Heard in the Hall

Vince Fumo's 27-room Art Museum mansion is on the block, and for just $7 million, it can be yours, complete with basement shooting range, brick oven, elevator, three kitchens, underground tunnel, servants' quarters and self-melting sidewalks. It's unclear if the sales price includes the 19 Oreck vacuum cleaners.

Family bakers rode to the rescue of trans fats in City Council yesterday, convincing a committee to endorse a bill that would exempt local bakeries from the city's trans fat ban, which is set to begin in January. The hearing seemed to pit "blue collar" neighborhood bakers against Center City croissant-making, butter-fat loving, pastry chef surrender monkeys. We kid, a little, but really that undercurrent was there.

City Council members don't exactly fall over themselves these days to be seen with Mayor Street, but eight of them joined him yesterday as he announced the release of $21 million to spruce up commercial corridors throughout the city. The money comes from a $150 million bond issue Street got council to authorize last year.

In the City Paper, Councilman Jim Kenney waved away rumors that Michael Nutter is considering him as a possible chief of staff. The City Paper also takes a look at the 8th Council District, where folks seem physically unable to settle on a single challenger to Councilwoman Donna Reed Miller.

The city's first openly gay Common Pleas Court judge will be sworn in today. School District officials finally got around to reading that $700,000 management report they commissioned, only to declare it largely unhelpful. City Controller Alan Butkovitz found some flaws in the way the city's elder-care facility is run. DHS is moving rather slowly to get Philadelphia children out of the Tennessee facility where a boy was strangled to death in a scuffle with facility workers.

Lastly, we overlooked Phil Goldmsith's column yesterday on Councilwoman Jannie Blackwell's Youth Studies Center "shakedown." It's worth a look.

Apologies for the late posting, we had some technical problems this a.m.

City Council is shooting down Mayor Street's plan to transfer an additional $34 million to the Department of Human Services. Councilman Jim Kenney summarizes the objections: "It's such a large number, at this point in the administration it doesn't make any sense." A good chunk of the $34 million would have been funneled through DHS to Safe & Sound, a favored Street non-profit that focuses on youth-violence prevention.

The Street Administration raised at least a few eyebrows around town with a batch of recent police promotions as well, but it actually looks as though the promotions are pretty routine.

Elsewhere: Clout takes a look at how U.S. Rep. Bob Brady is building a D.C. empire on sfogliatella. A group of community groups known as the Multi-Community Alliance is opposing the city's plan to temporarily move the Youth Studies Center to the old Eastern Pennsylvania Psychiatric Institute. And Dan U-A, founder of Young Philly Politics and the son of former 8th District Council candidate Irv Ackelsberg, looks back at the May primary and the district's compulsion to nominate 22 candidates to run each election against Councilwoman Donna Reed Miller. He has some gentle criticism for the media in general and the Inquirer in particular, wishing that the press had paid more attention to council races. We wish there were more of us so that we could.

When you have a mayoral election that appears as non-competitive as this one, it's tough not to look past it and imagine what a Nutter Administration might look like. The Daily News takes a look at Nutter-ally Terry Gillen, a fascinating character who seems likely to play a major role of some sort in a Nutter administration. In the print edition of Heard in the Hall, we address the likelihood (slim-to-none) that City Councilman Jim Kenney could be Nutter's chief of staff, and we explore the possibility that GOP City Council candidate David Oh is courting John Dougherty.

Over the weekend, Inquirer columnists dealt with weighty civic matters like taxes, the city budget, and oily cannoli.

The Democratic City Committee's annual cocktail-party fund-raiser is this evening. We'll fill you in on who was there and what was said tomorrow.

Another city-state standoff yesterday with big implications, this one in the State Supreme Court where the issue in question was the city's ability to create its own campaign finance laws. As Heard in the Hall's Marcia Gelbart succinctly puts it, the central question is: "Because Pennsylvania's election law does not explicitly address the matter, can Philadelphia do what it likes?" Remember, this is the case U.S. Rep. Chaka Fattah and union leader John Dougherty kept alive following the May mayoral primary. Read all about it in the Inquirer. The Daily News' take is here. Councilman Wilson Goode Jr. also weighs in on the proceedings over at Young Philly Politics.

Also yesterday, Republican mayoral nominee Al Taubenberger went on the offensive against Michael Nutter for perhaps the first time in the campaign. Taubenberger took issue with Nutter's position on full-value property reassessment (Nutter is for it, Taubenberger against), and went so far as to call a press conference and send a public letter to Nutter's office saying as much. Why Taubenberger picked reassessment isn't exactly clear, especially since he's endorsed it himself in the past. DN's take is here.

Don't worry, your favorite mayoral couple appeared to have patched things up by last night, appearing at a pair of forums and getting along as well as ever. Daily News piece is here.

The Daily News takes a look at a pair of possibly competitive City Council races in the 8th and 10th districts, where longtime incumbents Donna Reed Miller and Brian O'Neill face legitimate challengers. Most district council members will have an opponent in November's election, but with the exception of the 8th and the 10th the challenges are merely token.

Miller might set a record for most challengers-dispatched if she survives (as still seems likely) this round's three-headed challenge. She narrowly defeated three challengers in the primary, and she's routinely faced multi-candidate fields since taking office. The number of candidates willing to run against Miller speaks to some significant dissatisfaction in her leadership, but it plays into her hands as they split the "anti-Donna" vote. Her base sticks with her through thick and thin, and the three less-than-well-funded minor party candidates going after her this time will have virtually no chance to beat her unless they can set aside their differences and settle on a single challnger.

Republican Brian O'Neill has a different problem. He represents a district that's trending Democrat at a time when Republicans nationally aren't getting much love. The Daily News reports that O'Neill will outspend challenger Sean McAleer by more than 2-1, which suggests he's worried.

Other critical reading: Inga Saffron's report from yesterday's Planning Commission meeting. Members got their first look at the PennPraxis waterfront development plan, and they seemed underwhelmed. It's this whole revolutionary "street grid" concept that's catching the most flak. PlanPhilly also has an account.

Elsewhere, Democratic at-large City Council candidate Bill Green does a Q&A with Young Philly Politics, in why he proclaims: "Bikers are my core demographic." ... Pity the indicted State Senator trying to unload a Florida vacation house in a tough market. ... Metro takes a quick look at the low property tax bill on Fumo's Art Museum manse, which is listed here ...

Thousands of men answered Police Commissioner Sylvester Johnson's call for 10,000 volunteers to patrol the cities streets in an effort that's either inspirational or misguided, depending on your point of view. The legions who showed were a little short of 10,000, but it was a huge crowd nonetheless. However you feel about the campaign, it sounded like a moving scene in the Liacouras Center Sunday. The Daily News take here.

The first televised mayoral debate aired this weekend. You'll be shocked, shocked to learn that it was issue-driven and featured little actual "debate." Story here. At this point, it's much more interesting to watch the ways in which Michael Nutter is preparing himself to be mayor, and to look at how folks are reacting to him as he grows into the role.

Also, we have the print edition of Heard in the Hall for you. The Daily News reports on the Parking Authority's growth. John Carter, former head of the Seaport Museum, admits he did the museum wrong, then dishes dirt on who else hurt the institution.

Mayor Street announced yesterday that a deal had been struck to install an additional 250 wireless surveillance cameras in targeted sections of the city, stories here and here. The Parking Authority was under the looking glass yesterday, stories here and here. And Penn President Amy Gutmann isn't going anywhere anytime soon.

Say what you want about Councilwoman Carol Ann Campbell, the fact is she's proven to be a remarkably effective legislator during her short tenure on council. The Inquirer's Jeff Shields has a must-read profile today of Campbell. The piece doesn't ignore the many controversies Campbell's been a part of, but he lingers on the fact that plenty of folks in City Hall have been pleasantly surprised by her work there. Here's council's respected chief accounting officer, Anne Kelly-King, for instance: "I didn't know what to expect when Carol came in, but I think she took the office by storm." And Councilwoman Jannie Blackwell, one of Campbell's implacable political foes: "I don't agree with her politics most of the time, but I give her respect for what she's accomplished ... She's a strong, positive person, and she's getting a lot done."

Elsewhere, City Council takes a look at the problem of illegal dumping. There was another televised mayoral debate, but you're forgiven if you didn't watch the riveting rat-a-tat-tat action. You can catch another debate online in just a few minutes, it's hosted by the Next Mayor, and it starts at 10 a.m.

We took a long look at the Philadelphia Parking authority in Sunday's Inquirer, a place that somehow manages to be both ruthlessly efficient and indisputably bloated. Send PPA tips this way.

Friend to the animals and City Councilman Jack Kelly is bankrolling his campaign with $30,000 in contributions from three limited partnerships all affiliated with a big Northeast developer. It's likely legal, but the Ethics Board nonetheless would "like to get more information."

Two of three challangers to Councilwoman Donna Reed Miller in the 8th district have agreed that the whichever one of them wins the majority of three newspapepr endorsements will stay in the race while the other drops out. The idea is not to split the "anti-Donna" vote between a large field of challengers, which is what's happened in the 8th district in every election since 1908.

The Daily News takes a look at the city's ailing Republican Party.

John Baer has some legal advice for Vince Fumo.

It's been a tough week for Philadelphia, and the newspapers report what's obvious to everyone: the city is on edge. Three cops shot in four days. Two massive manhunts. "Murder and mayhem," as Michael Nutter put it, not a mile from the site where seven presidential candidates were debating. Worse, officer Charles Cassidy, shot at a Dunkin' Donuts yesterday morning, is in grave condition this morning. Crime is the story of the day, the story of the year. The Inquirer looks at the alarming targeting of police officers here. A report on Cassidy's shooting is here. The man who shot three people in Center City before taking aim at another officer and plunging into the Schulkyll River? A convicted murderer, recently released from prison. Those who know Cassidy are reeling. The Daily News of course is all over the events as well. Stories here, here, here, and here.

There was plenty of other news yesterday as well. Critics and supporters of the Philadelphia Parking Authority debate how well the agency has been run. It turns out that Smokin' Joe Frazier is a Philadelphia tax deadbeat. Michael Nutter unveiled his public health plan. PICA warned that the city is spending far too little on infrastructure investment. And 8th District Council candidate Jim Foster said he would throw his support behind fellow challenger Rev. Jesse Brown, in an attempt to unseat incumbent Donna Reed Miller.

The election is days away, but all eyes remain on crime and the manhunt for officer Chuck Cassidy's killer. We check in with officers to see how they're reacting to the third shooting of one of their own in less than a week. In one small bit of good news, Officer Mariano Santiago - the cop shot Tuesday night in Center City - was released from the hospital and is heading home. Cassidy will be remembered in a City Hall memorial service in Room 202 at 10 a.m. today. Our readers are thinking crime first as well. Check out this comment thread re: Cassidy's death, full of grief, vitriol, policy debates and general pain over the state of the city's streets.

On the political front, City Council passed legislation that offers tax breaks to employers who hire ex-offenders, a victory for the bill's sponsor Wilson Goode Jr., and for Michael Nutter, who backed the legislation. A study by Mayor Street's education taskforce recommended that Philadelphia's public schools be moved back under city control by 2010. Clout takes a look at the meager street money available for this election. Also in the Daily News: after years of negotiations, Councilman Brian O'Neill gave the greenlight to Fox Chase Cancer's Center expansion plans, and it looks like Mayor Street will leave his successor with a surpringly big budget surplus.

Election day is upon us, and Heard in the Hall will be tracking events all day. Check back here for returns, for reports from the polls, for the dish from the Famous Deli, for the scene from the candidate's election parties and more. Please send us tips and stories from the voting booth.

After a long and stormy night, it looks like the day is beginning to dry out, which is good news in terms of turnout. It's easy to imagine a record low had the rain kept up. On, tap today? A mayor's race (of sorts), a pair of district council races that could get interesting, and the David Oh-Jack Kelly fight for one of two GOP at-large council seats. There's more drama to be had in the suburbs, and Philadelphia judicial candidates seeking statewide office have their fingers crossed that turnout isn't too terrible. Read all about it here.

Elsewhere: Philadelphia police nabbed the alleged killer of Chuck Cassidy at a homeless shelter in Miami this morning. Gov. Rendell asked City Controller Alan Butkovitz to begin an intensive audit of the Philadelphia Parking Authority, and Inspector General Seth Williams said he would look into the PPA consulting contract of former GOP ward leader and current BRT member James Dintino. It seems Michael Nutter was not invited to a recent confab starring SugarHouse casino bigs and Mayor Street and Gov. Rendell.

As Michael Nutter began filling his cabinet (Rob Dubow was his first hire, stories here and here), Mayor Street began making his retirement plans. Looks like Hizzoner will be teaching a pair of undegraduate seminars at Temple University next semester, on politics and government naturally. That's a class worth taking, but I imagine he'd be one tough grader. Stories here, here and here.

State Rep. Dwight Evans is taking on a big problem in Harrisburg today. What to do with PGW. He's got legislation that would give the Public Utilities Commission the authority to essentially compel a utility, like PECO, to take control of the problem-ridden gas works.

Jill Porter of the Daily News ponders an interesting question: is Michael Nutter's skin thick enough to be a successful mayor.

Meet the city's new top cop, Charles H. Ramsey, who pretty much personifies the big city police chief. The lead story is here, a backgrounder on his days in Washington is here, early reaction from Philadelphia police is here. They cover similar territory over at the Daily News, with these stories. The media savvy Ramsey met with the Inquirer's editorial board on his first day in town, which seemed favorably impressed by Mayor Elect Michael Nutter's pick. It looks like former commissioner John Timoney will be on Radio Times shortly to discuss Ramsey. That's worth checking out.

This was Nutter's single most anticipated post-election announcement, and though there is some understandable trepidation within the police department at the prospect of an outside leader, Ramsey seems to be getting high early marks. We'll have much more on the new commissioner in the days and weeks to come. Still no word (at least no reliable word) on who Nutter will name as chief of staff or managing director.

City Council, meanwhile, has balked at a contract that would benefit three of his former aides. Story here. Read about other council business here.

Gov. Rendell is scheduled to appear before a legislative committee at 10 a.m. to make the case for new gun control laws. Heard in the Hall doesn't typically keep a close eye on Harrisburg, but given the issue, and given the political capital that Rendell is risking, this is worth watching. Check back later for more. You can watch the proceedings yourself online at www.pahouse.net.

It looks like friend to the animals Jack Kelly has defeated David Oh for the final at-large seat on City Council. The count isn't final, but it's a fairly big margin and both camps seem to think Kelly has the victory. How did the race end up being so close? Oh certainly ran a strong campaign, but it also seems possible that Kelly's position on raising the rent on the Boy Scouts contributed to his surprisingly weak showing.

Elsewhere, two members of the Zoning Board may be flouting an Ethics Board ruling prohibiting their participation in political activity. Metro takes a look at Michael Nutter's packed itinerary, noting that he hasn't let up since winning the election.

Despite an unusual personal appeal from Gov. Rendell, two gun control bills before the Pennsylvania House Judiciary Committee were voted down yesterday, and a third was withdrawn before it too could be defeated. NRA lobbyists declared victory, and indeed, it wasn't even close. A bill that would permit municipalities like Philadelphia to create their own gun laws was defeated on a 19-10 vote, a bill that would limit handgun purchases to one a month went down 17-12, and that was in a Democrat-controlled committee. John Baer of the Daily News sees it as another chapter in the state's ongoing urban-rural culture clash.

Elsewhere, anti-casino activists had their first victory in the courts. Foxwoods was seeking to force the city to approve zoning for the slots parlor, but the court said no, likely leading to further delay in the construction of the casino. Responding to public pressure, the Philadelphia Parking Authority said it would eliminate administrative positions through attrition (saving about $1 million), and take away cars from about 18 managers and reassign them for use in the field (saving about $4 million). The PPA's been under intense scrutiny by the Daily News and the Inquirer. The Daily News got to the cars-for-managers story first, and their account of the cost-saving measures is here. It looks like Wireless Philadelphia could be in some serious trouble. Finally, the first 200 members of the 10,000 man effort to patrol the city's streets will hit the sidewalks Saturday.

The morning papers look ahead to education and crime in the Nutter administration. The Inquirer interviews the next police commissioner, Charles Ramsey, you can see watch a video here. The Daily News gives the mayor-elect a platform to talk about public education. John Baer ponders State Sen. Vince Fumo's latest image. Here's a fascinating look at how the city'd criminal justice system works - and sometimes doesn't. The Metro takes a look at the severely strained relations between City Council and Mayor Street.

A City Council committee just dealt the city's building trades a serious punch, essentially declaring the $700 million Convention Center expansion an open shop construction site. The move, which appears to have the full blessing and encouragement of mayor-elect Michael Nutter, was prompted by the building trades less-than-strong record of hiring minorities and its leaders' repeated refusals to disclose the racial makeup of their memberships. The open-shop declaration - an amendment to the convention center's operating agreement - still has to be approved by Gov. Rendell and by the rest of council. There was no word from Rendell yesterday. It'll be fascinating to see what Rendell's views are, and to see how the politically potent building trades respond.

In other news, campaign finance reports show that Nutter raised a total of $7.9 million during his mayoral campaign. The Daily News points out that it was far and away the cheapest (finanically speaking, of course) mayoral campaign by a victorious candidate in decades. Finally, Clout takes a look at the crowded cast of characters manuevering to replace State Sen. Vince Fumo.

Mayor-elect Michal Nutter endorsed Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton at a fundraiser last night attended by former President Bill Clinton. We'll leave it to others to speculate as to what, if any, impact Nutter's endorsement will have on Hillary Clinton's fortunes, but it's worth remembering that Mayor Street has also already come out in support of Clinton. Street and Nutter have more in common then the casual observer might think. But that's a topic for another day.

There's a huge showdown brewing in City Council over the question of the use of non-union labor on the $700 million Convention Center construction site. Council's historically been very labor friendly, but the composition of the building trades unions - largely white laborers living outside of Philadelphia - has been a sore point for years. Gov. Rendell and the Convention Center board would have to sign off on any plan to use non-union labor, and that's not going to happen. Council itself may step back from the brink (the chamber appears evenly split), but there's a lot of frustration in play here.

The Daily News speculates that District Attorney Lynne Abraham may quit early next year to run for Attorney General. Earthlink was a no-show at a Council hearing on the future of Wireless Philadelphia.

If you didn't get the chance this weekend, take some time now to read this vitally important story on policing tactics in the city's suburbs. It's an important subject in and of itself, but for city residents, it offers a window into what can happen when aggressive measures like stop and frisk aren't properly managed.

Elsewhere, the Philadelphia Parking Authority is way behind on its payments this year to the City of Philadelphia, which means the School District once again stands to get nothing from the agency.

We overlooked this tough take on the city's Zoning Board by Inquirer architecture critic Inga Saffron in our morning briefing. It's a must read.

John Street's eight eventful and sometimes difficult years as Philadelphia's mayor will come to an end this morning, as Michael Nutter is sworn in as the city's 98th mayor. That new day he's been promising has finally arrived, and we expect he'll make that clear in his inaugural address, which will be broadcast live on most local television stations around 11 a.m.

We'll begin with the end. The Inquirer took a long look back on the Street administration in Sunday's paper. You can find the story here. It's a mixed legacy. There were failures, to be sure, but there were plenty of successes as well; successes that were overshadowed in many cases by the mayor's own prickly personality.

Looking ahead to Tuesday... Geez does Nutter has a lot to do immediately after taking office. The budget. The fiver year plan. Contract negotations. Finish assembling his team. Roll out some splashy new initiative. Show folks change is afoot in the police department. Shake up city government. Reassert the leadership role of the mayor's office.

Expect that last item to be the focus today. If his remarks of late are any indication, Nutter is going to use today's big bully pulpit to try and recruit Philadelphians to his cause. Expect him to urge its residents to do their part. Wash their steps. Look after their children. Take pride in their city. That sort of thing. There's no way he can fix the city on his own, and Nutter knows it.

Lest we forget, City Council will also be sworn into. Three new members: Bill Green, Curtis Jones Jr. and Maria Quinones Sanchez will join council today.

In other news, the Inquirer's Tom Ferrick - who writes for the opinion section these days - did some digging and got the numbers (not definitive, but informative nonetheless) on minority particpation in the city's building trades unions. Check it out here.

Finally, one member of Nutter's new team - Managing Director Camille Cates Barnett - won't be attending today's party. As reported Friday, her husband was killed in a car accident while driving to Philadelphia. The Daily News reports that his wake will be held tonight, and his funeral will be tomorrow. Given the tragedy, it is unclear when Barnett will rejoin the administration.