideas but of leadership. Evans is the only one in this race who has actually established a record of getting substantial projects done - not easy as a legislator, particularly being in the minority for as long as the Democrats have.
Posted by mike | November 27, 2006 9:39 AM
Dwight is awesome and would make an excellent high-level administrator in a Nutter administration, maybe overseeing neighborhood economic development or something like that. However, he just doesn't have the gravitas or public presentation skills to be Mayor.
Posted by Philly Phantom | November 27, 2006 10:47 AM
I have a favorable impression of Dwight Evans, but he definitely wouldn't be my first choice for mayor and saying he's "the only one with a record" is stretching things.
Personally, I'd love to have Nutter as mayor and Evans keeping up the good work in Harrisburg.
Evans was quoted a while back as saying that he might have to stop or reverse the current wage tax reductions if he bacame mayor. That doesn't sound very promising as far as him continuing the tax reform started under Rendell and kept alive during the Street administration thanks largely to Michael Nutter's work in city council.
Revenue from the wage tax has actually be increasing as the rate decreases, mostly because more people with higher incomes are being attracted to the city. Many of these people (myself included) are also counting on continued reductions in the wage tax over the next few years and may leave if that changes. I don't think the wage tax should be eliminated (I like having low property taxes, and I'm sure low income households and senior citizens agree), but to talk about reversing the current scheduled reductions seems crazy to me.
Here's the article that quote came from:
http://www.philly.com/mld/philly/15195524.htm
""Those programs have deteriorated," Evans acknowledged, adding that the fight against violence might require the city to reconsider its commitment to annual business and wage tax cuts, now a decade old."
I think the city has more of a problem with spending priorities than it does with funding. A good administrator should be able to go a long way with the city budget before resorting to un-doing scheduled wage and business tax cuts.
Posted by Dave | November 27, 2006 11:31 AM
I think that Dwight Evans has done an excellent job in Harrisburg. However, I think it is debatable as to whether that success will transfer into citywide success as mayor. Evans revigorated his commercial corridors with mostly state money. That money will not be available once he's no longer state rep., and it surely won't be enough money to pump intop commercial corridors city-wide. He would have to come up with a plan that fits into the city budget.
While Evans may make a viable mayor, I really think he could serve Philly better if he continues to do the work he has done as state rep. Fattah should continue as a congressman. Nutter should be mayor. That's how I see it in my ideal world.
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