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PhiladelphiaDaily Record
Vol. II No. 98 (258) Keeping You Posted With The Politics Of Philadelphia July 12, 2011
NUTTER ADMINISTRATION is working overtime to pitch city to hotel develop-
ers, now Convention Center expansion is complete. See story page 3.
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T h e P h i l a d e l p h i a P u b l i c R e c o r d C a l e n d a rJul. 14-
Michael Meehan and Republican
City Committee hosts fundraiser for
Karen Brown for Mayor at Vesper
Club, 223 S. Sydenham St., 5:30-
7:30 p.m. Tickets $250.
Jul. 15-
Councilwoman Jannie L. Blackwell
celebrates her birthday with 14th an-
nual Celebration and Health Fair for
Homeless on City Hall’s Dilworth
Plaza, 12 m.-3 p.m.
Jul. 15-
Councilman Curtis Jones celebrates
his birthday with White Linen Party
at Centennial Café, 4700 States Dr.,
Fairmount Pk., 8-11 p.m. Donation
$50. For info (267) 912-1420 or
Jul. 15, 16-
Arts Bank Theatre hosts Classic
Concert entertainment. $20. Hosted
by Miss Black Penna. For info (267)
281-3521,
Jul. 19-
Fundraiser for Council candidate
David Oh at McGillin’s Ale House,
1310 Drury St., 6-8. Free buffet,
open bar. Contribution $50. Cash or
money order. No Corporate checks.
Jul. 23-
Brady Bunch get-together at
Keenan’s at 113 Old New Jersey Av.,
North Wildwood, N.J., 4-8 p.m.
Tickets $35. For info Tommy (215)
423-9027 or Charlie (215) 241-7804.
Jul. 23-
State Sen. Anthony Williams hosts
seminar on Building Financial
Wealth by Improving Your Credit
Score at 10 a.m. in Bossone Bldg.
Atrium, 3200 Market St., 10 a.m.
Parking available at 31st & Ludlow.
For info Desaree K. Jones or Don
Cave (215) 492-2980.
LIVE AUCTIONS EVERY WEDNESDAY AT 5PM (Preview 3PM)
LIVE AUCTIONS EVERY SATURDAY AT 11AM (Preview 9AM)
LIVE INTERNET AUCTION EVERY SATURDAY AT 4PM AT:
www.capitalautoauctions.com To Register & To Bid
3 BIGSALES
WEEKLY
2 | THE PHILADELPHIA DAILY RECORD 13 JUNE, 2011
13 JUNE, 2011 THE PHILADELPHIA DAILY RECORD | 3
Due to extreme heat and humidity, all School District
of Philadelphia Summer Learning and More students
will be dismissed at the conclusion of the academic
session today, Jul. 12. According to the National
Weather Service, the combination of temperatures in
the upper 90s and high humidity could create a situa-
tion in which heat illness is possible.
The District is taking this excessive heat warning se-
riously. At the 1:00 p.m. dismissal time, routine trans-
portation will occur for students. The heat advisory in
effect until 8 p.m.
Summer School Out Early Due To Heat
A Push Is On To Boost Hotel DevelopmentWith the newly expanded Pennsyl-
vania Convention Center open, the
City of Philadelphia and its part-
ners in the hospitality industry are
working together to promote
Philadelphia as the smart choice
for hotel development and invest-
ment.
Excitement continues to build in
the City of Philadelphia, as the
Convention Center, showcasing
one million square feet of saleable
space, recently hosted the Interna-
tional Society of Technology in
Education. The tradeshow featured
more than 20,000 attendees, using
28,500 total hotel-room nights,
with an economic impact of $40
million.
As a sign of the region’s growing
economic development, partner-
ship and commitment to progress,
the City of Philadelphia, the
Philadelphia Convention & Visi-
tors Bureau and the Philadelphia
Industrial Development Corp.,
with input from PKF Consulting,
have once again teamed up to pro-
duce Philadelphia: Smart City.Smart Choice for Hotel Invest-ment, a resource that highlights the
opportunities for prospective hotel
developments in Philadelphia. It
includes a comprehensive market
review (expanded Convention
Center, transportation and access,
new tourism developments, lodg-
ing by market and historical per-
formance, and demand by
segment), public financing pro-
grams and other City support for
development projects, and an up-
dated hotel map.
“Philadelphia’s hospitality and
tourism industry, which supports
56,000 jobs in the city, continues
to work diligently to market
Philadelphia as a compelling desti-
nation to hotel developers,” said
Mayor Michael A. Nutter. “The
Convention Center is expanded
and visitors from around the world
are traveling here for business and
leisure.”
At the forefront of economic de-
velopment are additional hotel
rooms needed in Philadelphia. An
additional 1,500 hotel rooms are
essential to meet the needs of the
expanded Convention Center,
which has grown by 62% and has
the ability to host two conventions
simultaneously or mega-
tradeshows.
Philadelphia has already added
more than 500 hotel rooms to its
inventory in anticipation of the ex-
panded Convention Center. In Oc-
tober 2009, two new hotels joined
the Philadelphia hospitality land-
scape: Kimpton’s 230-room Hotel
Palomar Philadelphia at 17th &
Sansom Streets and the 92-room
Four Points by Sheraton right
across from the expanded Conven-
tion Center. In May 2010, Le
Méridien Philadelphia, a 201-
room hotel, opened at 1421 Arch
Street, just steps away from the
expanded Convention Center.
So impressed by Palomar’s suc-
cess, Kimpton is developing a sec-
ond property – the Lafayette
Building, along Independence
Mall, which will open as the Hotel
Monaco. The 270-room hotel is
expected to open in the third quar-
ter of 2012. Also, Homewood
Suites is constructing a 130-room
facility at 41st & Walnut Streets in
the University City section of
Philadelphia, slated for completion
in spring 2012.
In 2010, sales of Philadelphia
hotel rooms reached an all-time
high, as approximately four mil-
lion room nights were sold in the
City.
Nick Gregory, director of opera-
tions for Kimpton Hotels Philadel-
phia, said, “The city has been
incredibly welcoming of us and
the guest response to our type of
product has been extremely posi-
tive. We look forward to further
integrating into the community
Feds’ Mortgage Program Calls For Takers
4 | THE PHILADELPHIA DAILY RECORD 12 JULY, 2011
with the addition of our second
property, the Monaco, and helping
Philadelphia become a top travel
destination.”
The City and PIDC support hotel
development and renovation proj-
ects in Philadelphia through 10
public financing, tax credit, and
other programs. They include:
The Welcome Fund, which can
provide five-year financing in in-
crements of $500,000 for every 10
new direct and indirect jobs cre-
ated by a project as determined by
an economic impact statement.
HUD 108 Loan, which can pro-
vide below-market financing for
building acquisition and renova-
tion and equipment purchases in
increments of $35,000 for each
permanent full-time equivalent job
created by a project.
Green Roofs Tax Credit, where the
City offers a credit against the
Business Privilege Tax of 25% for
all costs incurred to construct a
green roof, with a maximum credit
of $100,000 per business.
Job Creation Tax Credit, where the
City provides a tax credit of up to
$3,000 per employee for new, full-
time jobs created through 2013.
Developer services, where the
City will bring together all major
operating departments and utilities
involved in the permitting and ap-
proval process to review and facil-
itate development projects.
“Philadelphia is a great business
address and primed for hotel de-
velopment,” said Jack Ferguson,
president & CEO, PCVB. “An ex-
panded Pennsylvania Convention
Center is bringing additional peo-
ple to Philadelphia, whether it be
to meet here or visit here and that
requires additional hotel rooms.”
Need help paying your mortgage?
Then call 1 (800) 522-4171. It’s
your way to begin an application
for a loan from the Pennsylvania
Housing Finance Agency.
The agency taps into a federal
foreclosure-prevention program
designed to help homeowners who
are at least three months in arrears
on their mortgage payments. Ap-
plications must be approved by
Sep. 30.
Homeowners qualify if their gross
income is at least 15% lower than
when the property went into fore-
closure.
Thomas Adds Security To Senior DevelopmentSeniors living in Casa Carmen Aponte Senior Devel-
opment at 2121 N. Howard Street have been the tar-
get of criminals in the Norris Square community over
the past few months. Drug addicts were gaining en-
trance, shooting drugs in the stairwells and robbing
several of the residents.
That ended this morning with the dedication of an
electronic surveillance system made possible through
the Philadelphia Prevention Partnership, funded
through a grant gotten by State Rep. W. Curtis
Thomas (D-N. Phila.)
Thomas reports it is the first in a series of senior de-
velopments in his 181st Safe Communities Initiative:
Senior Electronic Surveillance Program.
The system was designed and installed by Logistics
Management Consultants, Inc. (LMC) in partnership
with LinkTech, Inc., with Dr. Jamil Assaf Bautista,
CEO of LMC as project director.
Other senior developments in the 181st Legislative
District that will receive new, upgraded surveillance
systems through the program include Guild House
East, Guild House West and Yorktown Arms.
Zogby Poll Says 9 Of 10 Want Fed CutsNine in 10 voters say it is important for Congress and
President Barack Obama to reduce the nation’s long-
term debt, and a majority prefers spending cuts over
increased revenues as the means of accomplishing
that goal, a new IBOPE Zogby Interactive poll finds.
The Jul. 8-11 survey finds two-thirds favor means
12 JULY, 2011 THE PHILADELPHIA DAILY RECORD | 5
testing for Medicare based on a person’s wealth, but
similar percentages oppose reducing cost-of-living in-
creases for Social Security and reducing provider pay-
ments in Medicare and Medicaid.
There is strong agreement to reduce defense spending
(60%), end some tax loopholes and preferences (85%)
and to reduce discretionary spending outside of enti-
tlements and defense (62%).
Grant Deadline For Community College Students Extended
PHEAA is reminding first-time
and non-renewal Pennsylvania
State Grant applicants planning to
attend a community college that
the PHEAA Board of Directors has
extended the State Grant deadline
from May1 to Aug. 1. Applicants
must be attending a community
college and satisfy all eligibility
requirements, including being en-
rolled on at least a part-time basis
to qualify. The State Grant dead-
line for renewal applicants remains
May 1.
PHEAA anticipates the deadline
extension will increase community
college State Grant recipients by
35% to approximately 33,000 stu-
dents. The maximum State Grant
award in 2011-12 for community
college recipients will be $2,313,
or a 23% increase from 2010-11
levels.
In addition to the deadline exten-
sion, the PHEAA Board of Direc-
tors approved the allocation of $50
million from PHEAA’s business
earnings to supplement the 2011-
12 State Grant Program. The sup-
plement, combined with the $380
million appropriated by the Gen-
eral Assembly, will increase the
maximum award from $3,541 to
$4,348, an $807 increase over
2010-11.
“The State Grant deadline exten-
sion for community college stu-
dents, combined with the $50
million supplement funded by
PHEAA’s business earnings, is
very good news for Pennsylvania’s
students and families who are
struggling to pay for their higher
education,” said Representative
William Adolph, PHEAA Board
Chairman. “Many community col-
lege students don’t make the deci-
sion to attend school until later in
the summer and this extension pro-
vides them additional time to
apply.”
First-time and non-renewal com-
munity-college State Grant appli-
cants who had received a reject
notification because they filed
after the original May 1 deadline
will be contacted with updated eli-
gibility information. PHEAA is en-
couraging students to review their
State Grant application by logging
into PHEAA.org to ensure that
their application is complete, espe-
cially those who thought that they
missed the deadline and did not
follow through with completing
their applications.
To determine eligibility for a State
Grant, applicants must complete
and submit the Free Application
for Federal Student Aid and a State
Grant Form which collects addi-
tional data elements not requested
on the federal application. The
SGF is only required for first-time
State Grant applicants. Applicants
can access the FAFSA at either
PHEAA.org/FAFSA or fafsa.gov.
First-time applicants can access
the SGF directly from the FAFSA
on the Web, allowing them to
complete the entire process from
one site.
Students who have already submit-
ted their FAFSA but not their SGF
will need to visit Account Access
through the Secure Sign-In at
PHEAA.org to complete their
State Grant Form.
For information on the higher edu-
cation financial aid process, sched-
ules for upcoming financial aid
nights and FAFSA Completion
Sessions, reminders of financial
aid deadlines, and video clips of-
fering tips and information pertain-
ing to planning for higher
education, students can join
PHEAA on Facebook at www.face-
book.com/pheaa.aid.
State Liquor Stores
In Jeopardy Again
For some reason, even though the
Pennsylvania Liquor Stores have
proven to be a goose laying a
golden egg yearly for the State’s
General Fund, there is someone
who wants to kill the system.
This time, the axe edge is sharper
and closer to being wielded since
Republican House Majority
Leader Mike Turzai (R-Allegheny)
is again introducing legislation to
abolish the Pennsylvania Liquor
Control Board and privatize the
sale of wine and spirits in Pennsyl-
6 | THE PHILADELPHIA DAILY RECORD 12 JULY, 2011
vania.
Turzai’s legislation would close
609 State-operated stores, allow-
ing for up to 750 licenses to be
auctioned for new, privately
owned stores, create separate li-
censes for smaller and larger
stores, and impose a “gallonage”
tax on the sale of wine and spirits,
a policy already found in 33 states.
Pennsylvania is one of two states
(the other is Utah) to have State-
owned and operated stores.
States imposing the “gallonage”
tax average $4.50 to $5 per gallon,
though they range widely from
$1.80 to $12.80. Turzai also esti-
mates the initial auction of licenses
could garner up to $2 billion in
State revenue. This new tax policy
supplants the Commonwealth’s
current 18% tax on booze which
generated $271 million in State
revenue.
Gov. Corbett has commissioned a
report studying the economics of
privatizing.
Nearly identical legislation last
year was defeated. Despite a Re-
publican majority, odds are the bill
may not pass the State House.
Casey To Chair JEC
Hearing Tomorrow
On Training Manu-
facturing WorkersUS Sen. Bob Casey (D-Pa.), chair-
man of Joint Economic Commit-
tee, will chair a hearing titled,
Manufacturing in the USA: Train-ing America’s Workforce tomorrow
in Washington. The hearing, the
second in a series of hearings on
manufacturing in the USA, will
focus on equipping workers with
the skills they will need for new
jobs critical to the nation’s long-
term economic success. Economic
activity in the manufacturing sec-
tor has increased for 23 consecu-
tive months and manufacturing
employment has rebounded from
its low, adding almost 250,000
jobs since December 2009.
Participating in the hearing will
be Sen. Jim DeMint, (R-S.C.) and
Congressman Daniel Lipinski,
(D-Ill.). Testifying will be Ron
Painter, CEO of the National As-
sociation of Workforce Boards;
Dr. Harry Holzer, professor of
public policy at Georgetown Uni-
versity; Charles Wetherington,
president, BTE Technologies, Inc.
of Hanover, Md.; and Diana
Furchtgott-Roth, director of the
Hudson Institute’s Center for Em-
ployment Policy.
229 Student Visitors
Here To Improve City
More than 23,000 students made a
decision to pay money out of their
own pockets in order to help im-
prove living conditions of people
across the United States and
Canada. At least 229 of those stu-
dents, belonging to World Chang-
ers, an initiative of the North
American Mission Board (South-
ern Baptist Convention), will be in
Philadelphia the week of Jul. 25,
working on a variety of assign-
ments that range from painting
houses to putting new roofs on
homes.
On average, participating students
pay $250 to take part in the week.
This summer, 95 World Changers
projects will take place in more
than 85 cities from Alaska to
Florida, New York to California,
and many places in between.
In its 21st summer of operation,
World Changers assists cities
across North America to alleviate
substandard housing. “Our partner-
ships are the key to the past 21
years. Relationships with cities
and churches have provided an av-
enue for students to make a differ-
ence in communities across North
America,” says John Bailey, team
leader for World Changers.
Following a six-session “how-to”
study that participants complete
prior to coming, students serving
Philadelphia will hit the ground
running. The major work begins
Tuesday of the project. The stu-
dents will be staying at New
Covenant Church of Philadelphia
for the week.