Great Expectations

Once again, the knuckle dragging anti-casino goons made total asses of themselves by acting like petulant children. They went from being somewhat sympathetic to utterly dislikable creeps.

If this isn't the most demagogued issue ever in Philadelphia, I don't know what is.

Money poorly spent. We have a serious CRISIS in this city (crime, homeless numbers climbing, trash everywhere, more police needed as well as new / upgrades in their equipment) and this is a priority? Whoever was in charge of allowing this has no conscience. Period. How are you going to handle the people that need to transit over to this area and are mugged/killed or their cars are stolen! hmm? Take care of the inner crisis before bandaging it over with more monstrous & unnecessary buildings!! I'm still recovering from the Pepto Bismol building over by Broad Street.

Let's not confuse ourselves - this was NOT about "buildings". It is about land use, how strong city government is against Harrisburg, and how a community forced to hide from reckless horrific violence all over town can find trust and community in unearthing a vew citywide vision, which includes something for everyone, including longshoremen, jobs, rich condo purchasers and free streets, sidewalk & parks for all.

And if fostering massive and healthy highly desireable waterfront development is "knuckle-dragging" then I wonder what "JM" has in mind as smarter public policy regarding the riverfront. A master plan based on the concepts illustrated by Penn Praxis will create massive support jobs & tax revenues which will be applied here, as opposed to spending in those casinos and big-box stores whose earnings accrue to corporations in distant states.

The big benefit is primarily that the "grid" approach will create LOCAL value (jobs, private & public spending, increased public revenue in ALL taxes, in design & construction, land transfers, ongoing maintenance jobs for all the facilities as the land is built out).

And let's not forget that a city fabric created by thousands of people is not one that is widely distrusted, as so many "government-planned" are, but is a creation that delivers a huge sense of pride and accomplishment for the people to own.

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This entire project does not deny the extreme distress we suffer at the hands of young, irresponsible criminals with guns and no regard for the value of life outside of themselves. It does not ignore the pysche of poverty, the anxiety and energy of youth, the difficulty of sticking with schooling when your friends are making big bucks & big thrills in the drug or music or sports trades or other such "hustles". It does not ignore corruption and the urgent need for tax reform & the restoration of honorable behavior inside City Hall and around government at every level in our city.

But it does just deal with one segment of life in a big old east coast city.

Do we feel like we've done enough on the waterfront for a while - leaving it in the hands of lawyers working in federal court now, and to a new term of City government under a new mayor? If so, let's turn our focus on the rest of all these city issues as a group - like we did with the powerfully led central waterfront planning.

Kathy wrote, in part :"How are you going to handle the [needs of the] people"? Well, JM & Kathy, how about joining in the public agenda already begun by hundreds and hundreds of engaged citizens at the Inquirer's "Great Expectations" neighborhood gatherings. We'll be reporting out to the city and to the non-newspaper-reading citizenry on Dec. 2, 2007 at the Convention Center. Why don't both of you come, and bring your family, neighbors and-or colleagues who share your level of care? We will all gather to push a "citizens agenda" onto the top of the Council desktops, advancing it via our desire for making our city and its people the best that we can.

Bill