Great Expectations

Earlier this year, Tom Ferrick Jr. sat down with Rob Dubow as part of the "Talking with Tom" series. Today, Mayor-elect Michael Nutter has named Dubow, who is executive director of PICA -- the state board that oversees Philadelphia's budget, as the city's next director of finance.

Dubow led the budget office under Mayor Street and knows the inside story on the city's budget. Listen in as Dubow outlines some of the budget problems the next mayor will face during the first year in office. He also discusses long-term trends when it comes to spending and taxation in Philadelphia.

The Inquirer reports that Mayor-elect Michael Nutter has named former Washington, D.C., police chief Charles H. Ramsey as the city's next police commissioner.

Not surprisingly, crime fighting and violence were identified by citizens as one of their top concerns during our neighborhood forums earlier this year. As such, they were featured issues in the Great Expectation's "Challenges Ahead" series. Read the segment on crime here.

What characteristics do think the next top cop should have? Any suggestions on what he should tackle first?

As we roll out the Citizens Agenda for Philadelphia's Future in print in the daily Inquirer, with the issues appearing two at a time, some pairings are more obvious than others. Education and Knowledge Economy were obvious, as were City Budget & Taxes with City Services.

The duo for today (Wednesday) might seem to offer a little less of a slam-dunk linkage.

Citizen blogger Jennifer Yuan attended the "Presenting the Agenda" community forum in the 8th District. Jennifer's personal blog, A Thousand Times No, can be found at http://1000timesno.net).

She writes:

Snow fell over Mount Airy on Feb. 20, the evening of the Great Expectations District 8 agenda forum. Despite the weather, nearly 60 people from neighborhoods throughout the district, including Germantown, Mount Airy and Chestnut Hill, filled a large conference room at the Lutheran Theological Seminary on Germantown Avenue. In this setting, project director Chris Satullo kicked off the evening with an apt description of the Great Expectations Citizens Agenda as an act of faith: “It’s an act of faith in our city; it’s an act of faith in the citizens of the city and the power of civic dialogue. It is also an act of faith in our leaders: a belief that if we are better citizens — that if we are ready to step up with our hearts, our minds, and our muscles to make this a better city — they will also be better leaders."

After the opening remarks, people broke into three smaller discussion groups, focusing on separate clusters of issues addressed in the Citizens Agenda.

The new round of neighborhood forums, on a City That Works, got off to a rousing start in South Philly last night. Mayor Nutter put in a surprise appearance at St. Gabriel's Church Hall, to thank the 40-plus attendees for their efforts to help the city craft new standards for customer service and to praise Great Expectations for its continued efforts to connect citizens with government.

City Budget Director Steve Agostini and two other city officials gave citizens a quick tour of the city budget and a rundown on the city's two big initiatives to improve services, the PhillyStat accountability system and the 311 city services hotline. Agostini will be at most of these forums, and city Managing Director Camille Barnett, the driving force behind PhillyStat, will attend some. Council members have been invited and many will attend some events.

Then the citizens got down the work of identifying what their service expectations are in five areas: public safety, education, neighborhoods, economic development and ethics. Agostini and the others, including Council communication director Anthony Radwanski, wrapped up the evening by answering citizen questions.

Nine more of these forums will be held around the city in May. If you haven't signed up to attend one, there's still plenty of time and room. We do ask that you register in advance, because a hot dinner is served and we have to know how much food to order. Check the attached flyer for forum dates, sites and times. You can register on the Web site or by calling 215-854-5956.

If you live in Council District 2 (Anna Verna's) but didn't get word on last night's session, you can still attend one of the others; District 1, in particular, also covers part of South Philly. But the program is essentially the same no matter where the forum is being held.

If you belong to or know about civic group that you think could help get the word out about the forums, please let us know.

-- The Great Expectations Team