Lawrence McGlynn

2 weeks ago | hallmonitor.org | Lawrence McGlynn

The Committee of the Whole, which convened Wednesday morning at 9:00 to formally release the budget bills so they could be heard by the full council, finally did so more than 24 hours later, on Thursday afternoon. The bills needed to be brought before the entire council before the end of the week so they could be passed on June 12th, the last day of the spring legislative session.

3 weeks ago | hallmonitor.org | Lawrence McGlynn

Long-awaited legislation authorizing the Philadelphia Redevelopment Authority to issue $800 million worth of bonds to fund Mayor Parker’s HOME initiative was introduced in Philadelphia City Council last week. The bill stipulates the Redevelopment Authority will issue the bonds for the project and essentially be the conduit for all project activities under the auspices of the city.

1 month ago | hallmonitor.org | Lawrence McGlynn

The Committee on Licenses and Inspections heard testimony on the following legislation:Bill No. 250292Amending Chapter 9-600 of The Philadelphia Code (entitled “Service and Other Businesses”) to add business hour restrictions in the First, Seventh, and Eighth Councilmanic Districts, all under certain terms and conditions.

1 month ago | hallmonitor.org | Lawrence McGlynn

The Philadelphia Kensington Caucus held a hearing “to convene and explore best practices in substance use disorder outreach and to investigate the effectiveness of current methods used by the City of Philadelphia and its partners.”Amanda David, the Interim Deputy Commissioner of the Department of Behavioral Health and Intellectual Disability Services (DBHIDS), testified that DBHIDS Homeless Outreach teams are coordinated through Project HOME’s Outreach Coordination Center (OCC).

1 month ago | hallmonitor.org | Lawrence McGlynn

The most contentious hearing of the week was the Mayor’s Office callback for the HOME initiative. Council seemed increasingly frustrated with the Administration’s lack of key answers regarding specifics of the complicated project. The program’s $800 million price tag, which council does not find objectionable in and of itself, will be paid for by two bond issuances and will cost the city $1.5 billion in total over the course of 20 years.