Great Expectations

Yo, Mike, the one thing I really need you to do is understand how casinos will bring increased crime and corruption to our city and do everything in your power to stop them. As Mayor you should put a stop to casinos, regardless of where they are in the process of forcing them down our throats.

Jethro Heiko
Fishtown, Philadelphia

Yo, Mike, we got a big problem here in Philadelphia. There is a deep, structural disconnect between the citizenry and the powerful few who are running the show. That powerful elite is making decisions on our behalf but in their own interests, behind closed doors, and without any consideration of the peoples' needs and concerns.

Witness what happened this week at the Philadelphia Planning Commission when a board of non-experts in urban planning and architecture approved a voluminous development proposal by the SugarHouse casino without even adequately reviewing it, and in the face of severe city-wide opposition. Many residents, like myself, have expressed our values for development on the riverfront and our neighborhoods via lame-duck Mayor Street's Central Delaware Waterfront planning initiative. In approving the casino proposal, the Planning Commission has completely disregarded the values and guidelines that are being created in that vision -- and Janice Woodcock, executive director of PPC, even sits at the head of the table!

We citizens have power, and we have given you an opportunity to work with us in restoring good governance in the city we love.

Yo Mike,
Congratulations on becoming the next mayor of Philly. I know there still remains the formality of trouncing the Repub candidate in November and as a proud elephant I'll be casting my lame protest vote, but seriously, best wishes.
I'd like to challenge you on taxes here in Philadelphia. In my opinion, there is a line that the city has crossed decades ago. I'll call that line "Optimal Taxation". Optimal taxation is the point the city taxes its people and businesses in order to bring in maximum revenues to the city's treasury. An over-taxed environment, like we have here in Philly results in less than maximum revenues flowing into city coffers. Paradoxically, any tax hike from this point will result in a long-term loss of revenues, although a short-term (short-sighted) spike might be realized.
My question to you is this: Do you have the political courage and basic economic insight to start this city on a path back to maximum revenue collection via Optimal Taxation? Can you champion the idea of across the board tax cuts that would bring us back to a point where the city can fund its basic needs again in a sane and fiscally responsible way?
Thank You sir and good luck

Mike, It dismayed me to read today that Philadelphia police do not keep tallies of the types of guns used in homicides. An Inquirer article pointed out that "anecdotal evidence" pointed to the prominence of semi-automatic weapons and their ability to do more damage. Can it be legislated to ask police to do this? Wouldn't the information be useful in deciding what type of gun control may be necessary to help ward off all the killings?

yo Mike:

I need you to resign and let a Republican run things, that's the only why there will be true change. More democrats mean more failure.

Yo Mike

I need you to crack down on "quality of life" issues not matter how small! People getting away with the little stuff leads to big problems. Once good areas are declining because the little things are not being enforced.

People should not have garage doors half way falling off or missing! People should not be allowed to leave trash in their backyards or driveways forever! People should be required to remove trash from their property or face a fine sort of like the snow removal policy. I know it sounds extreme but to fix Philly problems you have to be extreme.

"Quality of Life" issues comes from the tax structure in Philly. Property should be taxed more and the reason is simple. Companies and people are mobile. They can run from the taxes, i.e. leave the city. Buildings, housing, parking lots, grass filled lots within the city can not just pick up and move. People in Philly don't realize how good they have it when it comes to property taxes. Philly property taxes are 1/3 of what one would pay in the burbs or any other major city.

Just raising taxes on the land that property sits on to where it's still lower than the burbs and cutting business and wage taxes so that companies and people would want to be in the city would turn the quality of life around in 5 years.

Also, land taxes should be raised for business property, surface lots and parking lots that sits blighted for long periods of time. This would force whoever owns the property to sell it.

Three things, all connected.

1) continue to reform the tax structure, especially the BPT and the property taxes. The wage tax is a McGuffin, it should trend down but most major cities have some income tax. It's the others that have the greater impact and are discouraging businesses from opening and encouraging the owners of blighted properties to hang onto them. Reducing the one and increasing the other will raise revenues for the city almost immediately.

2) Force the providers of city services to finally provide them. Clean the streets, and plow them in the winter. Enforce building codes. Answer the phone properly and politely. Know who does what. Provide avenues for complaint and openess about government. Lock up criminals. First priority is the murder rate. Get cops walking the beat, put them on bicycles, send them into the community. The people are ready to end 'stop snitching," but they've got to know and trust their cops. The cops have got to have the full support and backing of city hall. Get 311 ASAP. Provide services and the people will trust their government.

3. Get out in front of the public, early and often, tell them what you are doing and how it is working. Be a cheerleader for the city, and bring them the good news: the citizens are taking their city back, and Philly is the next great American city. Say it, and we will start to believe it.

God bless you and good luck. You have a lot of support and optimism behind you.

Yo, Mike, the one thing I really need you to do is supply more jobs. I have relocated back to Philadelphia from California because I love the city. The number of job opportunities, however, I don't love. There are little to no large corporations located in the city, which leads me to my two questions. What are your plans to attract more companies to Philadelphia? and How do you plan on bringing more "good" jobs to the city? I understand that the neighboring cities are competition but damn. This is a great city with endless potential but without good paying jobs things are only going to get worse. Everyone knows with jobs comes less crime which leads to a safer more educated city.

Barely Getting by
West Philly

Yo Mike,

One idea has come to mind, and I was going to make sure I communicated it to you. Then I saw this blog, thankfully. To continue your goodwill tour? through Philly, you may want to consider just this thing, an open door policy for all people, not just before the election, but all during your term. Encourage the public to communicate w/ you, and try to respond back to them. I'm not talking about meet the press conferences or town hall meetings, but individual emails and letters. Take Phila's. government out of the shadows. You may be surprized by the results.

Yo Mike,

The one thing I really need you to do is reduce Philadelphia school class sizes to NO MORE than 20. Then, and only then, will you be able to accomplish the re-education of Philadelphia. When I taught your daughter, Olivia, in 3rd grade, I was thrilled to be a part of a wonderful school and to work with wonderful children and their families. I left the Philadelphia City Schools because I felt like I could accomplish very little of what needed to be done. I didn't enjoy feeling like a failure for even just one child and decided to pursue other options where I could feel successful. Please do your part to make massive change in our school systems. Philadelphia children need a chance. All students need to interact with their teachers. The neediest of students require even more attention. We could make a difference if we could work with just 20 students instead of 29 or 30. All students can learn, but imagine what they could do, and who they could become, if given more one-one-one attention. It'a huge project, but a very simple request with significant consequences for our city. You could be the mayor to change Philadelphia's future. I emplore you to embrace this opportunity.
Sincerely,
"Teacher Amy"

More suggestions over yonder:

http://www.phillyblog.com/philly/showthread.php?t=37561

Yo Mike,

Cleanliness and sanitation must be a top priority of your administration. The Streets Department needs to be reformed and restructured because it is lackluster, ineffective, and unresponsive.

We need:

1. Weekly city-wide street sweeping by the Streets Department, including the mandatory moving or towing of cars for curb to curb cleaning.

2. Aggressive enforcement of sanitation laws, including addressing the serious problems of littering and illegal dumping.

3. Provide trash cans with lids in commercial areas to reduce litter. Make sure these public trash cans are emptied at least once a day.

4. Require residents and business to sweep around their property at least once a week.

5. Implement mandatory weekly city-wide single stream curbside recycling.

Here are some more Yo, Mike! comments that came into us via e-mail this morning:

Yo, Mike!

One thing I really need you to do is to focus on urban development. Philadelphia is a blank canvas when it comes to city beautification and development possibilities. If Philadelphia is to become the next great city, it has to be developed as one, with new and improved public space, a fluid transportation infrastructure, easily accessible business districts, inspirational public projects. Investing in the city to make it a more attractive place to live, work, and play will lay the foundation for our Renaissance, improving the quality of life for current residents and attracting future residents to Philadelphia.

Albert Kepler,
Cherry Hill, NJ

As a frequent cultural and restaurant visitor to Philadelphia, I have
erred twice by parking over the limit by five minutes or slightly
more because of delays beyond my control. Within seconds over the
limit, our cars are towed by extremely efficient people who obviously
earn a living by aggressive enforcement. It takes some doing to find
out where your car has been towed. Business owners in the area give
you a blank stare and point to a sign with a phone number to call.
The busy signal is only the beginning. Once you find out where your
car has been towed and pay a cab to reach the lot, let the maze
begin!!!!

One line takes you to a person who gives you instructions to stand on
yet another line. If you have your registration in your pocket, you
can then make the transaction to pay the fine and towing charge which
is pretty hefty. Almost nobody carries both license and registration
in one's pocket so you are given an ID to go get your registration
and then return to the line to begin standing on line to ultimately
pay your fine. This took three hours both times I went through this
experience not counting trying to find the impound lot and driving to
the impound lot.

The first time I had this experience, I paid on one line but did not
hear I had yet another fine/towing fee to pay on another line due to
a noisy argument directly behind me. I got notice of failure to pay
in the mail and paid more for the less than super service I
experienced at the impound at a different location. By the way, it
is a good thing I did not assume the impound was the same the second
time I encountered this or I could have driven to the wrong place
only to discover I stood on line in the wrong place to ask where the
right impound was. Pure luck!!!! I wonder how many tourists have
done that and left Philadelphia never to return.

There should be a way to call a central number to find your car and
to pay for fines and towing charge by credit card with your license
as your identification. Once we reach the site to reclaim our cars,
we can verify ownership at the site where the car is parked. No line
should do the trick and the paper work could be done in the lot the
same way we transact at Hertz Rental.

One arduous experience is enough to discourage a visitor from ever
returning to the city. Two almost did it for me. I really hesitate
parking anywhere in the city except in expensive garages. That is a
topic for another day.

Yo Mike! Thanks for listening.

Allen McQuarrie
Senior Citizen
Doylestown, Pa.
18901
215-340-2854

And more Yo, Mike! that came in via email.
Chris Satullo

Yo, Mike:
The most important thing you can do is to re-establish Philadelphia' s independence from Harrisburg on issues that are wholly the City's prerogative--schools, gun control, parking, whatever. Zoning and historic preservation is the most visible issue of the moment to assert our freedom from governance by fiat and backroom political pay offs.
. Do not permit one-third of the most viable neighborhoods in the City, adjacent to one of the most pristine urban waterfronts in the nation, to lose about 15% of its real estate value. We can not afford to lose these proven tax revenues. Flimflam promotion by outsiders promising outlandish windfalls is simply snake oil. The City fathers need to wake up. You must wake them up.
Surely a more sensible solution to this needless problem can be worked out. As an old industrial city, Philadelphia has wide tracks of abandoned commercial and residential housing that can be leveled if the Navy Yard is not an option. The largely vacant top floor of the Gallery, if chosen as a casino site, could funnel lots of really new dollars from visiting conventioneers. Current plans will be an absolute disaster for our most historic city, and in this, many thoughtful and educated people, whose voices and bank accounts are not as powerful as the hucksters, are assured.

Matt DeJulio
Administrator
SOCIETY HILL CIVIC ASSOCIATION

City Hall needs to be cleaned up and driftwood CLEANED OUT!

Have you tried calling L&I, I did just last week, to report all the pre-voting signs
placed every 2' in the Far Northeast. I got one message after another and no
live person every picked up the phone after 15 mins. I gave up.

Another occasion, I went to City Hall to renew my notary license. I was the only
person in the office and was told to take a number (like at the deli counter), I was
made to wait, while the male clerk ate potato chips and read a romance novel.
I gave up, changed my address to my business in Bucks Cty., went to Doylestown,
waited less than 5 mins., and it only cost a fraction. The City of Phila. lost the
revenue.

THE ONLY THING THAT WORKS IN CITY HALL........IS THE ANSWERING MACHINES. IT'S AN ABSOLUTE JOKE AMONG US CITIZENS.


francesca from phila.

City Hall needs to be cleaned up and driftwood CLEANED OUT!

Have you tried calling L&I, I did just last week, to report all the pre-voting signs
placed every 2' in the Far Northeast. I got one message after another and no
live person every picked up the phone after 15 mins. I gave up.

Another occasion, I went to City Hall to renew my notary license. I was the only
person in the office and was told to take a number (like at the deli counter), I was
made to wait, while the male clerk ate potato chips and read a romance novel.
I gave up, changed my address to my business in Bucks Cty., went to Doylestown,
waited less than 5 mins., and it only cost a fraction. The City of Phila. lost the
revenue.

THE ONLY THING THAT WORKS IN CITY HALL........IS THE ANSWERING MACHINES. IT'S AN ABSOLUTE JOKE AMONG US CITIZENS.


francesca from phila.

Dear Mr. Nutter,
I just returned from a visit to Derry, Northern Ireland, whose
experience may offer some guidance as you try to stop the violence in our
City. In the 1960s and 1970s, I was told, the young, unemployed and
uneducated Catholic men were just as disaffected and, often, just as violent
as the poor, mostly African American young men who are killing each other in
Philadelphia now. When I asked a tour guide how they got the violence to
stop, he replied that the young men obtained an education and started to
work for a better life from within the system rather than from the outside.
He attributed their recognition that education was essential to the work of
Martin McGuinness, now Deputy First Minister and Minister of Education in
Northern Ireland. Mr. McGuinness had worked for many years in the
Provisional IRA. When he encouraged those following in his footsteps to
take a different path and obtain an education he brought with him instant
credibility. He had, in the eyes of the young people, "walked the walk"
himself...and they listened to him.
Philadelphia is full of young men who have turned from violence to
education and, with it, secured a "successful," happy life. I wish you
could name one energetic, charismatic, media-savy person with credibility in
the street to head a movement designed to show today's young people that
education controls their destiny. Such a person may be able to "reach" some
who have not heard the message of the professional educators - probably
because they don't ever go to school.

Sincerely,

Carol Meehan Sweeney

Philadelphia

As I'm sure you know better than any of us, there is no one thing...so here's my take.
Obviously crime needs to be addressed, but it's my opinion that much of this comes from having the right people in charge (timoney vs. Johnson) and making the resources they need available to them. to that end, negotiations with the city's white collar "workers," I believe, is coming up six month's into your [hopeful] term as mayor. It is this portion of the city government that needs the most streamlining. It is this portion that will or won't allow the government to work more efficiently thus providing cost savings that can be used to fund schools, parks (something that is far more important than anyone gives them credit for...it's where those of use who can't afford a shore house relax), police, SEPTA, etc. It is possible that a better run city services branch of the government could lead to less costs and more revenues. For example, an easy to navigate L&I combined with a clear and concise zoning code, modernized building codes could reduce costs and increase revenues. After this is accomplished, you might even be able to get rid fo the tax abatements with the idea that you've drastically reduced the cost of building. I'd also eliminate the central air requirement which does nothing but price more people out of the housing market. People are better off in new energy efficient homes without central air than with it if they want a new home.

I met Mr Nutter in 1998 at a conference and he had, how should I put this, a personality disorder. The sort of guy who is always looking over your shoulder during a conversation to see if there is someone more important to talk to behind you. At the time, he was a lowly first term council person. One can only imagine his arrogance now.

Yo Mike! Why is it that PPA's Boot & Tow Dept. - is the most efficient department in the city?If my car is booted I can pay online & someone removes the boot within 2 hours. BUT, I send my property tax check & after 6 weeks it is only processed because I complained to my councilperson & congressman. We need more efficiency & accountability by our city departments & employees.

We also need to protect some of our older architecture. Philly is filled with culture but one would never know it by all of the cookie cutter new construction. Protect our architecture and demand accountability & efficiency from city employees and departments.

Yo, Mike:

The post of Cheerleader-in-Chief, so ably filled by Ed Rendell, has been vacant for the last eight years. It needs to be filled asap, and you look like the guy who can fill it, Mike.

Rendell understood the value of gestures that some dismiss as mere symbolism and the power of those symbolic gestures to motivate others to pitch in for change. That photo of him on his hands and knees scrubbing a City Hall bathroom did more than anything else to communicate to the general public that he was serious about cleaning up city government and improving the way City Hall not only smelled, but worked. That he did not completely root out the entrenched political culture is a black mark against him, but measured against real savings and improvements he achieved on other fronts, it's a small one at worst.

Having seen you in a motorcycle jacket and in person, I believe that, despite your popular image as policy wonk par excellence, you do have the personality that would allow you to do the high-visibility stuff that made Rendell such a symbol of change at City Hall -- and in the process got Philadelphians to believe in a way they hadn't in years that theirs was a city that still had potential and could again be truly great. He did such a good job at this that the feeling has not completely dissipated over the eight years John Street has held the office, and it will be far easier for you to do some of the tough things you will need to do to get the city back on track if you have people who believe in it -- and you -- behind you.

Sincerely,

Sandy Smith
Washington Square West

Here's another comment filed via e-mail.
Fyi - I've set up a Yo, Mike II comment thread, since this one is getting so long.
Look there, too, to see what your fellow citizens have to say.
Chris

Thomas Waldman writes:

I pass along the following suggestion to Mr. Nutter. In the Center City area where I live there was a lot of support, financial and other, for you. I would seek ways to involve these people in your efforts; in this way you can keep the citizens as real participants in the democratic process, not just once every four years. These efforts need not be grand or ambitious, for example a block at a time, neighbors could try to keep their city clean and safe.

I don't know about the "single most important" single thing, but I think something Mr. Nutter should consider is implementing a better recycling program almost as soon as he takes office. So far the only thing keeping us from (a) weekly pickup citywide and (b) an improved system, possibly with incentives, is a lack of leadership to make it happen.

1) There's already a community of experts and activists who have thought through the logistics and possibilities, and he could meet with them over the summer and have this ready to go within the first two weeks of his term.
2) This isn't just an issue for Center City liberals and the like (heck, we already get good service); I've heard grumbling and desire for more action in neighborhoods as diverse as Southwest Philly and the far Northeast. This would be a real quality-of-life improvement everywhere.
3) Progressives would feel confirmed in their support for a "reformer" by getting action on a pet issue, and "pot-hole" voters around the city would see a concrete piece of evidence of the changing times.
4) This is a rarity in that it could be implemented quickly with splash, and thus generate some quick good will to help tide the Nutter administration through the necessarily slower processes of addressing the city's more substantial problems, like violence or improving the schools.

Give it some thought, Mike, among all the other things on your plate!

Yo Mike - congrats! Just a couple of simple requests:

a)to cut down on the congestion during rush hour - ask delivery trucks not to deliver from 8-10 Am and 4-6 pm or match whatever hours NYC has established so the small city roads aren't blocked.

b)perhaps make a declaration on where scooters can park legally and if possible, provide some spots. (As well as where people can plug their electic vehicles in?).

c)And well - is it possible to max the amount of markup the city food stores in philly can charge? I pay so more for EVERYTHING here than I do in the burbs and it's not right. We're stuck and they know it!

Thanks for listening.
Best,
Dana

Michael Nutter, a very important thing for you
to do as Mayor would be to have an environmental
impact study done prior to agreeing that Philadel;hia should be a wireless city. You
need to know that at least 15% of the population at large is sensitive to chemicals
and electromagnetic radiation.
You have to know that already many people in
the city have been affected adversely by
cellular phone towers - the effects can only
increase as more of these are installed.
Sincerely,
Carol Ward

Yo Mike,

Please lower the taxes. The wage tax is keeping people who work outside the city from living in the city. The business tax is a deterrent for new businesses to start in the city. It's a vicious cycle. When you lower the taxes, more people will move into the city and more businesses will locate in the city, therefore, tax revenue will increase. Thanks in advance, Dave.

Yo Mike,
There is an issue that is affecting citizens of Philadelphia that they may not know about. Hopefully as mayor, you can come up with a solution. The problem is that PGW is reporting bill payment information to credit bureaus. Since it is a service and does not let it's customers have credit, it should not be reporting to credit bureaus. People who are trying to buy a house may find that they can not because PGW has damaged their credit by it's reports. It's hard enough to maintain a good credit score today, please stop PGW from making it harder.

Yo, Mike, the one thing I really need you to do is to re-establish the City's Office of Arts and Culture. Our city's world-class arts and culture amenities provide significant economic development and tourism for the region. As we look to address the many growing problems we face as Philadelphians, it is also extremely important to think big-picture and implement short-term and long-term economic development strategies to bring new jobs, resources and people to our city. As a City Councilman, you championed the importance of arts and culture in our city, and I look forward to seeing the new ideas and policies that you plan to implement as mayor.

Yo Mike,

It was a pleasure getting to speak to you on a few different occasions over the last several months. Congratulations on securing the Democratic nomination for Mayor. As one of your former City Council constituents, I have a tremendous amount of faith in you.

That said, I think a top priority of this city (after figuring out why we’re killing each other at an alarming rate) would be to ensure the voices of the citizen voters are heard and not stifled by politicians with dollar-signs for eyeballs. That the "official" casino referendum was removed from voting machines and ballots without explanation is horrifying. That the 95% of voters who want casinos 1500 feet from our schools, houses, places of worship and the like are being ignored is unthinkable and wholly un-American.

Make voting matter again. Make city government work for its people, not against them.

And, while you're at it... please do something about the BPT? As someone who didn't want to sit on the dole after being laid off, and instead starting my own freelancing company, it was disheartening to realize I could have made the same amount collecting unemployment as I did being an entrepreneur after paying the BPT.

Yo Mike,

Next septa contract, negotiate a clause that requires every septa bus driver to greet every passenger with good morning, good afternoon and good evening.

yo mike

You need to get these streets plowed when it snows. Ever since that bum Street came in office, only broad street gets plowed. You have to change that.

yo mike,
Congratulations, I'm glad you won. The one thing I need you to do is get Septa in line. Have trains, El lines and Regional, that run later than 11 or 12. have a safe way for people to go into town and get home without driving. and make them go GREEN, it's bull that they haven't already. They work for us, not the other way around. And what about people who need to take two hours worth of buses for a 30 minute drive? it doesn't make any sense that the regional and El lines don't hook up in more places than 30th street.
I drive everywhere and I'd much rather take the train, but it's so bloody inconvenient to the environment and everyone on it. Good Luck Mike, you have my support.
sincerely,
casey lynch
frankford, moving to somerton.

...The environment. While the federal government is slow to catch on, many local governments across the country are doing a lot to clean their environment and lower their carbon emissions. Here are some proven suggestions that work for the environment and for the economy:

1) Fix SEPTA: Although you have little control over the actual system, encouraging our public transportation system is incredibly important.

2) Recycle Smarter: In the Northeast and West Philly the city has combined the plastics and papers and recycling is up significantly. Immidiately expand this program citywide to help our economy.

3) Encourage biking: Philadelphia is one of the best cities for biking in America. One of the good things to come out of the Street administration was a respect for bike lanes. Expand this so that our citizens can get around without guzzling gas! Make an ordinance that every office building in the city must include a bike rack.

4) Plant more trees! They're beautiful, they clean the air, they raise property values, they suck up carbon dioxide, and they reduce the summer heat. Keep up fairmount park and build new gems like Markward Playground.

5) Change Zoning: Look at the law Boston has just passed, which says that new development must include a certain level of green-friendly building methods.

The reason people voted for you is your vision. Make Philadelphia a leader in the future, green world, not a straggler.

Albert Eisenberg
Wynnefield

...TO BUILD AN OFF-ROAD BIKE PATH FROM THE SCHUYLKILL RIVER TO THE DELAWARE RIVER, RUNNING THROUGH DOWNTOWN, to promote bicycle commuting. Suicidal bike lanes painted onto busy streets don't cut it. In Canada, Montreal and Ottawa have bike paths and lanes giving full access to all areas of the city, either off-road or protected from traffic by barriers. Montreal has bicycle cafes and bike racks at many important intersections. I have made a huge investment in Philadelphia for the past 23 years but my choice of location for retirement will be based primarily on bike paths and vegetarian restaurants, after basic considerations such as safety and ethics. Mike, you did a beautiful job while City Councillor in Roxborough and I voted for you based on your record and your ethics. If anyone can, you can help Philadelphia to become green, peaceful, ethical and progressive about helping our neighbors. A lot of us will help you, you are not in this alone.

Joanne Brown
Roxborough

Yo, Mike! The one thing I really need you to do is plan a budget that is not at the expense of the City employees. Currently, City employees earn way below the average private sector employee doing similar work. Providing quality city service will attract citizens and business to the area, which will increase city revenue. In order to provide quality city services, you need quality people. In order to attract and retain quality people, you need to compensate them properly. In addition to negotiating a fair living wage to City employees, there should be an objective process established to give cash performance awards to reward outstanding City employees. This would entail a change from the current annual pass- fail performance evaluation system to an evaluation differentiating between fair, good and excellent performance.

Yo Mike,

Make sure you pick the right canidate for the next Police Commish!!!!!

Mike,

I am surpirsed how many people have similar wants. A cleaner, safer city. One way to get it cleaner is post cameras on all entrances and exits of the highways within the city to identify litter bugs and fine them. If we were as diligent as we are with parking tickets with fining people littering we would see a turnaround.

Meet with corporations to develop a game plan to get them to locate in Philly. We should be as agressive as our southern states are at offering incentives. Although incentives cost money upfront they bring more business and opportunities to the area as a whole. What is the point of having undeveloped space in the city not generating significant tax income, if we can offer incentives to get companies to locate here. The jobs created would offset the cost of incentives.

Revamp the schools, fire the consultants that are adding no value. Focus on hiring teachers that have a direct impact to our kids. Remove ineffective adminstrators.

Run the city like a corporation, if you don't see results you go and clean house.

All city departments should be revamped. I visited the Water Department and spoke to 4 different people who could not answer how quickly their website is updated, not did they care to find out. I say lay off the excess workers and reduce payroll in departments that are obviously overstaffed and ineffective. This will also address the heritage of patronage jobs that are so unfair to the hard working people of city.

Mike,
we really need to strengthen SEPTA, or rather public transit for the Philadelphia region. The system needs to run better, including a metrocrad system like NYC and Boston have at EVERY STOP. We need to make sure the 23 trolley re-opens.

use Philly's ownership of the tunnels and tracks to force change. Don't let Harrisburg rip us off again!

Mike. I work in Center City. I am so tired of the begging on the streets. Is it impossible to take care of these poor people so they don't have to beg on every corner. I feel as though I live in India, where I understand street beggars have been around forever. It is a sad plight for a City like ours to have street begging. If I were visiting here, I would certainly not be happy touring the City.

Yo, Mike,

I am extremely excited to have helped elect you to office. Though it is not official yet, we all know the writing is on the wall.

Since moving back to the city after a 6-year hiatus, it pains me to see the lack of leadership in the mayor's office to change Philly for the better. I hope you are the one to help bring about the revolution this city needs to undergo. A few ideas:

1. Bring in revenue - have more parking authority staff on the streets. Though posted signs out front of City Hall state "No Parking," there is a backfill on the street around Macy's and the hotel across the street. Additionally, why does McCormick & Scmicks valet on the street? This is ridiculous. I live in the city, pay taxes, pay to park in my designated area in Fairmount, and still cannot find a legal place to park. Why does this happen? Because out-of-towners can park for free? No other major city allows this, and it needs to stop. Additionally, ticket for jaywalking. Take a look at how Chicago runs their streets.

2. No more "Pay-to-Play" and union interference. The unions should not run the city, period. We need to do what is best, and if that means the Comcast building going Green with its plumbing, then they should do so without any interference.

3. Clean up the streets. They are horrendous. This is a dirty city.

4. Continue redevelopment without raising the wage tax, nor inviting casinos to the city. Casinos will be the downfall of Philly. Studies prove that crime and poverty will follow.

5. The public school system needs monetary help. If our children are not educated with the best possible teachers, books, computers, and vocational opportunities, there is no hope for them. We need to change this so everyone has a chance to succeed.

6. Crime - does that even need mentioning?

I wish you the best of luck to help change this city for the better!

Yo, Mike, I want you to understand how distrustful I have become of my elected officials. I live a few blocks away from what will be the Sugarhouse casino and feel like the health and wellbeing of my children are being sacrificed to satisfy the greed of a few. Please do everything possible to stop the construction of casinos in Philadelphia's residential neighborhoods.

Dear Mike,

Congratulations on your win. I have lived in the Juniata Park section of the city for 26 years. It is a totally integrated neighborhood--white, black, hispanic and a little bit of everything else. I think that the neighborhoods need to be worked on regarding taking pride in their neighborhoods. I constantly find trash all over the place and just a general lack of pride in the way most of the neighbors keep their properties. Lawns aren't kept properly. Weeds are growing out of control, junk cars in the driveways. We have a beautiful new charter school which is almost completed and already it is littered with graffitti.

Thanks for reading.

Yo Mike,

The most important thing you can do as Mayor is make the people of Philadelphia believe that you can make a difference in their lives. This includes every single person in Philadelphia. Not just the ones who voted for you, certainly not the ones who already believe in you, but everyone. The psyche of the city is more important that any single policy you could implement (clearly they're interconnected, but I think you see where I'm going with this). You need to make yourself visible to people of Philly, the way you did during your campaign, just keep it up for 8 years and everything else will fall into place. Make yourself visible in the northeast, make yourself visible in the southwest, make everyone know that you're there for them.

Yo Mike,

(1) As a need to have, I would like to see a simplification and reduction of the city tax structure in order to encourage business investment and development. I think more opportunities for jobs will fix alot of the problems in the city including reducing crime.

(2) As a nice to have, I would like to see SEPTA regional rail line hours extended on the weekends. It alway boggled my mind why my new jersey friends could come into the city and enjoy the nightlife then take the PATCO home. While my Pennsylvania suburban friends had to drive if they wanted to stay later then 10 PM. Run the regional rails until 2 AM and you will increase spending on the bars and restaurants and cut down on drunk driving.

Michael,
I would like you to help us envision what Philadelphia will be like in a post petroleum economy and start work now on making it the best possible City under that eventuality: strong local economy, full use and development of our human capital (so necessarily a new educational model) great parks, great public transportation system; regional planning and alliances. Sustainable in every way. No small agenda, but you have what it takes. And I really want to help.

Jamie

Study the best practices of other cities and implement them here. I'm sure that by applying your intellect to obvious problems you will find a way to do things better. Most importantly is quality of life. Many good things will follow if petty and not so petty annoyances are dealt with promply.

Mike, I'm glad that you got the hot seat. Please don't shuffle everything at a time. Take time and observe and study the important peoples (officials)do and did. if somebody is capable keep him and support him.
I am fedup with the gas bill which I paid last winter. I am crying ( 200% more than the year before) please do something for the middle class citizens. eager to see your admn. thanks

Michael,
I would like you to help us envision what Philadelphia will be like in a post petroleum economy and start work now on making it the best possible City under that eventuality: strong local economy, full use and development of our human capital (so necessarily a new educational model) great parks, great public transportation system; regional planning and alliances. Sustainable in every way. No small agenda, but you have what it takes. And I really want to help.

Jamie
Roxborough

Michael,
I would like you to help us envision what Philadelphia will be like in a post petroleum economy and start work now on making it the best possible City under that eventuality: strong local economy, full use and development of our human capital (so necessarily a new educational model) great parks, great public transportation system; regional planning and alliances. Sustainable in every way. No small agenda, but you have what it takes. And I really want to help.

Jamie
Roxborough

Hey Mike,
We provide an array of wonderful, life-changing, human service programs in the City (Young Women's Leadership Academy, Computers for Ex-Offenders Program, Gaming Camp for Youth). We need more funding via grants, contracts and/or referrals. What can you do to help small non-profits that are out serving the community find funding?

Sincerely looking for change,
Angel LaBell
www.eltainc.org
www.mtairycomputer.org

Yo, Mike, I really need you to direct all City departments to put all public-record databases up on the web for free, anonymous, easy download by citizens.

This is a transparency issue. A good model is the FEC website, where federal campaign finance information can be downloaded en masse. Personally, I'm interested in getting precinct-level election results for the whole City in one fell swoop. More generally, the public will benefit if all sorts of City data is available easily on line so that, say, one can compare City contracts with campaign donors.

I would gladly discuss the technicalities with you, your staff, or any other person who might be involved in implementation.

Yo, Mike, I'm so pleased that you won the primary. You are going to turn Philly around.

There are long term goals and short term ones. The most important long term goals are fixing our public schools and getting corporations to move their HQs back to Philadelphia, so citizens get better jobs and we have a bigger tax base.

Fixing the public schools means first getting the students with behavior problems into special facilities, away from the students who want to learn. Then, rather than just warehousing the students with the behavior problems, they and their families must be dealt with in a firm and constructive manner. That will be a big, expensive, thankless and possibly impossible job. But if we don't at least take the kids with behavior problems out of the schools, the kids who want to learn won't, and this city is toast.

Attracting corporations means tax reform that makes us more attractive than other cities. But you already know that.

Dear Mike,

Congratulations on your big win. I was working for you on election day at the corner of South and 4th when a 30ish year old man approached me and had something to say. I asked if he was voting, and he said there was no use, because nothing would change. The city has gone to hell under John Street, he said, with too many guns and gun shops. When he was young, you survived a fight. He had a son when he was 15 and was not able to handle the responsibility, but never looked for a handout. This generation of teenagers are already ruined, so we need to focus on the young and give them a better education and more job opportunities.

This man made a big impression on me, and what I would say to you is that you need to give this city hope. There are so many private and public groups trying to make the city better, specifically in the area of education, but no one has channnelled that into a bigger effort. Residents like the man above think no one cares about them. If I were you I would convene a group of the leaders of these organizations - Project HOME, Philadelphia Futures, Steppingstone, Children's Scholarship Fund, SummerSearch, Summerbridge, White Williams, Outward Bound, charter schools, the Board of Ed, etc. etc. etc. and start a dialogue about how much Philadelphia is already doing and what more we could be doing (and attracting philanthropic dollars toward) to make this the city of most opportunity for young people.

Good Luck Michael
My only suggestion would be to start a nutrition program in all Public schools and Phila jails, this is proven that diet alone may cease certain behavior or learning disabilities along with the health problems

Yo Mike, We would love to see some enforcement of The Dog Laws as spelled out in our City Charter (10-104). Many people let their dogs run free in our park and don't clean up after them. Only a very small percentage have dog licenses. When Philadelphia Animal Care and Control(PACCA)is called to help with ticketing or to deal with vicious dogs, they say to call the police. The police say to call PACCA. Fairmount Park says they do not have Rangers to send either. We built a "Dog Run" for the dogs, we would like the park used for people activities.

Yo Mike,

Congratualtions. I am so happy that the smart guy will be in charge for a change.

It would be easy to use my 150 words urging you to fix the stuff that everyone else is going to talk about, and that you already have on your radar: murder rate, bad schools, inaccessible services, cops in cars and not on the beat. And it would really be impossible to pick just one.

So I will try to keep it simple and non-specific: PLEASE DON’T LET US DOWN. By us, I mean the thousands of Philadelphia who voted for the smart guy. I simply ask of you that with every choice, you think hard about how we can make government work for the best interests of the most people in this city, and turn away from the easy choice of letting things slide.

If I had to pick one thing: Find some way to get the litter picked up, and get Philadelphians to stop viewing the streets and parks and roadsides and overpasses of the city as their personal trashcans. Make littering a deviant act, not the standard.

Mike, i would like to see the Real Estate Tax realligned. They are disproportionately high in West Mt Airy as opposed to other sections of this city. My taxes were arbitrarily raised by an unscientific re-appraisal. This is an area of great concern for the residents of our city.

Yo Mike,

Congratulations! As the new Mayor of the City of Philedelphia your task is huge! Basically start over, clean the corruption out of City Hall, improve the image, and respect of city officials. Listen to the tax payers. Take back the water department, PECO and SEPTA. All three are completely missed managed. Anyone with superior management skills can easily bring all three back within budget limits. The departments within the city. Shake them up! The streets department is an absolute disgrace. Trash and litter all over. Get the supervisors out on the street. Tax reform? What and where is that? Only the select. Rid the city of bad publicity, corruptive courts, unlicensed sidewalk vendors , city hall rumors, and department supervisors and anyone who does not comply with the system. Licenses and Inspection department, what a disgrace, no value, no anything. Many, many people on the payroll and what do they do? Not much by my estimation.
Police and fire department. Who controls them? What is the latest on closing fire stations? Yes closing fire stations. Is there anyone who works for the city that is accountable for their job? The Convention center-why is there no conventions in the city? Yet, the taxpayer paid the center. And oh yesm there is talk of expanding the convention center. Why? Keep the taxpayer informed.

Two simple things:
1) Obey the law. (And make sure City Council and all the other City employees do so, too).

2) Enforce the law. (Even if it means putting your friends and supporters behind bars.)

Do those two things and you'll clean up the city and City Hall.

Then you can cut business taxes and stop driving businesses and the middle class out of Phila.

Yo, Mike, the one thing I really need you to do is continue your conversation with the citizens of Philadelphia. What made this primary campaign extraordinary, if not unique, in Philadelphia history was its focus on the issues—and you were largely responsible for that. You took us and our concerns seriously. Your thoughtful, detailed position papers on a range of issues from Arts and Culture to Zoning and Planning showed that you’d listened to citizens in neighborhoods around the city. Please continue that. Don’t just hold regular press conferences to let us know what your administration is up to (although that’s very important), but hold town hall meetings on an equally regular basis, moving from neighborhood to neighborhood. Show us that you’re the people’s mayor.

Yo Mike,
Please lower property taxes in Philadelphia. That would be a great thing.

Yo Mike,
1. Congratulations
2. Get the School Board payroll. List every non-teacher who makes over $100,000 a year. Find out who they report to, what they are supposed to do, how that activity is measured, & whether they are doing it.
You'll find "consultants" kicked upstairs (relics of the Connie Clayton days), computer "assistants" who refuse to assist anyone, and many other such public servants. People who still work at the schools are afraid to rock the boat (a way of safely channeling complaints about, eg., teacher safety would pay off). You can save big $$ & improve the morale of the staff doing their jobs by eliminating the deadweight.

Good luck Mike!!

In no particular order:

Choose a new police commissioner who isn't scared to shake things up at the department and try some new strategies to lower the crime rate.

Fund the city's parks and improve access to them (or at least to the big one) through public transit.

Get competent people on SEPTA's board and in charge of transportation planning (no more politically connected lawyers).

Tweak social services funding so that it gets spent on social services (I.e. poverty reduction) rather than city council re-election campaigns.

While much of your focus will naturally be on the unfortunate things in the city (namely, crime) please remember the progressive initiatives (citywide WiFi, tourism funding, recycling, green building, arts) which will keep this city moving forward.

...lower the City Wage Tax, provide more programs in the city for the disabled (particularly for Autistic people.), fix the huge pot holes! When I think of more, I will gladly let you know.

Please take your time and look for a Police Commissioner who carries the appropriate credentials. This means having more than experience! A Master's Degree should be the minimum educational criteria along with professional development training such as the FBI National Academy or Northwestern University "School of Police Staff and Command." Remember, this person will run a 7,000 employee organization. Think of a CEO candidate! That's how it should be decided!

Dear Mr. Nutter:

Congratulations on a well-deserved win. Philadelphia is a great town that deserves great leadership. You will have your hands full with problems- education, healthcare, services, taxation. But, be of good cheer.

I can offer you one thought. Your support base cuts across not only social strata, but geography. You offer hope to us who do not live within the city limits, but see Philadelphia's health as the key to the region's success. I encourage you to reach out to the surrounding communities to build coalitions for mutual benefit. You have many supporters ready to help- all you need to do is ask. It is in our mutual best interest to work together.

And one other. Philadelphia is a city of universities. Tap in to the brain power of Penn, St. Joe's, Textile, USP and others. Again, all you need to do is ask.

You have a City relying on you.

All the best,

J.P. Borneman
Bryn Mawr, PA

Please enforce and expand on your public anti-smoking policy.

Dear Mike,

First of all, I want to congratulate you on your big win. Secondly, I want to thank you for showing interest in what us Philadelphians have to say about our city's improvements. And last but not least my wish is to feel/be safe in my own home and neighborhood with my children. I want to be able to let my children play out side for a change. I also would like to see Police Officers doing their job the way it is meant to be done, and not pretending to not see what is really going on. Also, we need to be listened to more than to be heard.

Yo Mike, please keep the casino from being forced down the throats of the residents in South Philadelphia. Casinos feed off of the poor and elderly. If you look at the stats in today's Daily News you will see that in only 4 months the crime rates for both Philadelphia Park and Harrah's Chester have been abismal. We need to stop the construction that was put forth by crooked politicians in back room deals based on illegal contributions. Please save the future of Pennsport and Whitman.

Yo Mike,
This may sound trivial to a lot of people, but we really need to clean up the city. I don't mean the political environment (although city goverment in general needs a good fire hose). I'm speaking about the trash in our beautiful city. I would like to see enforcement of our trash laws. I would like to see our streets cleaned once a week or once every two weeks. I would like to see city trash cans on the corners and have them emptied on a regular basis. I would like for the leadership of our city to understand that in order for us to achieve the great things that all politicians preach, we first need to achive small victories in areas that affect us every day. Thank you for giving us a forum for average citizens to express our views.

Yo Mike!

I would really like you to consider putting into place a city ordinance making it illegal to block any city street for the purpose of having a block party if, it is a SEPTA bus route. I have seen major streets being closed off for block parties. How does that happen? You need to take a look at the Department of Streets and who approves these requests for block parties? Why aren't they using common sense when approving these requests? You also should take a look at the employees themselves, because they could be the ones securing the permits to close off these major streets. I found it extremely disturbing while I was riding the "C" bus (11th & Nedro) that people around the 9th and Hunting Park area closed off 9th street for the purpose of a block party. There is a park right there ...why would they close off the street when they can utilize the park!
A great deal of people rely on SEPTA to get around every day. Please keep our bus routes free of obstacles.

Mike,
Congratulations on your big win. I was proud to support you and volunteer for your campaign! My biggest hope for your administration is something of an intangible. That would be restoring the perception generally held by people inside and outside of the city that Philadelphia is moving in the right direction, has a bright future ahead of it and is a good place to live. This perception existed during the Rendell years but slipped away precepitously recent years. I suppose a lot goes into that...marked economic development, reducing crime, restoring blighted neighborhoods. All of that gives us a perception of hope and the ambition to truly make our city America's Next Great City.

Yo Mike,

Help us the working and disabled residents of Philadelphia have a better quality of life. By getting the Thugs and guns off the streets.Good luck as the next Mayor of Philly.

Peace,
SonnySpoon

Dear Mike:

I'm delighted that you won. Well done.

The most important thing you can do for Philadelphia, is to make sure that every dollar that is taken in as revenue is wisely and honestly spent: Your efforts on City Council to lower business and wage taxes were commendable--I am sure that as mayor, you will accelerate them. And perhaps even more importantly, no-bid contracts must be eliminated for all but the most minor projects. Grants must be transparent (published and on-line), and there must be publicly accessable accountability for each dollar spent by or through the city government.

Good luck, and please have some fun as mayor,

Your friend, George Henry Newman

My absolute #1 wish is to have a city-wide public transportation upgrade. The remarkable public transportation in cities like San Francisco, Paris, and NYC leave a lasting impression on visitors and makes a tremendous impact on its citizens’ quality of life. A first class public transportation system would make Philadelphia a first class city, by uniting isolated neighborhoods, reducing parking problems, pollution and traffic jams, and benefiting the environment. Some ideas include expanding our high speed rails and electric buses. We could get creative with funding, like having corporate sponsorship of individual trolley stops and subway stations (i.e. “Wachovia 37th Street trolley stop”). Imagine what Philadelphians would do with an extra hour in the day not spent in traffic or waiting for late, slow-moving buses and trains (as we do with Septa). Think about the legacy that would be left with a mayor who revolutionized this city’s public transportation!
Jen F.
Manayunk

Yo, Mike, the two things (c'mon two is do-able right?) I really need you to do is ..."

1)Attend to Public Education. I would say "fix" public education but I don't believe that's the primary job of the mayor, nor do I believe it's possible within your term. But let's make sure that city hall pays attention to the huge problems with the School District of Philadelphia. In the past the school district and the city have not gotten along. I urge you to put that aside and work to support the school district, to urge them to make good choices and to think creatively about ways to improve education. Particularly early education - our preschool and elementary school programs are the key to a successful and sustainable citizenry and the only chance we have to work on closing the racial and economic barriers to success.

2) Public Transportation. There is not much to say other than without an efficient, inexpensive public transportation system that cares about the city within which it operates Philadelphia will fall far down on the list of top cities in the U.S. and will face a rapidly declining population.

Yo Mike,
Thanks for stopping by.Having lived in Phila., most of my adult life,I have seen lots of changes over the years. Some of them good and some not so good..There are quite a few areas that need some improvement, the cost of public transportation, trash collection,and just plain trying to deal with local government on the phone, which is quite offen impossible...
My main problem however is the Philadelia Gas Works and the HIGH COST of this service.I am of the firm belief PGW is out of control.The PGW needs to be privatized and run as a business, with applied cost cutting measures..My gas bills are almost as high as my realestate taxes,and I have done everything possible to cut costs on my end..Well good luck Mike,and God bless you in this your present under taking...
Tom White
Rahnhurst

"Yo, Mike, the one thing I really need you to do is ..."

FIX THE SCHOOLS.

We live in the 4th, 5th, or 6th (depending on who you ask) largest city in the country, and we have a school system that doesn't work.
Rah-rah statements from the School District of Philadelphia notwithstanding, our school system is failing the greater part of our children, who can not read, write, or do mathematics at their grade level in increasing numbers each year.
Parents who can afford to send their children to private schools do, which decreases the economic and racial diversity of our student population. This is a bad thing, Michael.
You are to be highly commended for keeping your daughter in the Philadelphia Public School system, but if she weren't accepted into Masterman, truthfully, would you send her to a neighborhood school? Truthfully.

I love my city and the public schools, but if my children didn't go to Masterman and Charter Schools, I'd be working a second job to pay for their private school education.
And THAT is the reality for Philadelphia parents. Take that to the bank.

Many of the city's and nation's problems can be traced to drug abuse. I think the war on drugs should be abandoned. Drug use should be handled as a medical issue. Resources currently devoted to surveillance, arrest, conviction, and incarceration should be re-directed to education, prevention, treatment, and rehabilitation. Drugs should be provided by the government to registered users. The cost to manufacturer such drugs is minimal - the higher street price results from the risks involved with the illegal distribution. When the profit has thus been removed from the illegal distribution of drugs, many criminals would have to find another way to make a living. There would be fewer murders and turf wars. Non-violent criminals currently incarcerated for possession and use should be released after rehabilitation so they can lead productive lives. These measures would reduce costs and increase revenues.
Thank you for considering this suggestion.

Yo Mike,
Thanks for stopping by.Having lived in Phila., most of my adult life,I have seen lots of changes over the years. Some of them good and some not so good..There are quite a few areas that need some improvement, the cost of public transportation, trash collection,and just plain trying to deal with local government on the phone, which is quite offen impossible...
My main problem however is the Philadelia Gas Works and the HIGH COST of this service.I am of the firm belief PGW is out of control.The PGW needs to be privatized and run as a business, with applied cost cutting measures..My gas bills are almost as high as my realestate taxes,and I have done everything possible to cut costs on my end..Well good luck Mike,and God bless you in this your present under taking...
Tom White
Rahnhurst

Please extend more city services such as snow removal to the south philadelphia area. it seems that the city forgets we exist when it snows.

Also, revise the regulations regarding impounding vehicles that have no registration / insurance. My young son let his insurance lapse ( his responsibility I know and agree ) but his car was impounded and he was unable to get it back because the state would not issue a registration for 6 months. the long and short of it is that he lost the car, it was sold by the city and on top of it all he never received payment for the excess over the fines. this seems like a law to persecute low income people for having low income (redundant on purpose). Certainly there is a better way to drum up revenue.

You should also look at the traffic courts...............have you ever been there???

Yo Mike,

I have lived in Philadelphia for over 50 years and have seen firsthand the amazing ability of this great city to thrive despite lackluster political leadership. Who knows what will happen when a Mayor with both integrity and character is at the helm. I can hardly wait!

Her's my one eminently doable thing. Clean up the City Hall courtyard. Yes, it would be great to do the entire building but I and a lot of your fellow citizens would settle for a complete redo of the courtyard. Get rid of the macadam and redo the concrete walled flower beds. Whille your at it tear down the chain link fencing. Buid it and people will come.

Mike,

I know this city has several major problems, i.e. the murder rate, corruption in city hall, the school system, etc....but in addition to these very troubling issues there's something that I feel needs to be addressed and it is the appearance of our neighborhoods. And by this I mean LITTERING! This city has a major problem with ignorance and I continuosly see people dumping illegally, throwing garbage from the their cars and simply on the ground as they walk. Our streets are the foundation of our city and this ignorance is a learned problem similar to rascism and violence. Lack of respect for others, period. It is also closely related to a lack of education, a respect for where we live, our environment and ourselves. I was recently in London in the UK and their were full size signs everywhere with the STOP LITTERING headline with fines listed. Does the law enforce this problem? If we started taking care of our city in the most basic of ways, we would certainly see positive results in the more complex problems. It's simply a lack of respect for our neighborhoods and the people who live in them. Other cities are much more superior in controlling this issue and definitely have made strong leaps and bounds in the recycling of wastes. Something that this city is extremely lacking. Its a difficult task just to get a blue recycling container! On thrash pick up day the problem is at its worst and our Waste Dept. employees should be punished if they are too lazy to pick up debris that may not make it into their trucks. We need to take back this city and have some pride in our neighborhoods. This is a beautiful city and we need to make it seen.

This is probably one of the easiest tasks for you to tackle while receiving large returned results. Think about it...

Scott-Fishtown

Yo Mike!

Thanks for listening! Please consider putting up for sale all vacant, deteriorated and unused City owned properties and lots including those owned by the Redevopment Authority and Philadelphia Housing Authority. By doing so, you will immediately add additional revenues to the general fund, increase the City tax base and encourage economic development efforts.

These properties/lots are an eyesore in our neighborhoods. Many of the properties can be put to good use and have real value. It is great that NTI cleaned many of these properties but that is only a temporary solution. The long term solution is to put these eyesores into the hands of experienced people who can invest in our communities.

I don't care as much how you make this happen. You can either list all of them with local realtors or you can put the addresses on a City web site and solicit closed bids. Think about it!

Ken

Blend economic, social and cultural in exciting new ways that establishes Philadelphia as a city admired by the nation and a world-wide model. Set extraordinarily high goals and take risks.

Yo Mike,

Congratulations on your election win. I have followed your career in council and have been impressed with you all along for the sensible and intelligent things you did. I know you will go all the way in November!!!

The one thing that bothers me most is the fear that property taxes will go up. Now that I am retired, I am afraid that I would have to sell my house if my taxes go any higher, because I can't afford any more than I am paying. I would hate to leave the city where I grew up, raised my children and worked all my life. I love this city!!! I can't stay if taxes go up.

If I could have more than one thing on my wish list, the second would be getting the guns off the streets, the third would be making our school safer. Having been a school teacher in this city, I can tell you honestly that too many incidents are swept under the rug so that principals don't get in trouble. Much more happens in the schools than anyone knows except for the staff. I know that our kids would get a better education if class sizes were reduced, too.

Thanks for listening.

Karen

Yo Mike,
Keep the casinos AT LEAST 1,500 feet from our institutions. We cherish our homes. We cherish our children and of course, we cherish our many churches.

You know you will have THOUSANDS standing shoulder to shoulder with you if you can be brave and do the right thing. Do the right thing, Mike; you know you want to.

While good planning and efficient service administration are crucial, restoring the balance of tax incentives for new, small, and growing businesses is paramount. Philadelphia loses far too many of its young graduates and potential entrepreneurs--the city and region are higher-ed leaders--once they discover the tax structure here. Small businesses struggle with an onerous BPT while established behemoths like Comcast or REITs hold the city for ransom with the threat of relocating their jobs. If the tax structure were correct to start with and applied fairly, these "economic development" scams by corporations would be unneccessary and Philadelphia would be incubating tomorrow's revenue-generating powerhouses, creating jobs, and building the audience for culture by keeping its dynamic "creative class" in the city. These things would also fuel revenue and demand for better public education, which is essential for long-term civic health and competitiveness.

Please drastically improve the Philadelphia School System by allowing more charter schools to open - please find more money for them to operate more effectively and efficiently. There are about 4 charter schools in the city with hundreds of families on their waiting list. We have tried for two years to get into several good charter schools and are invariably put on a waiting list. It isn't fair for just "Center City" families to get in...those of us just on the outskirts of "Center City" deserve a good education for our children, too!

Thanks
Sharon
Philadelphia

Mr Nutter:

should you became the next mayor please revisit the Business Prviledge tax and create a friendly environment for business.

I am ready to transfer my small business outside of the city limits.

Additionally, please find incentives for the brown fields to be redeveloped.

We need to restore this city to it's greateness and become the tourist destination for domestic and international traveler.

Regards

Don

Crime must be the first area addressed, which could mean placing the right people in charge and giving them the proper resources they need maded available to them. Next would be working with SEPTA, to come up with a better plan, one without fare increases and less service.

Next comes the tax issues, and more afforable homes. Fixing the public schools maybe by getting rid of the ones with the behavior problems, placing them into special facilities, away from the students who want to learn.

The number onet thing you can do as Mayor is make the people of Philadelphia believe that you can make a difference in their lives. Stay out in front of the public, early and often, tell them what you are doing and how it is working. Become a great leader for the city, and bring them the good news: the citizens are taking their city back, and Philly is the next great American city. Say it, and we will start to believe it.

Thank you for this chnace to express what I feel. God bless you You have the support of the entire city behind you.

Thank you
Nathaniel Green

.

Councilman Nutter,

CONGRATULATIONS on the recent primary win as Democratic Mayor for Philadelphia.

Your views have greatly interest and impress me. Thank you for giving us the opportunity to express our concerns,the issues and positive accomplishments in Philadelphia.

I would love to see improvement in the following areas:
Quality of education in the Phila. public schools, Employment, and Safety/Security.

I am truly frustated with the excessive crime in Philadelphia and I am strongly considering relocating to Suburbia or another City due to this. Philadelphia Police Department is overwhelmed and often times don't respond to calls by Phila. residents. A number of Public Schools in the poor and working class sections of Philadelphia don't seem to offer quality education. But, my granddaughter attends the S. Decatur School in the Greater NE and it's quite an academically sound school unlike the schools in section like Southwest,West Phila.,West Oak Lane, E. Mt. Airy and North Phila.

Finally, the City is a nice one with alot of entertainment and other amenities which, I believe, keep people hanging in there and hoping for a better City.

Again, thank you for this opportunity.

Francine M. Waters
East Mt. Airy, Philadelphia, PA

Yo Mike,
Congrats on the primary & on to victory in Nov. Since you were instrumental in the smoking ban, the issue of the bar patrons moving to the public sidewalk needs to be addressed. I live in the Manayunk area, and Main street is a whole different story than my personal quality of life issue. I live across the street from a nice neigborhood bar that has now basically moved some of its business outside to the public sidewalk--with it's loud barroom-talking, plus cigarette butts on the public street/sidewalks. I have a side porch parallel to the bar that I like to use for entertaining, reading, etc. Now my right to peace and quite is being denied. Come join my wife and I for an evening on our porch, and I'll invite the bar owner to join us. It would be a good place to start this discussion which I am sure is affecting many fellow citizens.

Yo Mike! So glad you'll be the next mayor!! Fixing our public schools and making Philly more family friendly has got to be a top priority! Utilize Penn, Drexel, etc. -- make them take over 5-10 public schools a piece to improve our public educ. Tell the gaming people to put in a mega water park along Delaware Ave instead of or next to those stupid casinos. Just my 2c -- good luck!

Mike: The one thing I would want the new Mayor of Philadelphia to keep in mind is a clear, aspirational VISION of what he or she would like to see Philadelphia look like in 8 years time for ALL Philadelphians...young, old, minority, non-minority, entrepreneurs, students, housewives, working people, families, etc. People who live in neighborhoods, in Center City, or in rural areas. Not just managing crime statistics. Not just implementing programs that lead to better schools or improved infrastructure. But a complete picture of a vibrant, diverse, fiscally sound, creatively charged city that people feel proud to call home, that businesses want to invest in, and that tourists want to visit. Hire the right talent to focus on the administrative pieces, let them do what they do best, and hold them accountable. If you keep true to that vision, the rest will follow. That's what makes a great leader vs. a great administrator.

I've been in agreement with 100 percent of your voting record, action, and advocacy efforts to improve the quality of life for the Philadelphia residents. You've been personally 100 percent responsive to every request for help or suggestions I've sent you. Because I'm so confident that you will continue to be responsive to every person who contacts you, I have only one concern and before sharing this concern, I want to reinforce that you and your staff continue to be responsive to every person who contacts you for support, help, or guidance, and makes a suggestion.

My big concern is the increasing property taxes that senior citizens have been facing. I am not satisfied with Gov Rendall basing the senior citizen's income as a pre-condition for capping the property taxes. I've lived in Philadelphia for 22 years and contributed to the Philadelphia wage tax. Now that I'm retired and no longer pay a wage tax, reducing the wage tax is of no benefit to me while my property taxes continue to rise. I feel that not having some kind of cap or cut on the property taxes of senior citizens who paid the wage tax for a certain number of years is a form of double taxation as well as discriminatory, especially against middle class retirees. The income cut off for seniors is much too low although much needed for those on limited income, but the middle class has taken quite a beating the last decade while the upper class has become richer. This imbalance needs to be corrected. We're not talking about very many years that the cap will last as many retirees will eventually pass away or move on to different living situations within the next 1 day to some 30 years.

Thank you for listening.

. . . is put the word “City” back into “City Planning”. After two consecutive administrations that have either neglected the need for the City’s leadership in planning for the City’s future or paid only “lip service” to the idea, it’s time to become an advocate for City Planning. The reform movement of the early nineteen fifties and its new City Charter relied heavily on the idea of the City moving forward in the post World War II world behind a strong professional planning staff. The framers of the Charter saw the importance for City oversight and control of both the physical and fiscal sides of planning. The privatization of planning that has recently and is now taking place leaves out an essential ingredient, public oversight of the actual costs and opportunity costs attributable to the planning choices. In order to grow the city in terms of jobs and residents it is essential the get the word out that the City is in-charge and Planning is again a priority to the City.

Yo Mike!
I don't care, raise my taxes, impose a curfew, just do whatever it takes to make Philadelphia safe again. The violence in this great city is not only embarrassing but terrifying and I do not know how much longer I can hold out as a Philly Citizen.

Mike -

Please be an advocate for helping Philadelphia to be a city where public transit is user-friendly with an extensive network with a large ridership, which would include 1) increasing the incentives for transit-oriented design, and 2) increasing the density of people who work in the urban core. To achieve this, the tax burden of Philadelphia needs to be comparable to King of Prussia, the transit network needs to be more extensive and intuitive. Currently, roundtrip SEPTA tokens with transfers is the equivalent of 3 hrs 45 min of metered parking. The cost of transit should be the equivalent of 1 - 2 hrs of parking to increase the ridership base, which would in turn put the cost of on-street parking costing the same as garage parking in 3 - 4 hrs, rather than a day of on-street being cheaper than a garage.

Yo Mike,

Start with kids.

No I don't mean kindergarten and the schools. It's already too late. I mean prenatal care, delivery, and home visitation for the first two years of life for every newborn in the city.

Two major studies have shown the value of really early interventions. First the CDC has a study on the adverse consequences of childhood which is linked to drugs, crime, and a whole range of illnesses which drive up cost. Second, the nurse family partnership shows that home visits with public health nurses get most of these kids off to the right start including school readiness and better nutrition, etc.

Almost every European country has figured this out and offer a whole range of early childhood programs. Not surprisingly, their crime rate is a fraction of ours. We can and should do the same in Philadelphia. The real problem in America is that we spend all our money chasing our tail and locking people up, treating their illnesses and never spending any money or investment to prevent this in the first place.

The next great American city will have to do business differently. The great challenge is whether we have the patience to make these investments while our failed previous policies continue to force us to use our scarce resources to fight crime and "fix" our schools. Frankly, we have tried everything except what scientific studies show works. Maybe we can be both smarter and better.

Yo, Mike, the one thing I really need you to do is ... reduce the violence in Philadelphia. Provide an incentive to the the various factions in Philadelphia to work collaboratively to reduce violence, rather than protect their funding streams. Provide support to the organizations that are implementing outcomes based work. Train/retrain the others, or absorb the workers in other organizations. Insist on quality. Provide funding to programs that work, eliminate patronage. Provide uniform evaluation tools for on-going programs. Provide appropriate training and support for our law enforcement agencies. Enhance the communication for those who remain, so we know who is doing what and we can create a seamless continuum from ‘prevention through healing.’ You have my support. Pat

Patricia F. Harner
Executive Director
Physicians for Social Responsibility
704 North 23rd Street
Philadelphia, PA 19130
215-765-8703
215-765-3942 (Fax)

Hey Mike,
To enhance Philly's revenue we need you to stay focused on what Philly does best! We do history, we do tourism, we do museums, we do restaurants- - and we do it THE BEST!!

Let Atlantic City be A.C. Let Vegas be Vegas. And for goodness sake, Michael, let Chester be Chester!!!

Rethink your policies on crime prevention; instead of limiting your constituent’s civil liberties, you may want to clean up our police force with their “lackadaisical to none” response. Since moving back to Philadelphia in 2004, I have had occasion to call the police three times. The police did not respond to even ONE of my calls. I hear so much about apathy in black communities when dealing with the police, and the problem is not always fear of retribution, but the attitude I have now, which is, “Why bother to call, they will not respond anyway.” Mr. Nutter, you are giving to irresponsible and negligent men and women a very large amount of power, and I think you might want them to respond to us as if we are human beings (or even respond at all) first before you begin to allow them to legally violate our civil liberties.

I would like to see more activities in our public schools. When children get bored thats when they seem to get in the most trouble.

Michael,

Please do something, anything, to help clean up the city of Philadelphia. I love this city, and am very proud of it. I was outraged when I heard the comments of New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagan about the cleanliness of our city. And then, I realized he was correct. The trash scattered around Center City, even it's "nicest" areas (ie Rittenhouse)is atrocious. I realize that much of this burden lies with the citizens, who do not seem to think twice about dumping trash on the sidewalks and streets, but the overflowing trash cans, and seeming lack of interest from the city needs to be changed. Hope you can get it done, and good luck

Just to imagine for a moment being the "Boss of Philadelphia", what would be my first initative? I would first implement a plan to have escorts in each neighborhood guarding our children as the come and leave school. I hope this isn't strange Mr. Nutter, however, our inner city children face horrific obstacles traveling to school. There are drug dealers, molester, and more importantly other children that roam together "Jump Fighting". In a huge upscale plan for the entire city this may be small, however, Mr. Nutter your strong armed plans on fighting violence encouraged mothers like myself to vote for you. We are looking for someone to help "us" fight this battle to save our children. I hope my plan helps.

Thanks for asking
Brenda Ford-Kelly.

Mayor Nutter, the one most important thing I would need in my neighborhood is police protection and advocacy. We need some type of dialogue to take place between the people in the neighborhood and the police that protect and patrol. I think it would be a very good idea for all policeman to walk the beat, for 3-4 hours per day, especially in neighborhoods prone to high crime rates of violence, drugs and high unemployment rates. The summer is a key time to do this when you have a lot of people outside because of the nice weather.
I am sure the police could catch and incarcerate some of the people who deal in illegal drugs or other behaviour. Thank you so much for listening and caring enough to ask my opinion.

Sincerely,
Ms. Bing

Yo, Mike!!!

Make me proud to be from Philadelphia. Having travelled alot the past year I have noticed that Philadelphia is dirty and unattractive. The city also has a terrible reputation of being unsafe and unclean.

Please find a way to make people take pride in thier property and neighborhoods.

Yo Mike convince me to not move out of Philly because of schools for my 8 and 10 year old

yo, mike ...

1) you need to dead that stop-and-frisk, anti-crime initiative. as an open invitation to profiling, that plan is an absolute recipe for disaster. it's lazy, it's classist -- if not racist, 'cause YOU KNOW young black males will be inordinately targetted -- and frankly, it sullies you.

2) reinstate afterschool programs IMMEDIATELY. a lot of solid rites-of-passage style mentoring was going on at some of those middle schools; our kids need it, and they're worth it.

3) and finally, you need to keep that gorgeous wife of yours by your side at all times in public. she's a great lady, and a great representation of the best of philadelphia.

good luck, sir. don't make me regret my vote.
s. lester,
north philly

It's the schools, Mike.

Hey Michael,
This property tax abatement thing's gotta be revisited.

I say anyone already in the pipeline to buy a new home with the existing 10 year abatement- let them be. Consider this....going forward, a new home buyer gets year 1 tax free. Year two? You pay 20% of your property tax bill. Year three? Pay 30% and so on until after ten years they're kicking in 100%.

Just imagine the revenue, Mike! We need it for our schools. We need it for our city services!!
How about it, Mike? Whadda ya say?

We need to have quality of life in this city.
The streets need cleaning and people need to be encouraged to follow our trash laws.

I know that your district's streets are cleaned weekly by street cleaning teams, but I cannot understand why my district has not been cleaned in many years.

Please clean and care for our districts as yours are now cared for.

Thanks

1) Fix SEPTA.
2} Attract employers to the city with a more business-friendly tax structure
3) Fix L&I
4) Improve the quality of a Philadelphia public school education
5) Adopt a more comprehensive curbside recycling program
6) Develop our waterfront in a way that benefits citizens

Yo Mike,

The one think I really need you to do is to abolish the ridiculous taxes placed on the hard working citizens and business owners in Philadelphia. It’s not a coincidence that the Metro-Philadelphian area is growing and Philadelphia is shrinking not only in population but also in the number of profitable businesses. A drive down City Ave. is a good example of how much money Philadelphia has lost because of the business privilege tax: the Philadelphia side is virtually a barren wasteland compared to the bustling retail development across the street in Montgomery County. In addition, my friends are moving away because taking a job in Philadelphia is like taking a 4.26% pay-cut. They are no longer contributing to the revitalization of the great city because they’re no longer here to enjoy the splendor, arts, and entertainment in Philadelphia (and spend their money). These taxes may have been a good idea in the 60’s but they’re now obsolescent. Help bring back our citizens and businesses by getting rid of these taxes.

With kind regards,
Michelle

You only gotta change one thing...EVERYTHING!!!

Yo, Mike...

I think the number one thing you should do as mayor is clean up our streets (literally). In Manayunk and Roxborough (both are now established city neighborhoods for young professionals) the streets are filthy. I see trash everywhere except for on Main Street. Almost all residents live around Main Street and not on it which means the trash is sometimes on their property. This is just one example.

Please fix the STREETS Department. I have dealt with them personally to get some excessive dumping picked up on Umbria Street in Roxborough and it took months to even get a response. We could have the lowest property and wage taxes in the world, but no new businesses will come to a dirty city.

Best of luck in November!!!

Yo, Mike,

The one thing I really need you to do is simply to recycle plastic. If we desire the greenest city, seems we should start small instead of embarking on a risky and expensive desire to match Chicago.

Jeff Schuchert

May you lead Philadelphia into changing its self-image into the Can-Do, Will-Do Big City.

Let education as a value and as an expectation be inculcated among its residents. As a start, let improving the educational system and increasing access to high quality education, from pre-K to college and post-secondary programs, be the hallmark of the multi-term Nutter administration in Philadelphia.

Let Philadelphia not be a black hole that saps the energy of the region. Work with the rest of the Delaware Valley so that Philadelphia will be the locus of a unified and equitable regional renaissance.

Yo Mike, i drive home to Center City from work every night in Montgomery County and there is usually a massive tie up around City Hall between 5:00 and 6:30, especially on Friday evenings. There are no cops on duty and everybody must (almost) take their life in their hands as they vie for a space as they struggle to go around the Hall. The main choke point seems to be 15th & JFK. Sometimes it takes 10 to 20 minutes to go from 17th & BF Pkwy to South Broad Street becasue of the backed traffic. It's worse when a cab or limo is unloading in front of the hotel at Broad & Chestnut, as they usually idle in a lane while offloading. I see plenty of cops on duty outside the hotel when a VIP is in town, and plenty of cops at the ballparks. Why are no police assigned to help traffic move around the symbol of this city. What with that and the broken clocks on City Hall tower, it makes a very good symbol for what's wrong with City Hall.

Assigning four or five officers for a two-hour shift would alleviate this choke point by providing order and direction.

Please fix this?

Thanks.

Jim

Dear Future Mayor Nutter ,
Congratulations ! We are thrilled that a true visionary has won the Democratic primary for Mayor of Philadelphia.
We are writing to ask for your support for the Reading Viaduct Project (RVP). RVP is dedicated to the preservation and re-use of the abandonded Reading Viaduct as public, elevated, open green space. You received a packet from us at the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society's Mayoral Forum on Greening at the Convention Center during the Flower Show. PHS is one of the many groups and individuals we've met with who support us. Others include Councilman Frank DiCicco, DCNR Secretary Michael Di Bernardinis, the Rails to Trails Conservancy and Callowhill Neighhborhood Association. The viaduct with it’s 2 branches is literally a bridge connecting several communities including Callowhill,Chinatown, West Poplar and Brandywine East. Beginning at Vine Street between 11th and 12th Streets the viaduct travels north to Callowhill Street where it branches to the west and northeast. The northeast leg continues to 915 Spring Garden Street (the former Reading Company Building which for twenty years has been a fully occupied artists' studio building) as the viaduct ending in a lrage open lot on the 800 block of Brown St. almost reaching Northern Liberties. The western leg meets street level at Noble and 13th Streets and leads directly to Broad Street, The Avenue of the Arts and the Spring Garden neighborhood. As a reclaimed public space the Reading Viaduct will bring together diverse and growing communities and link our past history with our future development.
We would like to meet with you and your staff to discuss this truly innovative idea for the City of Philadelphia.
Thank you for your time,
Sarah McEneaney
John Struble
Co-Founders Reading Viaduct Project

Dear Mr. Future Mayor,
I IMPLORE YOU to fix PGW. How does it happen that a single person who has their thermostat set at SIXTY TWO degrees from September to May; who does two loads of laundry weekly in COLD water; who hangs the laundry in the basement to dry (no dryer); who is out of the home from 7 am to 7 pm (working and commuting) have a TWO HUNDRED DOLLAR gas bill?? How does that happen, sir? I wanna know.

STOP SECTION 8 !!!!!!!

Yo Mike,
The biggest problem I see now is illegal immagrants in Philly. They increase demand on a straining civil infrastructure and pay only sales tax.

Illegal workers who work for less than the prevailing wage undercut working class Philadelphians. By eliminating illegals Philadelphias that are unskilled labor will have a chance to make a living again. Illegals don't do jobs Americans won't-they do them for less than Americans can afford to.

I live in the Italian Mkt, an immigrant neighborhood for 150+ yrs. The latest wave of illegals is a slap in the face to every immigrant who did things the right way. Everybody deserves a crack at a better life, but no one group should be exempt from the rules.

So Mike, if a person is a W.O.P. (with out papers) make it harder for them to find work and housing than it is for a Philadelphian to find work and housing.

Philadelphians First!
Truly-
Missy Me

Please remedy the Center City parking malaise/racket. We have a wonderful, vibrant and exciting downtown that we really are trying to drive traffic into and promote. Yet, the parking problem is enough to disuade people from going into town. Between the ambiguous and sometimes contradictory signs with several sets of regulatory hours and entire blocks of spaces taken out of commission due to "temporary police regualtions" that go on for days, it really feels like the city is trying bait people into parking illegally and collecting revenue on tickets, drive them into overpriced garages, or not come at all.

On a related note - public transportation isn't a real viable alternative for people who want to spend a late night in the city. Most regional rail trains stop running at 12:10 AM - two hours before most establishments close. Thus, the person who would like to go out on a Friday or Saturday and be responsible has to cut his or her night short or risk being stranded in the city.
Thanks for the smoking ban! Good luck!

Mike,

Small business is where I'd like to see you dedicate some attention to. I understand that the thinking is that addressing the needs of big corporations trickles down to benefit small businesses but that isn't true. While reducing the BPT certainly would be nice, it's not what I'm thinking about when I think of the challenges that I'm confronted with in running a business in Philadelphia.

I think that there could be some excemptions for small business, based on some objective measure, that would allow small business owners from having to spend an entire afternoon to get a minor permit that is necessary to continue business operation. Or remove the necessity of having to incur the cost of an attorney when presenting to the ZBA. The arduous procedure for getting a sign on a building leaves plenty of room for improvement.

In short, some sort of small business classification that would allow small business to expedite the steps in getting through the bureaucracy over at the L&I would be a nice start. The big corporations, have people to deal with these type of details, but for small business owners, these are things that we are often required to do ourselves.

I think you should ask the question, "What business incentives exist that would make an entrepreneur want to start a business in Philadelphia?" I cannot think of any, which is disappointing. I think your background and experience can help change that and I hope that you take some steps to correct that issue. Based on a meeting that we had very early in your campaign, it appeared that you understand the vital role that small businesses play in the City. I hope that you keep that understanding in mind as you lead the city into its next great transformation.

Respectfully,
Samuel Botts
President
VIGORworks Fitness Center

Yo Mike!
I'm glad you're the new mayor (and you will be!) I certainly voted for you.
The most basic need in the city right now is to stop the pernicious crime wave. Unless people can feel safe in their homes, on their streets, and in their schools, NOTHING can be done to help the people who need it most in this city. Have the courage to do what you have to do to get this problem under control, and when it is, the next thing to do is make sure everyone in the Philadelphia school system is getting a good basic education, that's reading, writing (English) and arithmetic.
Thanks and best of luck, and thank you for wanting to do this job. I couldn't do it. I know that it will be so hard, my prayers are with you.

I have been very verbal in my hopes for a Greater Philadelphia. Now that we have the power to see some real change in this city, I would like to share my vision with the soon to be Mayor Michael Nutter.

Part of having a safer, healthier, Philadelphia- takes bringing people together (much like you did during the primary) I would like to see our race relations improv in the city. While Philly is a city of neighborhoods, it shouldn't be a city of segregation and racial intolerance. I think that the next mayor can set a great example on how we can all live together and treat one another respectfully. I think that this is as the heart of our problems with violence, education, employment. Closed minded people of all races are often the same people that commit crimes of hate toward other races and each other. Our children need a fresh look at the world free of differences and socio-economic barriers, incoming and philly based businesses need to see the accomplishments of multi-cultural philadelphia. When young African American Men and Women can see themselves as a part of this great city instead of a festering sore within it-change will come.
Okay...So that sounds big. Here are a couple of ideas on how to get started. Host regular events that are geared toward bringing neighborhoods together in dialogue. North, South, East, and West will see that some of their concerns are the same- and that we are all one Big Beautiful Philadelphia.
I have another idea I've researched related to the crime issue...but you'll have to email me to hear about that one. (Smile)
Thanks

Yo, Mike... May I call you Mike?

The one thing I really need you to do is fix urban blight by putting abandoned property to good use.

All throughout my home town, there are both commercial and residential buildings that are not only eyesores to the community. God knows what happens beyond the boarded up windows and doors.

Go to local neighborhood leaders and groups to learn their visions for those properties. Annex the properties through eminent domain. Also, emphasize the enforcement of a land-value tax. When the tax burden gets too high for these property owners, the city should annex these properties as well, or buy them at bottom dollar price. Turn over control of these properties to a board of urban planners. Those that the city can’t put to good public use (rec centers, etc.) should go through a competitive bidding process.

Invest and grow. Everybody wins.

Sincerely,

Brian B. Toll

Yo Mike,

The one thing that is most important to me as a citizen of Philadelphia is the lack of opportunity for many young people. Our youth deserve to have excellent programs at school and after school. Please work to foster successful programs that will help all students succeed and give them opportunities to do something productive and fun.

Yo Mike............

You really need to do something about the influx of out of state buyers who are purchasing homes in Northeast Philly and then turning around and renting those homes and becoming absentee landlords. I potential home buyer should have to clearly state what their intentions are when purchasing residential property. On my block alone there are at least 4 houses that are now being rented. Fortunately the current tenants are good neighbors but we have had our problems in the past and it took months to get the landlord in New York to take action and evict the tenants who were a nuisance to the neighborhood.

Dave Gibson
Matfair

Yo Mike,

I need you to implement a comprehensive recyclnig program for the city, with single stream collection. Just copy San Jose, CA lead; lids on those cans will help the city trash blowing around too!

Regards,
Scott Gillanders

Mike,

I want to see the city really focus on the core services local government is supposed to offer. This is the most important thing you can do. It wont be easy to cut back on areas that are outside the core services... someone will be hurt. But you need to provide for Philadelphians the same services provided elswhere.

As example, I am tired of seeing garabage men generate more litter as they are supposedly picking up garbage... I am tired of streets thqat destroy my car... I am tired of parks that look as though they have not seen a repair since my Great Grandfather ran the Pennsylvania Railroad.

Good luck

I have two ideas. I’d like you to look into the effects our recent development and gentrification have had on crime. As Center City was revitalized, the development spread in concentric circles outward into neighborhoods directly adjacent to Center City’s new influx of money, as ripples in a pond. As that money and development spread out from center into these previously blighted and crime ridden areas, the social ills that had been embedded there were pushed into more outlying neighborhoods. Neighborhoods that have never had poverty, crime, or drug problems are now facing them in uncertainty for the first time. It seems that in tandem with the exciting development taking place throughout our city’s central regions, there have got to be strong programs of law enforcement and rehabilitation throughout the outer neighborhoods to squeeze the social problems from both sides.

Also, dismantling SEPTA and creating a transportation system from scratch as a city operated public utility, answerable to the voters, is the only way to fix the severe transit problems of this city. Installing a world class subway system is ABSOLUTELY NECESSARY for the “Next Great City” with environmental aspirations, not to mention the jobs it will create. If all the money from fares went directly into city coffers, it could be used to offset the city wage tax. There is no reason we shouldn’t have subways running 24 hours a day under every major thoroughfare, complete with transit police, live transit attendants, sales kiosks, public bathrooms, and licensed vendors at every station. Look to New York, Paris, London, Washington DC, Montreal, and Munich for examples of transit systems people are happy about, then ask anyone if they’re happy about SEPTA. Excellent transportation, safe neighborhoods, and no rip-off city wage tax will draw in businesses like moths to a flame.

Yo Mike, the one thing that I think is the most important is school funding. Lots of it. We should be RAISING the school budget, not cutting it! One of the single most important issues in the mayoral race is violence in Philly, violence on the streets, and violence in the schools. If kids have quality schools with adequately paid teachers and LOTS of programs, they will stay out of trouble more no matter what their level of acheivement - they will be also in the band, on a sports team, reading in the library, on the computer, making art, or practicing for the play. They will keep up their grades to avoid getting cut from the team, or have their part replaced in the play. There is more to an education than just reading, writing, and 'rithmatic, and "extras" actually lead to more success in everything. When people ask you how you are fighting the crime wave in Philly, you can respond, "I am funding the best schools in the nation, and the crime will no longer survive in this city."

Yes, I am a teacher and a parent. Your child goes to Philly public schools, and you know I'm right about this one. Education pulls people up, gives them opportunites, and can thus both break the cycles of poverty and the appeal of crime simultaneously.

Think about it.

Michelle E
H.S. teacher

Yo, Mayor Nutter,

Push forward on implementing performance-based contracting for city service agencies. Make sure the companies and agencies that get paid by the City to perform services actually PERFORM them. E.g. millions of $'s are spent each year for social services contractors that work under contracts that have little or NO PERFORMANCE MEASUREMENTS. The agencies that win these contracts have strong political connections, and there is such weak oversight by the City's unionized middle-managers on the services these agencies provide (See DHS for more details on this). The Philly city government shouldn't be a job factory for no-talent social service workers and their corrupt service agency managers; deliver on your contract or hit the road. Also: train City middle managers to be MANAGERS and hold their direct reports and service agencies ACCOUNTABLE for their work each day. Fight the Social Services unions; they are an obstacle, whose #1 goal is guaranteed, no-show jobs.

Yo, Mike…can you do something about these circus-like high schools that are in the neighborhoods of the disenfranchised and politically cloutless? Why not a system where students can apply to any school? Citywide, special admission or whatever. No, really apply – not that lottery crap. Can’t students from 30th & Euclid, 58th & Pentridge or 26th & Point Breeze learn and grow in a safe, nurturing school environment? Or do you really have to greeze somebody’s palm? By the way, I’m collecting for my daughter’s campaign to high school…its only 2 years away.

Homicide is the single most important issue to solve. First, get an outsider as a Police commissioner. Second, get the people in the neighborhoods to aid the police investigations. If the area residents continue to have a "no rat" mentality, then nothing will help. Third, put more police in uniform on the streets and declare a stop and search zone where the homicides and drug sales occur.
Fourth, protect the people and their families who do come forward to aid the police.

Yo Mike,

I voted for you and am so glad you broke through the old Philly 'politics as usual' wall. A breath of fresh air. Congratulations.

Impossible to pick one thing. I agree with most of the previous posts.

I would say the most important thing you can do is speak often of a bright vision for Philadelphia. You need to be the #1 ambassador for Philadelphia's greatness. You must be relentless up till your last day as mayor. It may take that long for it to sink in, but there is no greater need than to change the perception of the average Philadelphia about their own city and the part they can play in contributing to and benefiting from that greatness.

It's my theory that Philadelphians are so very proud of our status as the birthplace of America and all the pioneering accomplishments since then, but since the 60's there has been constant erosion of that pride. Their pride is hurt, and someone needs to restore it.

We need to reclaim a noble and challenging vision of our stature in the nation and world.

One vision I could get behind is “most sustainable major city in USA”. This is the time to get real about our relationship to the planet and responsibility for future generations. We have the university brain trust, the workforce talent, the pressing need to reinvent ourselves, and a Governor who is already leading the way. And exciting jobs would be created to retain all those graduating students. This is already happening with Gamesa Wind Turbines and Imperium Renewables Biodiesel locating here.

This is an initiative that would benefit all Philadelphians directly and indirectly. Everyone could see with their own eyes and breath with their own lungs and notice the improvement. William Penn is waiting to look out with pride again over his 'green country towne'.

I believe you are the man that can get all Philadelphians to believe in this vision. I am with you for the duration.

Port Richmond

I've read through all these posts, and I am so psyched! There are so many people in this City who are passionately committed to making it better! And I was gratified to read that I am far from the only city dweller who is fed up with the litter and dirty sidewalks. I know that people shooting each other is a bigger problem, and lowering the murder rate (and getting guns off the street) is #1, and getting more good jobs into the city is probably #2 (along with training people to fill them), but litter & filth have a profound psychic impact, and I believe clean streets will help fight crime. Good luck to you!

Yo, Mike,
Fix the schools! High taxes and bad press scare some people who may be looking to relocate, but good schools would more than outweigh all of that. Jobs would follow.

What a witch's brew - principals, teachers, parents, students, the adminstration, size, gangsta culture, unions, funding, etc. etc. Obviously, solutions will be complex. You'll have to find a wedge, a lever. As someone who left 25 years ago (after 16 years on the job), I think you need to attract and keep good teachers.
Mike, I would have stayed. I liked the kids. I didn't even mind the money. I left because I wasn't respected. My pride was hurt by the attitudes of those I worked for and with. I felt I could "do better." In some ways, I guess I did. But I have never felt good about abandoning the most important job I've ever had.
Teaching in districts like Philadelphia is as hard a job as anyone could want. Those who stick it out, those who excel, those who take satisfaction from the small successes, MUST be rewarded.
Fixing this will require some new choices on the parts of the union, the administration, even the City. Only the Mayor is positioned to work all the necessary angles. Please, Mike, go for it.

First, Mike, congratulations on the nomination. We're thrilled; it's made us more optimistic about the city's future.

Most of the other folks contributing have pointed to a disconnect between the Few who govern the city and those of us who want to live here because we believe in the city.

The most recent proof of this disconnect has just come with the new budget's decision to "cut" the City Law Offices. I say "cut" because the current budget of 15 million has been changed to 14 million. But, at the same time, City Council has voted themselves 1 million in extra funds for outside counsel -- i.e., private lawyers who bill at between $300 and $500 an hour.

Net effect: cuts to the City Law Offices, and private attorneys for City Council when they already have good ones paid for by the public.

Second net effect: yet another year without even a cost of living increase, and yet another gutting of morale.

I won't go into the fact that the City's lawyers save the city hundred of millions of dollars each year, or that they're paid 1/4 what private attorneys are paid, or that they're respected attorneys and a bargain at the cost, or that 15 million dollars is a tiny part of Philadelphia's budget. (Most of the city's lawyer's make between $50,000 and $75,000 per year).

I won't even go into the fact that these same lawyers have had one raise in eight years (that raise secured with great effort by the current City Solicitor from a reluctant administration) -- without even cost of living increases -- because they are not unionized.

But what City Council's move shows is that they want their own private lawyers, and that they want us to pay for them -- just as Mayor Street retained private counsel for his financial scandals, at a public cost that rivals the entire operating budget (the 15 million) for the City Law Offices.

More than showing City Council's contempt for their own free legal counsel, the decision shows that they don't care about cost-effective government. Given that federal and state governments are immune from lawsuit, an unfair number of lawsuits fall upon cities. This makes having a good City Law Office essential, since these are the same people who make sure that environmental regulations are observed, taxes paid, polluters prosecuted, predatory lenders exposed, civil liberties maintained, and historical buildings preserved. They're the cheapest and best investment towards keeping the City of Philadelphia financially solvent that I know.

I'm hoping, therefore, that you'll help reform the current situation when you consider your administration's appointments for City Solicitor and the city's treatment of its most underpaid and undervalued employees, its non-unionized attorneys.

Sincerely yours,

Michael

Yo Mike, Mre money for the public schools, abolish the business privelege tax.

Yo, Mike, the one thing I really need you to do is promote growth in the city by reducing, or eliminating, the taxes that penalize me for living in Philadelphia. This is a great city, and I believe it is now a great city with a great man as mayor, and we need to promote moving in to the city, not away from it. I wish I could offer a way as to replace the revenues that would be lost. No one said being the mayor was easy, but I have faith that the right man in the office.

CONGRATULATIONS ON YOUR VICTORY!!!

You need to pay attention to the schools. The individual school funding has been cut. Classes are back to 33 students and more. Class size matters!

Yo, Mike make sure your Commissioners are qualified and can do the job. Take a good look a the Fire Dept. and clean house.

Philadelphia schools should be scaled down as Mr. Hornbeck had suggested but never did. The individual "clusters/districts" should have more autonomy as should principals as student populations are different and not "one shoe fits every foot"!

Give the teacher the freedom to teach to her students needs as trying to teach every child "on level" is insane. Try taking fourth year French first before receiving any previous instruction.

Students need more "hands-on" experience but teaching to the test leaves little time for that very thing!

Mike,
To improve our city's schools, maybe....
1. We ship all the law abiding, motivated school age children to the Catholic shools- -or even better, the suburbs, or JERSEY!! Oh wait, that's already happening.
2. Or Maybe you could put metal detectors in the schools. Hmmm. That sounds familiar.
3. Oh I know, we could have the Philadelphia Police patrol the neighborhoods while the kids walk to / from schools. Ooops another familiar solution.

Looks like with the solutions already in place, you really won't have much to do in regard to our school-age kids. Happy coasting!

Dear Mr. Mayor-Elect:

Stopping corruption at every level of City Government should your number 1 priority. From developers who get sweetheart deals because they pay to play to people who get special treatment from various city agencies because they "know someone", corruption is eating our City alive. Each and every citizen of this City should be treated equally by the City, and those employed by the City who offer special treatment to friends or "friends of friends" should be terminated. A zero tolerance policy will right the ship pronto, and you are the only man with the power and the stones to do it. Clean this corrupt government up YOU will be America's Mayor.

Hello Mike,
Providing safe streets for pedestrians is top on my list.
Cameras to catch the many many many drivers who go thru red lights
More patrols to reduce the speed of drivers through city streets . Philadelphia is not Le Mans!!!
There feels like an absence of rules
an absence of courtesy
an absence of police. In Philadelphia, unlike New York City, ANYTHING GOES!!!
Thank you,
Jane Green

Yo Mike!

The one thing I'd like you to do as mayor is clean up the corruption and incompetence in city government. Of course, that comprises countless individual departments and challenges, but that's what is holding this city back from being great. Once that's eased, there's no limit to how far Philly can go!

Dear Mr. Nutter,
Giving police the "right" to frisk anyone they want will lead to abuse of power in our already racist, bunch of bullies police force. As an African-American, do you honestly think you can walk the streets in plain clothes (no limos, no press) and not be harassed by police? I for one, am more afraid of police than anyone else in this city.
Thank you for your time.

Solar panels on every roof, a windmill on every street corner, solid waste energy programs, and comprehensive recycling. Offer incentives and grants to get on board, tax and punish offenders, and sell and buy carbon credits. Sell the green energy we generate to our neighbors, and reinvest it into environmental industries. Attract engineers and manufacturers to build electric cars here. Invite scientists to use Philadelphia as a test city for environmental initiatives. Sink every resource into leading the new environmental economy. Make the Philadelphia economy of the 21st century as synonymous with the environment as our economy of the 19th century was with textiles.

Hi Mike,
One thing I really need you to do is make some of the Philadelphia neighborhoods safer.

I tutored an 8-year-old girl last year through Philadelphia Reads at my company in center city. I would like to see this child once a month, but the third and last time I drove to her North Philadelphia neighborhood (17th and Master), I felt fearful. That wasn't the case before.

I consider myself a mentor to this child, and I'm not a fearful person, but I would like to go to this girl's neighborhood without worrying about my safety or the safety of this girl. Her father won't let her play outside the front of her house because of men with guns.

I voted for you earlier this month, and I hope you'll address many issues in Philadelphia after the fall election.

This is the issue important to me. What can you do?

Regards,
Barbara Cicalese
Roxborough

I feel the #1 thing that needs to be addressed is education. Education covers many things. When we educate our young properly we can reduce violence by giving them a real choice, they can have a career, not a minimum wage job. That will give them hope, and with hope in there lives more young people will make better choices. A good education will put people more in touch with the realities of our environments fragility, and with awareness will come better understanding & less apathy. Last but not least, getting corruption out of government.A well informed, better educated electorate will better decisions. This last one is tricky though, because I believe it doesn't behoove the powers that be to have a well informed, better educated voter.

Dear Mr. Nutter,

I walk to and from work in Center City every day. Here are several things that I have noticed that diminish the quality of life in Philadelphia. SEPTA bus drivers rarely pull to the curb for embarking and disembarking patrons. In fact, the buses appear to take delight in remaing enough in the center of the street to prevent advancement of any lane of traffic. (In NYC, the buses always pull to the curb.) Philadelphia should have some regulation about automobile noise pollution. I have hearing problems and wear aids. Excessive bass booming is quite common and very uncomfortable. Please stand at any Center City intersection. There is practically never a change of traffic light without, including SEPTA and police, driving through red lights. Center City needs many more corner trash recepticles.

Thank you.

Alan Sandman

Dear Mr. Nutter,

Please, find Jobs for these young folk in Phila. You may need a task force to do this.

Peace,
Ali Muhsin Sr.

Mr. Nutter, I know crime is a main concern for Philadelphia, but for me personally it is the trash that litters the sidewalks and inlets and breezeways (dumpsters behind stores). PLEASE impose stiff fines for people who throw trash from car windows, and make laws that force people and business to keep their property free of trash and weeds also there needs to be STRICT LAWS for landlords who rent to low life trash and do nothing about barking dogs , music blasting, trash put out improperly, that cause the whole block to suffer as the land lords get richer. Please Mr. Nutter don't just clean up city hall clean all of philadelphia. Some times I feel like my kids deserve better than seeing a living room set thrown by the side of the road. I feel like moving but I love this city. It just needs to be cleaned up.

As a resident of the city of philadelphia for over 50 years the city needs a reduction in the business privilege tax. Some years ago I was forced to close a successful consulting firm because the taxes were so onerous I could have made more money working at McDonalds. My company was selling computers and software and created 3 jobs. Philadelphia needs a pro business atmosphere with help from the city and voulenteers to help new small businesses grow. Good luck Mike, You will probably be the new mayor. I wish you well.

Yo Mike,

I support the casinos and welcome them to Philadelphia. Please don't let the vocal minority hijack these venues. The casinos will bring in tons of tax revenues that can and should reduce my wage tax, which needs to be reduced. The casinos have been tremendously beneficial to our state and I hope Philadelphia can share in this prosperity.

Congratulations on your stupendous victory! Your nomination brings a sense of hopefulness to tens of thousands of citizens who had grown weary thinking that competent, principled leadership would not be possible in the mayorship.

After having worked in Philadelphia City government for almost 30 years, I suggest that you hire the most qualified men and women to serve as Finance Director, Managing Director, and commissioners of the operating departments. Hire them regardless of party affiliation. Search nationwide for the best. Resist promoting from within: new blood is needed. And if I can sneak in a second suggestion, it would be to gather some of the country's experts on municipal government, giving them the related goals of (1) proposing charter-related changes in the existing civil service system that would result in higher quality employees and better delivery of services and (2) changes that could be made immediately within the current system to improve the quality, service, and cost of government.

Mike, the members of the Phila. Fire Fighters' Union have traditionally supported Democratic candidates for many, many years. Yet the Democratic administrations in the last twenty years have failed to support the fire fighters in their quest for fair and equitable arbitration awards (yet alone negotiate a fair and equitable contract!). What will you do to rectify this injustice and what will you do to end racism within the Phila Fire Dept.?
Thanks, Joe McCool, SJP '70

Yo, Mike. Congratulations. I hope you make it to City Hall. My biggest concern right now is for my five year old daughter who was diagnosed with Autism. With 1 in 150 children diagnosed every year, I would love to see Philadelphia put more money into areas related to Autism: education, early intervention, etc., as well as provide more funding for additional therapists. Some families must wait an entire year (or more) to get a qualified speech or occupational therapist and if you know anything about early intervention, a year can be the difference between a verbal child and an eternally mute one.

Also, special education within the school district is a problem. It is one of the main reasons why there is a mass exodus from public to charter and private schools.

Philadelphia's children need a mayor who cares and can honestly effect change. I hope you will be that mayor.

Best of luck,
Holly Neibauer

Uniform the real estate taxes in Philadelphia, to ensure that everyone pays their fair share, since everyone receives the same benefits. For example, why do people in North Philadelphia pay real estate taxes $100-300 and other people in other neighborhood pay $1500-2500. Also double parking when there is parking spots available. Loud music in cars, blasting while you are driving.

Hi Mike,
I am SO glad you will be our next mayor!
You are charming and intelligent. Please use those characteristics to inspire us Philadelphians and those who deal with us.
Be a great role model for youth; as your wife said in an interview, make it okay to be smart. Please get out with the public as much as possible.
BUSINESSES: Zero taxes for new businesses with less than 3 employees the first year. A gradual tax increase after that.
Tax breaks for businesses which hire Philadelphia youth. Create an official mentor program to support youth in jobs- to make sure the kids succeed. Encourage businesses with a
product to locate here and stay here;promise to promote the product with all Philadelphians.
PUBLIC SCHOOLS: Do everything possible to prevent cutbacks. Kids need art, music, libraries,vocational training, help in finding jobs, more counselors, smaller classes, smaller schools. Encourage respect for teachers.

MAKE PHILLY MORE LIVEABLE: Create more small parks and make large parks safe at all hours. Plant trees. Encourage biking (more bike lanes and bike racks all over center city). Make SEPTA clean up stations. Make Philly a 24 hour city.
Improve the quality of life. Enforce laws and pass new ones. Create a media campaign showing why it is for the benefit of all to eliminate litter, graffiti, loud radios, spitting-and treat each other and our city with respect. Make it against the law to sit or sleep on sidewalks and property. Train specialists who can get the homeless the help they need.
HOUSING: Gradually elimate the tax abatement on new housing priced at $200,000 or more. Be creative in getting developers of high priced housing to build low and and moderate priced housing. Do everything possible to support home ownership for low and moderate income people. Demand that PHA and Section 8 residents be good neighbors or they will be dropped from those programs. Prevent real estate tax increases for those who have lived in their homes before their neighborhood became high priced. Institute rent control.
CRIME: Help create more jobs. Be creative in working for gun control. Go after the sources of the guns. More police on foot, bikes, and [back to] horses. Better role models for youth [you! jazz musicians, teachers, youth who work at minimum wage jobs should be praised to the skies, artists, honest workers of all sorts, students,etc.]
ART AND CULTURE: Promote Philly as a tourist mecca for these. Increase funding, especially programs for youth participation.
LANCE HAVER: As the Consumer Affairs person in the Street administration, Lance worked
tirelessly and got little recognition. Please keep him and publicize what he does. He works for all of us.

Yo, Mike, the one thing I really need you to do is to take any and all actions necessary to make Philadelphia known as the best city in the USA to live and work.

CONGRAULTION ON YOUR VICTORY>>> NEED TO STRRAIGHTEN OUT THE CONVENTION CENTER.SO THAT MORE SHOW AND WORK CAN COME HERE.I WORK THEIR SINCE IT OFEN AND RETRIED IN 2001,STILL COME BACK TO HELP OUT AS A CARPENTERS, IF I CAN HELP IN ANY WAY LET ME KNOW.THANK YOU THOMAS K JAMES VICE PRESIDENT OF THE 63RD WARD DEMOCRAT COMMITTEE

I just want you to re-institute my beliefe in city government. Right now, I have absolutely no confidence in any of the operating departments n city government, with the exception of the fire department. Is a street cleaner making weekly rounds a la trash pick up asking too much? Also, Fairmount Park is a beautiful piece of jewelry that is severely underfunded. Increase its funding or the manner in which it is being managed to bring it up to standards.

You need to make planning a fundamental part of City government. You need to imagine the City we need and then you can figure out how to get there from the City we have. Both Street and Rendell had a vision for the City and sponsored policy initiatives that served that vision, but that's different than a plan. Eisenhower said "plans never work, but without a plan you don't get anywhere."

stick to your guns (pun very much intended) on "stop, question & frisk" - for Philadelphia to really be a desirable place to live, work, and play it needs to be much safer than it is today - even if the availablity of guns is finally reduced it would have nowhere near the effectiveness of your plan - the risk of being stoped, questioned & frisked would be a very powerful deterant to the carrying of guns

congratulations on your victory in the primary - i believe your adoption of this plan is in large part what put you out in the lead

best wishes for victory in the general election and making a real difference in Philadelphia and the surrounding area

Kevin Valenta
Coatesville, PA

Yo, Mike, the one thing I really need you to do is ...”

Living is Philadelphia all my life and having been fortunate enough to travel to other large cities to see and feel how these cities operate for my small time there Philly has always been that special place to come home to, but I’m very saddened by the lack of pride here. I’m still proud to be a Philadelphian. I’m 46 years old and remember the pride we, my generation had just going downtown into Center City, it was a Big Deal and we got dressed up just to go shopping, the movies, eat or just to see what the latest fashions where. If you’re serious about turning the city into one of the best places to live I got your back. I’m not scared to say what I believe and have never wrote anything like this before publicly that is, but I feel compelled to get involved on some level instead of just complaining and letting bad things just happen. I think I’m ready now to help out a little, and really when you think about it all, each of us only has to do a little bit to make Philly better. One Love!

Darryl W. Mitchell
Roxborough, PA

Mike,

1)Zoning: Make the decisions of the ZBA, and agreements with community groups, enforceable.

2)Quality of life issues: Again enforcement of existing laws in regard to littering, graffiti, dumping, etc. Heavly fine those who do not maintain derelict, and other properties. I am about to buy a weed wacker and go out into my neighborhood, my daughter tells me that I am going to look like a crazy old lady, care to join me?

Yo Mike!

What this city needs more than anything else is a reasonable and fair plan for encouraging businesses to locate and grow in Philadelphia. Without a solid business base, the city cannot thrive or fund the necessary improvements to our school system and infrastructure. This plan needs to address both the current onerous taxation burden and the down-right hostile view many city workers seem to have towards those who actually expect them to work for their paychecks.

Good luck. We're all rooting for you!

Mike, all of the city's problems come back to 1 thing, not enough money!! Whatever you, and we
as Philadelphians, can do to generate more revenue has to be a focus. This includes attracting more businesses to the city, more people to LIVE in the city, and getting construction started on the gambling parlors. In many ways we are moving in the right direction, but anything that can jumpstart these processes will help.

Mike,

Nobody cares about the appearance of this great city. As citizens, we trash this place. City employees in the sanitation department do a substandard job at best. The grounds of public buildings, including schools, are a disgrace. In short, Ray Nagin was right. I don't know why everyone got so angry with him.

We need to clean this place up. Even the grass on highway medians (676 & Callowhill, Academy Road off ramps, etc etc etc) looks like fields of grains as its been so long since they were maintained.

We can attack the problem of the city's appearance using multiple methods, not just involving the public sector.

1. Emulate Chicago's Gateway Green model (see gatewaygreen.org). In short, corporations sponsor small open spaces along highways and in neighborhoods, pay for landscaping and maintenance, and get a shout out via a sign in return.

2. To clean up empty lots, adopt Boston's "Clean it or Lien it" program. Owners of vacant properties are expected to maintains the lots. If they don't, the city cleans the property and places a lien on it (with a sign announcing the property was cleaned using the Clean it or Lien it program).

3. Send properties with overdue taxes to Sheriff's Sale. There are far more people abusing the system than there are folks who honestly can't pay. And I'm not just talking about companies and commercial properties.

4. Improve the Sheriff's department so that property can actually change hands in a reasonable time frame.

5. Prisoners in jail for relatively minor crimes should be used to clean this city up. Why can Bucks County find prisoners to clean up the should of I-95 and Rt 1 on an almost weekly basis, but our city's highways are covered with litter? I've not seen a soul in 5+ years of residency cleaning our highways.

6. Add street cleaning (in most neighborhoods) and additional trash cans in commercial areas.

7. Require business owners to sweep the full street frontage daily; failure to do so would result in hefty fines.

8. Teach civics to this city's disengaged youth. They should appreciate the value of a clean city. They should know what it means to vote and to have high expectations of city government (and of us adults).

A message from Miquon--Roxborough's northern neighbor.

As a non-resident, I especially appreciate the invitation to offer my suggestions.

I was born and raised in the city, attended its public schools, and spent six more years years riding the Broad Street Subway to Temple University. As an adult, I settled down in Germantown and raised two children. The crack epidemic of the 1990s, combined with other issues, pushed my family into the nearby suburbs. At heart, I am still a Philly girl, but house and home should be a refuge, and that had ceased to be true.

Like many suburb dwellers, the city is where I work, where I enjoy cultural amenities, and where I seek expert medical care.

I want Philadelphia to prosper, and I know that among my neighbors, this sentiment is not anomalous.

I supported your campaign because I believe you are the only candidate who can effectively serve all of the city's neighborhoods as well as reach out to the city's neighboring communities.

The well being of this region is intimately linked to the vitality of Philadelphia.

You have a full agenda of critical issues that are particular to the city--the school system, taxes, and union contracts, among them. To that list I suggest you add building alliances with communities just beyond the avenues that demarcate urban from suburban.

If for no other reason (and there are an abundance of others) enlightened self-interest among the region's inhabitants can go a long way in laying the foundation for a common vision. Please find a way to tap into that resource.

Thanks, and best wishes.

Lower taxes.

If you want a second term, keep making the city more beautiful and user friendly for both residents and tourists.

1. Find a way to get a casino in the Gallery. Not only would that revitalize the Gallery itself, but it would attract more tourists and keep neighborhoods from the congestion and havoc the casinos might create.

2. Make the city prettier. Have the South Street Bridge redone fantastically. Slap a coat of paint on recreation facilities and schools. I know a lot of basketball courts that would turn from uninviting to attractive with cleaner looking fences, courts and backboards. Make it mandatory for new residential construction to include small trees on their sidewalks. Improve the care of fairmount park and the zoo.

3. Fix the public transportation issues. Run later trains, buses, and subways. Get another hub in South Philly, North Philly, and West Philly. If commuters can get to work easily, and partiers can get home at night without driving drunk, everyone will be much happier.

4. Throw some ctiy money into improving the aesthetic appearance and cleanliness of certain shopping centers like the Italian Market, the shopping area west of Penn, and Passyunk Ave.

5. Place an exact replica of William Penn's hat on top of the Comcast Center.

Yo Mike,

The one thing I really need you to do is to fix Septa. This will probably include finding a dedicated, adequately sized funding source through city-state and federal partnerships. From there you need to force Septa to improve services on the lines it offers, including fare machines at every subway/el/regional rail stop, clean well-lit stops, later running times to encourage use of Septa for nightlife. In the future, you may want to look into expanding Septa's subway lines so they more areas of the city and the suburbs are more accessible by public transportation. A good model is DC's Metro. But first and foremost you have to stop these draconian fare hike proposals. Thanks and good luck.

Yo Mike:

I feel that an important issue corrupting our neighborhoods is that fact that individuals are allowed to purchase homes and then rent them out, thus creating a stigma over certain areas and those living in those areas. How do we as a City encourage home ownership, when the City is allowing people to purchase and rent without the proper license. Shouldn't a tax paying home-owner have a say so in whether or not they want to live a neighborhood that is made up of more renters than actual home owners?

If the City cracked down on this policy, I feel that urban blight and some quality of life crimes will be greatly reduced.

TNT

Lets focus less on social services (takes money) and more on making Philly a world-class city that would attract visitors (makes money).

Start with the Waterfront. Make it accessible (drop 95), make it attractive, make it safe.
Then, update Septa. The el is a joke compared to other cities' public trans. systems. It has to be easier to get to places like South Street, the Waterfront, South Philly.
Next, lower the business taxes. No one wants to open businesses in the city.
And do I even need to say more police? The city has to be safer for the citizens and visitors.

Were falling behind other cities, but this election was a glimmer of hope.

Also- stop punishing the taxpayers in the Northeast with red light cameras and the like.

Yo Mike i really need you to fix the Section 8 problem. Are there any inspectors who follow up on where these people are placed. I am not saying all people on section 8 are bad, far from it, but there are some who come into a neighborhood and completly destroy it. I am living a nightmare right now. I have owned my home for eleven and really try to keep up the property. My new neighbors are filthy and disgusting. There is trash all over, no covers on the trash cans, uncut grass. Where are the owners who rent this property? What is there responsibility.

Yo Mike i really need you to fix the Section 8 problem. Are there any inspectors who follow up on where these people are placed. I am not saying all people on section 8 are bad, far from it, but there are some who come into a neighborhood and completly destroy it. I am living a nightmare right now. I have owned my home for eleven and really try to keep up the property. My new neighbors are filthy and disgusting. There is trash all over, no covers on the trash cans, uncut grass. Where are the owners who rent this property? What is there responsibility.

Yo Mike,
The one great thing you could do would be to stand up for the citizens of this city and not let the casinos have their way. They have no business in residential neighborhoods. The uproar that will come from the first shovel in the dirt on Delaware Ave will be deafening, as well as bloody for the city in lost tax revenues. I'm sure you know the casinos will pay NO property taxes for 10 years. So why should I?
If I have to pay property taxes I will live somewhere where I get a voice and so far that hasn't been here.

I'm very eager for you to get started as the mayor in Philly (YOU WILL GET ELECTED!!!). I really wish you would focus on the horrible situation happening in our small neighborhoods that used to be safe. My mother lives in Port Richmond, which has a lot of older folks, and I had almost witnessed a robbery to an 80 year old man. It's horrible! Needless to say, I am very disappointed in Street and find him to be very uncaring about the status of our city. I know it will be a great task to try to make money for our city and to make it safer but please try. My mother won't move from this area but you know what, why should she? These horrible people should be arrested and convicted!!!!
Good Luck and I look forward to you becoming our next mayor.

Yo Mike:
One thing I really like you to do for this city is to find ways of holding both parents and schools accountable for children's success and achievement in our public schools.

Various governments have tried to hold schools {administrators and teachers only} responsible for the success of their students but we all are witnesses to the fact that this has not worked well for several decades. We agree that children are the future of our world and whatever we do to educate our children is not a waste but a colossal investment and edifice that will yield its handsome dividend in the near and far future.

By the way, congrats on winning the elections. We are praying for you that you will remember and be able to do everything you have promised to do to the Glory of God. Best wishes.

Congratulations on a fabulous, ethically-strong, and efficiently-run campaign!

I've lived here for nearly 20 years, from college on. I've seen now going on three administrations govern Philadelphia. My family is from this august and beautiful city, and I have memories of this place going all the way back to my childhood summers spent in West Philadelphia. I've witnessed many of the changes this city has undergone, both the good and the bad.

There's a lot I'd like to see change. But we're limited to one thing, so here it is: please have good, honest, ethical auditors look at where the MONEY is going in this city from federal, state and local funding sources. I mean from allocation all the way to accounting. If you really, truly want to turn this city around, then fiscally sound policies and practices, transparency of records, and complete accountability to the taxpayer is absolutely CRITICAL to your success as mayor. These principles will ultimately lead to the civic turnaround this city desperately needs and truly deserves.

I really would like to stay in Philadelphia for the next 20 years. But unless this city takes on greater fiscal responsibility for the bottom line, and uses the money it receives not to line the pockets of fundamentally unethical people and their ilk (whoever they may be), but for the purposes for which it was intended, I simply won't be able to stay here because I will be cyclically underemployed. I'm one of those "university students" that the city has been trying to court and get to stay for decades. Most of us really do want to (and do!) stay, and we contribute much to the city's growth. But too often, we have leave to because the place is too completely "sewed up" by special interests, and we learn this very, very quickly. Philadelphia still has yet to figure out how to induce us to stay. Its insularity and factionalism is doing grave damage to the city's viability and reputation.

Cities need diverse populations---that is how they grow economically and culturally. If Philadelphia does not want to be the whipping boy of Harrisburg anymore, its government, businesses, nonprofits and citizens must sit up and take responsibility, not "take the money and run."

I am looking forward to your tenure as the Mayor of Philadelphia. Make us all proud to call ourselves Philadelphians once more, both natives and newcomers alike!

Best of luck to you! My thoughts and prayers go with you and yours.

Yo Mike:

You have what may be a great opportunity to bring back the spirit of Philadelphia which has been lost over the past few years. I would recommend that you look at the way Ed Rendell lifted our spirits in his tenure as mayor by being with the people. I don't think you have to jump in swimming pools or down lots of food, just get out and schmooze; let yourself be seen and touched. If you have a vision for a better city you can get this across by word of mouth and lots of neighborhood events.

I believe that if you can get people to believe that you really care about this city's future they will back you up with their time, talent and treasure. Who knows, even the Phillies and Eagle might start winning again?

Congratulations on your recent win for Mayor of Philadelphia...as we all know there is no way an elephant is getting anywhere in November! The number one issue for me is one that I feel, when properly addressed, will solve so many other lingering issues as well. It's a doozie, but of the utmost importance.

The fair, involved, equal, and diligent education of our cities children. We as a nation and as a city demand gun control, we holler about equality among races, we complain about quality of life, taxes, casinos, etc. We have no expectations of ourselves, of our city, or of eachother. We place the blame at someone else's feet because it is easier than shouldering the responsibility ourselves. And we are angry at the state we have found ourselves in, but I have to ask, whose fault is it really? Aren't we to blame ourselves? We want gun reform, yet we let our children watch violent TV instead of doing their homework with them. We complain about equality among races, but we do nothing to ensure our children attend and excel in school. We want a better quality of life, but we fail to stress to the young people how important a role being educated plays in getting ahead in life. We let our children drop out of school, we don't demand stricter quality control when hiring teachers, and we allow our state representatives to continually allow our tax dollars to be spent anywhere but where they are needed most.
Well, I say shame on us! It is time for we as citizens, parents, and human beings to demand more for our children, and that is why I am asking you to help me. Demand more for our children Mayor Nutter. Demand that they be given quality materials in the classrooms, quality teachers to help them learn, and quality time with their parents to get them through. Make this a priority, for all the future generations yet to come.

Sincerely,
Taryn Bartolotta

Yo, Mike - I think you need to pay attention to city services, improving them within city staff with realistic expectations and the help needed to provide outstanding service to Philly's citizens, to better announcements of public meetings from postings in some back page of a little read section, to press conference notices at least in the LOCAL section of the Inquirer, and city-wide Weeklies. Philly's civil servants should bring pride and respect to city government, not pity and frustration.

Congratulations Mr. Nutter. We live in Newark, Delaware now but we were hoping you'd win and we told our Philly friends that. We needed a house no more than $250,000 with little or no steps, lots of land in a safe neighborhood. We lived in a rowhouse for thirty years and weren't able to handle the steps. Delaware has lower real estate taxes and no sales tax. We loved Philly, but couldn't find a house like we wanted that we could afford. I do have to admit we love living here.
Sincerely,
Jaynee Levy-Polis

Hmm- where to begin this "conversation"????
Please reach out to all kinds of non-conventional thinkers as well as the traditional anti-violence folks to come up with NEW ideas to curtail gun violence as well as implementing current ideas that might work if enough money and will were backing them up
Sometimes media people, artists, urban planners, psychologists and social workers, students, neighborhood activists,freelance creative types... all of these people can probably come up with an idea or two that has yet to be discussed!

We need more jobs and lower costs for college education for city residents.

Yo Mike:

I would like to see quality of life issues addressed. Folks shouldn't be allowed to blast their car radios at all times of the day and night. Neither should they be allowed to throw their trash in the streets or dump their trash on vacant lots or other folks' sidewalks.

Also, the curfew imposed on young people should continue for their safety as well as everyone else's. Young men shouldn't be allowed to stand on corners wasting their lives. At the very least they can help keep the City clean and receive a salary for doing so.

Jobs for teens should be implemented by working with various companies in the City. I believe young people do want to work, they just can't find work.

Parents and their children should be held accountable for inappropriate behavior. Our senior citizens should not be afraid to come out of their homes.

There are a multitude of issues that need to be addressed in Philadelphia to truly make it the City of Brotherly Love.

Mr. Nutter,

In order for the city to become a place for people to want work and live we need to stop urban blight. We need to abolish city wage taxes so that people have an incentive to stay and want to work in the city. Continue all tax reform so that we can attract businessess to come to Philadelphia hence increasing our tax revenues and bringing jobs to all areas of the city.

I am not a democrat but I was pulling for you in the primary and will vote for you in the general election. I beleive in you Mr. Nutter now make a difference.

Yo Mike,

Congratulations!!!!!! I work for the Arc of Philadelphia and you came and spoke at our Resource Fair in March. You answered All of the questions pertaining to individuals with disabilities and special needs in a manner that suggested you were going to do whatever it takes to improve negatives, and build off of the positives. I walked away that knowing without a doubt that you should and would become the next mayor of Philadelphia. Being Genuine still goes along way in this world.

As a Bucks county resident who works in the city of Philadelphia, I am rooting for you!!! This city has some much potential, you are the right man to take us into the future by addressing crime, economic development, and making this city attractive for corporations to do business in. And of course- that will only happen if not only our public school system improves- but flourishes!!!!

You are right, you can't do this alone, but we are all right along side of you supporting you over the next 8 years. We will enjoy a city that once again will establish itself as one of the best in the country, and of course- we will have a peaceful parade down Broad Street in January 2008 to celebrate your inaguration as mayor, and an EAGLES Super Bowl Victory!!!!

"FIGHT THE GOOD FIGHT"

Mike Barnes

Director Of Marketing
The Arc of Philadelphia and Philadelphia Developmental Disabilities Corporation

mbarnes@arcpddc.org

Yo, Mike! The one thing I need you to do is open up the subject race. Eight years ago Mr. Street announced that "The brothers and sisters are now running this city. He was right, of course., and what did we get? We now have black-on-black crime that is the envy of every terrist in Iraq. We now have a mostly black teenage population that is dumber than ever before because going to school and learning is acting white. We have a mostly black adult population that sees nothing when a crime is committed, and blames the white police for their ills. We see it on TV every day. Lets face it Mike, all the big problems in this city are about race. Everyone dances around it. The schools are a disaster, but no one is willing to pay the bill, If the brothers and sisters are running this town then let the brothers and sisters do something real

Yo, Mike! The one thing I need you to do is KEEP THE PROPERTY TAX FORMULA AT THE CURRENT LEVEL. I LOVE PHILADELPHIA AND HAVE BEEN A LIFE LONG RESIDENT, I WORK IN NJ AND IF THE PROPERTY TAX FORMULA IS RAISED I WILL ABSOLUTELY MOVE OUT OF THE CITY TO KEEP FROM PAYING WAGE TAX TO PHILADELPHIA AND THEN HAVE TO PAY 100% TAX VALUATION. DAN O'DONNELL FOX CHASE PHILADELPHIA

Yo Mike, what Philadelphia needs most is job growth. The city needs a mayor that can make Philadelphia the place for entrepreneurs to develop their ideas into tomorrow's companies. This will require a major tax restructuring that will demand sacrafices from everyone inorder to invest in our future. The current system discourages entrepreneurship in city limits and eliminates all possibility of capturing the firms that have begun defecting from New York City for cost reasons. You mentioned before the divide depicted at City Line Avenue. I don't need to mention names, but many of the companies headquartered there were once based in city limits as were a number of other regional Fortune 500 firms now operating out of the suburbs. The real tragedy are the jobs that weren't just lost from the city, but the region as a whole. Strong job growth will encourage more people in our communities to take a stake in their education and the labor demands of city companies will encourage the firms to dedicate resources to developing a capable workforce. We will also attract more immigration and a larger tax base. Job growth needs to happen outside of just healthcare, education, and government. A strong city economy is the best way to improve the living standards of Philadelphians of every race, income level, and background.

"Yo, Mike, the one thing I really need you to do is ..."

help the city provide real opportunities for financially poorer citizens of Philadelphia. The way to do this is to provide high quality pubic education including after-school programs in every neighborhood, provide reliable and affordable public transportation, and increase job opportunities in the city.

Dear Future Mayor Nutter:

Congratulations, I look forward to a Philaelphia like we had when Gov.Rendell was our mayor, one to be proud of.

Without a solution to the crime here, nothing else matters much. Whether it is getting together with mayors of
other large cities to see how they were able to handle these situations, getting a new police chief, hopefully bringing back John Timminey would help.

Getting appropriate people to speak to the gangs, eliminating all guns, promising good education and jobs for all these boys and affording them a decent future might be a beginning.

I know this is a tremendous undertaking,but I believe you are capable and understand the problems well.

With best wishes for a bright future for you, as our mayor, and for our fair city,

Selma Harris Forstater

Make the city work again:

Schools
Police
Fire/Emergency Services
Streets
City Hall/L&I

It all has to work before we can believe Philadelphia is a place we're rather be in.

Yo Mike

Clearly now I am not living in Philly. However, "I LOVE MY PHILLY."

I am heart broken about the Gun violence. I strongly believe that Philadelphians need jobs. We are not NJ or LA. Philadelphia is a neighbourhood comunity. Jobs will stop the violence and killing.

Philadelphia is not a stoping place in-between New York City and Washington DC. We have everything, from First Medical school, Constitution Center, Rocky's South Philly and Art Musium. And off course South street, the Old City and our greesy cheese stake and Beer. Our city represent two different idea about Philadelphia people. You have to see "Philadelphia story" and "Philadelphia."

Donald Trump is a good man. He graduated from the same college as you did. Let his money, clout, talent work for our city. he can use his power to make the Northern Liberty, River front ---------------like the Taj Mahal area in AC.

Bill Clinton and Both George Bush love and respect our city. Use their powers for the improvement of the city' Historical area.

Basically we need money and permanent jobs to improve the city's everyday life and the safety. As our Meyor this two main problems you will face nexy year. You are an educated man and you belong to rhe "human race" you will change our city.

Lopa Bhaduri

Yo, Mike,
I have supported you since before you quit Council to run and am delighted that you will be our next mayor. Besides the big issues (guns, eduation, jobs) I want you to work on the small quality of life issues that make such a difference in our lives. You could provide the leadership to help us decrease litter, clean up parks, repair sidewalks, cut down dead trees, etc. These small changes would increase our self-esteem as a city, and support the bigger changes. Many of them can best be done with partnerships between city authorities and private citizens.
In your campaign you demonstrated your ability to stick to the positives and encourage all of us philadelphians to do what we can to move forward. Keep it up.

Make Philly attractive

Crime: figure out what is making people shoot/kill each other or ways to prevent it.

Beautification: Everywhere you go, you see trash on the streets. Friends and family from other cities notice it immediately.

Arts: Bring more arts or other tourist attractions that Philly has had in the past.

I think people see Philly as one big city with a lot of small town-minded and unintelligent people. I know it's not true. I came here to attend the Univ of Penn and I fell in love with Philly. If you can make it more attractive, more people will want to move/visit here which brings more commerce.

Yo Mike:

If there is only one thing I could ask you to do for Philadelphia once you become Mayor it would be to reduce crime. Crime has many tentacles. From the criminals' standpoint it is anger with the system and from the victims' standpoint it is fear of additional crime being perpetrated against the victim or innocent citizens.
To alleviated the anger, you must understand where the anger originates and dismantle its source, e.g., inferiority which can be solved by education, social neglect which can be reduced by a structured safe environment within each neighborhood and within the family environment.
To alleviate fear you must take a strong stand against the criminal element when a crime is committed and to ward off the potential criminal by enticing them with life's benefits to society's law abiders.

Mr. Nutter congratuations on your victory. Please take a serious look at the way the police department is currently staffed. Monitor the radio bands of any police division in the city and you will understand. Regularly 911 calls are backed up and go un-answered for hours. Numerous times when there are zero cars available to respond to calls. There are simply not enough police officers. How can the citizens of Philadelphia be expected to step up and come forward on criminal activity if there are not enough police officers to protect them from retaliation.

Yo, Mike,

Want to reduce Philadelphia children's feet lacerations by over 50% at no cost to the city?

Enact a "bottle bill," law in Philadelphia to require a deposit on beverage containers. It also reduces the volume of litter by over 50%, including the most dangerous kind of litter: broken glass. And it will save Philadelphia millions of dollars by reducing the size of Philadelphia's waste stream, since bottle bills in other locations have typically produced recycling rates exceeding 90%.

Is there anybody who is against reduced children's feet lacerations?

The ONE thing that you can do is get the cops to do their job. I call 911 frequently (weekly) because there are 3 drug houses in my neighborhood, and 3 truant teens in a house down the block. I have a neighbor who trespasses regularly. I have had 3 cars stolen. Not once has an officer responded in a timely manner.
I see police in cars just riding around. I think there is a major disconnect between 911 and the police force. I have been to the roundhouse and observed a whole roomful of detectives sitting and watching basketball games, talking about Girls Gone Wild while on the job. While we have major crimes to solve.
By the way, Mr. Nutter, if you really want people to cooperate with the police, you would find free parking spots for citizens next to the round house, so if we want to cooperate and be interviewed, we can actually do it. Imagine paying $10 to report a crime? This is the way it is now in your city.
One more thing related to this topic. I was threatened by a neighbor. To file a keep-away order, I have to go to 34 S. 11th ST, pay $10 to park (again). If you want to rid your city of crime, Mr. Mayor, think of ways to make it easy to report, and have police willing and able to investigate crimes, and perhaps even prevent a few.
I had to wait 30 days for the police to take my report of my last stolen car. That in itself is a crime.

I really dont have much to say, i think the most important thing that needs to be done is to stop crime in Philadelphia ASAP. Not REDUCE it, STOP it; take it away completely.

Stephanie A. Alston
Mt Airy/West Oak Lane, Philadelphia

Yo Mike,

How about a grant for Mother to go back to college and get a degree to support their children? Not those stupid certificate programs because they are worth less than a GED, compared to a Diploma. Maybe their will not be as many welfare cases, if mothers were able to go back to school and make good money to support their own family.

Yo Mike,

I implore you to work with the School District of Philadelphia to recognize that it takes a team to educate a child. It's not enough to reduce class sizes. There needs to be more than just one counselor per 750 students. There need to be security guards who actually stop students with dime bags in their pockets and don't let them into the school. There need to be myriad quality alternative educational options for students who left the public high schools but now seek to return to their education. There needs to be a sound referral system for outside resources for those children who are acting out in response to physical, emotional, and mental traumas in their lives. There needs to be supports for the teachers and school staff who do their best do educate our youth despite the obstacles.

Providing the youth of Philadelphia with options beyond their street corner will result in a powerful chain reaction through the rest of the city.

i would like tp stop paying taxes on real estate, I am a city worker who works 2 jobs to stay afloat this tax incease will hurt me, my family and many other families through Philadelphia. It is hard enough to keep banks/lenders from forclosing, utility Companies from turning off utilities.Most of all I would like to see effort put forth in focusing on parents to show up at schools, help out( because the puplis school system is over populated throughout the city. Instead of over filling classes, why not take your cities vacant areas build smaller schools and have parents help out for a smaller wage then teachers, to assist them to get more done.This could help thd school system out, better prepare for more college acceptances and most of all Better Lives for our kids. Not all schools are like mastermind.lets work to strenghten our young Now!

Yo Mike,

Clean up the blight in Kensington, please! Help push through legislation that holds owners of vacant properties responsible for what goes on inside.
For instance, there is a vacant house a few doors down from mine that is being used as a drug den. The house used to be boarded up but junkies have ripped the wood down. All kinds of bad is coming to and from that house. Heroin and crack are being sold and used there. When the junkies on the EL stop at #1 drug corner Kensington & Somerset (thank you, PW), they walk right over to this house (three blocks away from the EL) to do their junk. I've had to clean up vomit, caught people urininating, seen blatent prostitution- all going on next to my house!
This house and others like it are focal points for crime and blight.
The owners should be held accountable. The City should board up the houses and then charge the owners a hefty fine. The City should be seizing these properties.
And (I never thought I'd say this)- get more cops on foot or bikes into Kensington, please!

Dina Richman
Kensington (Frankford & Somerset)

Yo Mike,

Congratulations on winning the primary. Every neighborhood in the city appears to have an issue with trash and its effect on quality of living in Philadelphia. As such, a focus on beautification would elevate the city on many levels. One could envision a youth jobs program to help enable such an initiative. It may sound trivial compared to the crime problem but the small things seem to count in the effective transformation of other cities and similar efforts here could have a cascading positive effect on other key issues facing our city.

All the best in leading this great city in a new direction.

Matt

I would like to see the quality of life improved in each division, each ward in this city. Let the committee people have the knowledge and the ability to improve goods and services to the constituency. If a commiteeperson calls in a request to a city office or a council-person's office, I would like to see the problem promptly taken care of. Also, I would like to see more of the every-day riding public sit on the SEPTA board. Maybe we would get a better break is some of the riders from Philly had a real vote.

Yo, Mike the one thing I really need you to do is make Philadelphia a better place to live. I have lived in the same neighborhood for my entire life, 44 years now, and I can’t believe the change that has happened. I know everything must change and I am all for change but it hasn’t been for the better. My neighborhood used to be a clean safe place to live but in recent years I have seen it turn into a dirty run –down crime and drug ridden place to live. I know this is happening all over the city not just in my neighborhood. It seems people don’t take pride in their homes or lives anymore. The streets are covered with litter; there are prostitutes, drug dealers and drug addicts walking the streets at all times of the day and night. I am ashamed to say I live in Philadelphia these days. Something must be done and soon. I hope you are the mayor who will make a difference.

Sincerely,

Sheila DiPinto

Yo Mike,
Could you fix things so that our city is a place we can be proud of? I think parents need to be liable for the chidren's actions. So many let their children be at home, unattended and that's where the trouble starts. I think too many kids are out on the street too late at night. Curfews need to be reinforced and if the kids are caught breaking that law, then the parents should be fined - BIG! The drugs and guns have to stop! Please help! I think you seeem like a great man with a big heart and real dreams. I think you're a man who wants the same good things for your own family. I know you will be a great mayor! You will have my vote in November! Thanks!

A Mayfair Resident

Yo Mike,
I would like you to address the issue of gun violence. My father was robbed and killed by thugs with a gun. He was a good man. My son was shot and paralyzed. I like your plan that consists of stopping and searching those that appear to carrying a weapon. Something drastic has to be done to turn this thing around.

Yo Mike,
Take a page out of Rudy G's book and have the cops start enforcing the law. Nail people on the small stuff and they likely won't committ major crimes.

Earle Drake

Dear Mr. Nutter,
I really need you to be the driving force in removing the anger from Philadelphia. Gangs, guns, apathy, fear and the "no snitch" mentality are killing our citizens and suffocating our city. I need to see a Mayor (finally!) who is a model for Philadelphia and the rest of our country. Philadelphia needs to become a "we" city, not a hotbed of blame and "political correctness", which to me is only a cover-up for political cowardice. What a shame that this beautiful "next great city" is being built on hypocrisy, racism, corruption and greed. I need you to be the Mayor who will have the courage and strength to guide us away from this abyss, and show us how to be proud again regardless of race, religion and the "me first" mentality.
Sincerely,
James A. Rourke

Mr. Nutter, I voted for you in the primary because I thought you were far and away the best candidate for Mayor. I have had exchanges with you (yes, you always replied to my faxes) re the ban on smoking in public places in Philadelphia. I am still hoping for a more moderate approach than the one currently in place. More than that I would hope for a clarification of the current ban because the so-called-Mayor, John Street played personal-vendetta-politics and confused the issue by making noises to the effect that smoking is not permitted in outdoor eating areas - contrary to the original ban. Now restaurants are confused and some allow smoking outside and others don't. Please bring your logical thinking to the confusion and clear it up.
Thanks, Robert Prince

Mr. Nutter:
The single most important issue that you can address is revamping the public school system. The only way to change people is by changing the way people think. One of the most effective ways to cultivate a productive citizenry is through education. The results will echo for generations.
1) Audit the existing admininstration and operation.
2) Either re-organize it or create public / private collaborations.
3)Public education should NOT be for profit.
4)Schools should be the center piece of the community.
5) The voice of the parents and kids should be the guiding principle.

If you would like to talk more specifically please contact me.

Sincerely,
S. Sandone

Repeal the wage tax. Make it worth while to work in the city for a less than executive level job again.

Overhaul then support the public school system. The upcoming generation lacks so much - the basics in morality, civility, and knowledge. Parents are the last but most important variable in this process. More money for schools will attract better teachers (fix these decrepit buildings - appearance is everything,) BUT parents must be made to take responsibility for their children.

Yo Mike,

The one thing you can do make my life in the city better is outlaw the thundering motorcycles that make it difficult to live anywhere near the South Street neighborhood. Those schadenfreude-obsessed bikers intentionally tune their engines to be as loud as possible, and so they'll set off every car alarm on the block with the vibrations. Then they just ride around the neighborhood in a loop, revving their engines as often as possible. I live two blocks away on Pine, and they still keep me awake at 3am many nights.

PS: Replacing the smelly female ginkgo trees with males would also be nice. My whole neighborhood smells like dog poo half the year.

PPS: I've never understood why the city waits so long to deposit my tax checks. The Fed and State deposit my checks right away. The city sits on my NPT and BPT checks for months... wasting untold millions in potential interest on that money. It's frustrating to be reminded of such waste every time I balance my checkbook.

Please,please,please do something about the double parking here in South Philly! It causes so many problems. It is unsafe to cross the streets as a pedestrian and to make turns as a driver, as the view is often blocked by cars double parked on the corner. Since no one wants to park on the curb side for fear of being parked in, there is always abandoned cars parked on the inside. I have an abandoned car thats been in front of my house for
almost 2 years now! I called the city so many times about this. And it is still here! And now there is another one! I feel that if it went to 2 hour parking and permit parking it would solve so many problems around here. Please put an end to this nightmare. I have contacted several people at City Hall about it, including Anna Verna, and I was told that there was nothing that they could do about it.

Yo Mike:

You are going to be deluged with great big ideas for all the important things that need to be done. Small things can add up to a significant improvement in the city's pride too. When was the last time you saw a "please do not litter sign" or a public service announcement asking people to keep the city clean? If never was your reply then you know where I am going. My fellow citizens are great people and they want to live in a clean city. They need somebody to remind them of that. Help us make a city we can be proud of.

Yo Mike, the one thing I really need you to do for our city is find more effective ways to fight crime and get guns and criminals off of our streets. Too many of our young children are dying and too many innocent victims are getting caught in the midst of crossfires. It's just simply not fair to those of us who are trying to live our lives the right way, work very hard everyday, and have children that we fear for. I fear walking around the block in my own neighborhood out of fear of a flying bullet. How fair is that to me or my child? Why do I have to take my child to recreational facilities in the suburbs to experience peace and a sense of security? It's just not fair that many of us don't feel safe in our own neighborhoods. So, what I'm saying Mike is please do something to help reduce or eliminate this crime epidemic that has overtaken our city once known as the city of "Brotherly Love."

I have a serious concern regarding the number of drivings failing to disregard the stop sign at Kelvin & Densmore Road at a high rate of speed. I wish something could be done about this on-going issuew.

Thank you for addressing it.

Dear Mr. Nutter, I'm a longtime resident of Philadelphia. I grew up in Germantown and in West Mt. Airy during the 1960's and 70's and currently live in Lawncrest, where I've been a Committeeperson for 16 years and Vice President elect of the Lawncrest Town Watch for 11 years. I know all about civic duty. In the last 6 years I've fought hard to maintain some kind of decency as my neighborhood deteriorated to its present state, while much of the city has gone to dogs as well. Behind my home in the alley you can find used condoms on the ground from teenagers out of control. On just about every corner of Van Kirk St. between Tabor Ave. and Rising Sun Ave. You have to walk past open air drug sales as you tread on wind strewn trash that is literally all over the place. The sound of unlicensed, unregistered motorcycles and four runners racing through the area is irritating. The music blaring from automobiles just adds to the frustration. There's also the problem of animal control, as we have wild cats and unleashed dogs running rampant. One block over at Comly and Palmetto sts. you can usually find prostitutes working on the corner. Two weeks ago I parked my vehicle full of children in the alley behind my home and within ten minutes there was an altercation that lead to gunfire which hit my vehicle and blew out the windows, again, teenagers. That ten minutes determined the life or death of one or more of the six children who were in the vehicle, no arrests were made. Two years ago a registered sex offender from New York who failed to register himself in Philadelphia upon his arrival here attempted to abduct my then 3 year old daughter asking two young boys to bring her to him in an alley on the side street next to my home. He was picked up and released. The police did not find out that he was a registered sex offender until after the fact and placed a tracker on him. He's currently in Northern New Jersey where's he possibly hurting more innocent children. The 2nd District Police are under staffed to the point where you might see a car or two cruising on any given night. This is what the section 8 housing program has brought to my community... Despair! There should be a limit as to how many of these twisted individuals, sex offenders, can reside within the same block and zip code. It is no wonder why hard working families are fleeing this city at an alarming rate. Regretfully, I am following suit. I am selling my home in what was once a beautiful neighborhood to rent a home somewhere far outside of this city because I've had enough. If I could find a lawyer with some intestinal fortitude I would file a class action lawsuit against the city, state and section 8 property owners for the abuse of the section 8 program in my community, Over 800 section 8 properties between Rising Sun and Levick Sts. and Tabor and Newtown Aves.. That is a disgrace! Forcing hard working citizens to adapt to living with project trash and criminals. Your predecessor has left you a real nightmare. I wish you much success as the future Mayor of Philadelphia, It will take more than two terms to fix this city unfortunately.
Sincerely,
John W. Moss III

Mr. Nutter: I have a unique perspective on Philadelphia taxes. The one, most effective and most needed thing you could do for Philadelphia as a taxing authority is to set up a Finance-level permanent office of Tax Policy with a knowledgeable and visionary individual to head it. This office has to exist separate and apart from either the Law Department or the Department of Revenue to function effectively. Moreover, the people working in this office need direct access to information and to be free to focus on Tax Policy to the exclusion of all other distractions. These people will enable you to accomplish the structural changes needed to ensure future economic growth in an environment in which business leaders and citizens have confidence in the City as a taxing authority. Sincere best wishes.

Congratulations Mayor Nutter.

1. Please bring music and sports (gym classes) back to our schools. Music will be a great mind motivator and help with attitudes and gym will strengthen their body and help keep their weight stable.

2. It should be mandatory to have a PTA (remember that) in every school. Meetings should be every two weeks (6 - 7:30) with parents/children required to attend.

3.We need to FINE folk for sitting (all day) and watching trash mount up. Everyone should be responsible for their section of property.
Children will know not to litter if they don't see their parents litter. The whole city should look as good as DOWNTOWN.

4. PGW should give free classes so we can learn how they reach the amount on our bills each month. One time I went to the office at 9th & Berks? (when it was still functioning) and was told we were billed according to the weather. Pleassssse.

5. I don't like the "Yo Mike" thing - I like Mayor Michael Nutter.

Mr. Mayor Sir, you prioritize the things you wish to do first. There's so much to be done. There's the school system, the utilities and the murders among the young people. Curfew should stay enforced. School should be mandatory until 17.

I'll hope things will change and our motto City of Brotherly Love and Sisterly Affection becomes meaningful again (real soon).

Keep Smiling Mr. Mayor

Hire more competent staff at City Hall and in Philadelphia based services. STOP THE PATRONAGE. Hire based on experience and abilty to comprehend and communicate. For six months I tired in vain to contact the city for help and got nowhere..endless passing the buck, people who barely spoke discernable English on the phone who were down right hostile or could care less. Often I got answeering machines without even the common courtesy of a professional call-back. It is like the city is a non-city in that it does not work at ALL for it's good citizens.

Immediately put in place in-home visits for those too illl to venture outside to obtain city services in whatever area is needed. No one will come to you. Therefore.if you are disabled and without the health or means to get to them..you get no help. (This also includes the small number of non-profits trying to do well.)

Pay more attention to your frailest and poorest citizens. We are the ones who need city services (and can not or do not know how to access them the most!)

Congratulations on your win. I am no longer a Philadelphia resident, however I am very active in the South Philadelphia neighborhood in which I grew up. A few years ago my church wanted to have a church picnic in Philadelphia's beautiful Fairmont Park. So I drove to every location to have a nice day Lemon Hill, The Lakes Etc. The outcome, no working bathrooms.The Parks are beautiful lets work on the bathrooms.
Also, we know about the school crisis. what has happened to the clubs after school, math club science club etc. It has been along time since I been in elementary school. (1979) These were the activities that we enjoyed. In junior high the typing club was popular at Audenreid. It was amazing how young students would get up early for this club. Our children must be engaged to the fullest.
Also, our neighborhoods are declining. Neighbors should not be allowed to have drive up car repair in front of other peoples door. Nor should people be allowed to set up the portable basketball hoops taking up parking spaces.
Again much success as you take on the challenge as Mayor. I kept up with the campaign. I told my mother that you were going to win.Im glad you did

yo mike

parent's need to be more involed with their childen at school

report card's should be picked up by the parent's
of high school student's instead of just handing them to the student's

cell phone and electronic device's are just distractions at school they should be banned

STUDENT'S SHOULD NOT BE PASSED JUST TO MAKE AYP

WHAT ARE WE TEACHING THEM IF WE JUST PASS THEM ON?

thanks
joe

Yo Mike,
The most important issue to my mind is the schools. Much more money needs to be spent on the schools. Dedicate ALL of our property taxes to schools. Find other sources of steady dependable income. This annual uncertainty of funding and what-are-we-going-to-cut-this-year? stuff tells students, families, and everyone else that, in Philadelphia, education is optional.
Class sizes must be lowered to no more than 20 thru high school. Stop early retirement bonuses to the most experienced teachers (yes, they're more expensive--ever hear that you get what you pay for?). Stop the pension plan (honoring current obligations, of course) --switch to a defined contribution plan, a 401k) equivalent, like most of the rest of us have, and make retirement the responsibility of the individual. Every school needs a library and a full time librarian/IT manager. Arts, music, and physical ed/sports programs, in school and after school, are as important as math and reading for many reasons. And, my God, science is dismal in most Philly schools, especially elementary schools. A dumbed down citizenry is a growing pathology in this country.
Whatever it takes, Mike. Imagine the day when people move IN to Philadelphia for the schools. These kids, many of whom admittedly have problems, are our future. Invest now and the payback is huge. They stay as an attractive educated workforce, contributing members of society; they move and spread the good news about Philly. Heck, if they just have a job they pay social security taxes which support us in our old age!
Long range vision--you can have 8 years, Mike, if you want it, to get us on the right track for the 21st century.

Mike,
Please remember the importance of quality of life issues here in Philadelphia. Always take seriously the need for green spaces, community centers and sustainable design with the city residents foremost in mind. Help us keep out casinos and development which forces out lower income residents. Help restaff the overburdened Philadelphia Police department so that they may be able to answer the calls of our many concerned residents when they suspect trouble before it results in another homicide. I'm excited to see the changes you bring this city.
Sincerely,
Donna Pancari

YO, Mike, one thing I need you to do is to provide additional jobs here in Philadelphia that the people living here and graduating from our schools can do. It’s not an easy task because it has a chicken and egg component that gets in the way of quick results and
public recognition that it has happened. For that reason, I believe Philadelphia needs to do the following things at the level of the Office of the Mayor:

• Proactively, solicit firms with New York City back-office support functions (e.g. banks, financial service companies, freight forwarders, etc.) to move all or part of those jobs to Philadelphia to take advantage of our proximity to New York.
• Provide business tax abatements to firms that relocate to Philadelphia as an incentive.
• Proactively, promote Philadelphia as an international seaport because of its inland location and additional security that can be provided.
• Expand the vocational educational facilities that are in place to show that the quality of the available labor force is being upgraded.
• Integrate private technology education providers into the Philadelphia charter school network.

I believe that if we can create a job pool in which our youth can realistically expect to participate, it will provide an attractive alternative to the drug activity that underlies much of the violent crime in our city. Crime flourishes in a climate of hopelessness and in ungoverned geographies. Enterprise flourishes in a climate of positive possibilities supported by a strong general economy and the intentional support of a strong political structure. I believe with your ability, track record, and leadership you can bring a significant member of new jobs to Philadelphia through the strengthening of our general economy and political structure.

John Blickensderfer
Center City

Michael,

There is a great deal of talk about improving our students' academic and civic performance and "greening" Philadelphia. To really accomplish improvements to the environment and making a difference in the world, we need to change the culture and marketplace around how we use and conserve energy. This begins with our youngest citizens. To these ends, we have applied for a charter school for the Elementary School for Sustainable Design (ES4SD). This educational institution will have world class educators and Community Partners and will use Project Based Service Learning (the most effective way to effectively reach and teach to ALL students) as its foundational pedagogy. You have always been a great supporter of education, Michael. Via the ES4SD, we can create better students, citizens, and stewards of our environment. For more info, go to: www.es4sd.typepad.com.

My big concern is the state of education in Philadelphia. I am a teacher who is asked to do more and more with less and less. Instead of smaller classes we are facing split classes with 30 and above students in the fall. We are losing teachers and having our budget cut. If we don't provide a good solid education for our children we can't expect the crime rate to go down. It is my hope that education will be a focus of your campaign and that when you become mayor you will do everything possible to get this district back on a path that values it's teachers and students. Thanks

Yo Mike, I would like you talk to me about the future of Philadelphia's water and under ground water pipes situation. Does our water treatment plant need to be modernized? I want to know how long it will take to put new pipes throughtout the city and also what parts of the city has gotten new pipes already and what parts of the city is scheduled to recieve new pipes in the near future.

Thank you

Joyce Sampson

instead of stop and frisk which has horriffic civil liberties issues why not get more wands into cops hand like they have in airports?
seems less invasive, and targets guns which are the problem.

dismantle the public school system, its too big and has way too much overhead, spen your money on people who work directly with kids not on administering a huge bueracracy. smaller works better and gives new ideas a chance to work. do you know how hard it it to fire a truly incompetent and horrible principal? the offices downtown are filled with people doing their job to the letter of theier contract and not an inch more. "thats not my job" is the unofficial motto of the school district. with the state of the facilities and aging buildings it makes no sense to keep running things the way they are. good inner city schools have one counselor, one day every two weeks. its like they want these kids to go nutty.
smaller schools generate a sense of community and belonging and foster true relationships. the school district of philadelphia is a bloated wasteful dinosaur that does a disservice to the neediest of children. they are very good at "talking the talk" but even better at pointing the finger.

one program that i was very proud to be a part of that actually seemed to work was CIS. communities in school who PAID KIDS TO GO TO SCHOOL IN THE SUMMER. kids got highschool credits for the class work portion and had a job to do in my case cleaning lots and transforming them into gardens. kids like to get a check and they did not get a check if they didnt do the classwork or the job part.
they got valuable real world skills at that job and life lessons about work etc.