ACTION ITEMS 

Run for committeeperson! Want more influence over urbanist issues in your neighborhood, like zoning or public space or safer streets for bikers and pedestrians? Then you should consider running for a committeeperson seat this year. Every four years, the Democratic and Republican Parties hold their party elections, electing two people (committeepeople) to represent each party in each voting division. It takes only 10 signatures to get on the ballot for these positions, and the elections are rarely competitive. But they matter a lot, since the winners will vote on candidate endorsements for state and local offices over the next four-year term, and they have the ear of elected officials on neighborhood issues. Petitions to get on the ballot are coming up on February 13th, so sign up to get involved and we'll reach out with more information about what to do next.

The new Women Led Cities Initiative is coming to Philly on March 23-24 to bring together women from a variety of urban policy fields to establish goals, share information and experiences, and start the conversation about what a women-led Philly could be. Even with recent gains in female representation in fields like architecture and city government, the city has been designed and shaped primarily by men. By bringing women’s voices to the forefront of the urban discussion, the Women Led Cities Initiative aims to achieve a greater level of equity in urban planning and design, and start conversations about developing feminist city policy. This is a mostly volunteer effort, and WLC is looking for organizations and individuals to help sponsor the first conference.

Nominations for 2018 Clean Air Commuter of the Year are now open. Nominate yourself or someone else through March 22nd. The Clean Air Commuter of the Year is an individual who shows the greatest commitment to getting to work sustainably, including regular SEPTA users, bicyclists who brave the icy tundra, carpoolers, and employees who advocate for their companies to become Clean Air Commute Employers. Nominate a Clean Air Commuter today.

EVENTS

NEWS

City Council will consider creating civilian traffic enforcement officers to address the worsening epidemic of pedestrian injuries and fatalities on our streets. Council President Darrell Clarke plans to introduce a resolution Thursday morning that will call for hearings exploring the possibility of creating a new unarmed civilian force as part of the city’s Vision Zero initiative to eliminate pedestrian fatalities and injuries. The civilian officers could issue traffic citations, but would not carry firearms or have the ability to make arrests, allowing the city to address badly-needed traffic enforcement without diverting sworn officers from criminal investigations and enforcement. Council will have to act over the objections of the Fraternal Order of Police, who are already trying to quash the proposal. 5th Square strongly supports this proposal and we’re asking our members to call their Councilmembers to voice their approval.

Council President Darrell Clarke wants to consolidate City Council’s already excessive power over the Philadelphia Land Bank with a new ballot initiative this November. If approved by voters, the changes would allow the Land Bank to more easily acquire vacant, tax-delinquent properties headed for Sheriff’s sale. The Kenney administration is pushing back on Clarke’s bill arguing that the move would reduce city revenues just as the city is staring down a very difficult budget year. The administration also argues that land acquisition isn’t the primary challenge facing the Land Bank, but rather staffing and leadership issues, as well as union negotiations and a slow hiring process that have left the new agency handicapped over much of its first four years.

Councilmembers Jannie Blackwell and Maria Quinones-Sanchez are the first two members to use the new Transit-Oriented Development overlays that Council passed over the summer. The TOD overlay increases allowable density and reduces parking requirements by half, among other things, within 500 feet of a designated transit station, as-of-right, with the goal of increasing transit-accessible housing. IIn an op-ed this week, Sanchez pointed to expanded TOD zoning as one of the tools Philly needs to utilize as part of a more comprehensive housing plan. Blackwell would designate the area around the 46th and Market El station (conveniently encompassing the taxpayer-renovated Provident Mutual Life Insurance Building that was supposed to be the new police HQ), and Sanchez’s bill designates four El station areas in Fishtown and Kensington: Berks, York-Dauphin, Allegheny, and Erie-Torresdale.