Home

Date:                   Jan. 11, 2007

Location:             Mercy Hospital, West Philadelphia

Citizens attending: 22, most from West Philadelphia neighborhoods

Moderator: Louise Giugliano and Alan Sharavsky

Inquirer observer: Chris Satullo, Editorial Page editor

 

Participants in each group were first asked to describe one hope or one fear as the city enters its election year.  Then each group did an exercise that asked participants to imagine they were giving a good friend’s family advice on whether to move to Philadelphia.

  • What would be the pros and cons of that move?
  • What forces and factors underlie those pros and cons?
  • What steps could the city and region take to strengthen those pros or weaken those cons?

For a full description of the exercise, see http://go.philly.com/friendsdilemma

Moderator's Report:

By Stacie Molnar-Main

 

What were the group's most striking hopes/fears?

 

HOPES:

  • The new mayor will not do things as usual – instead, will be INNOVATIVE.

  • The new mayor will seek input/opinions of youth. He/she will spend time in city schools.

  • As the result of the mayor’s administration, there will be positive impact in communities

  • Politicians will begin listening to citizens.

  • City services will be improved.

  • Quality of public education will be improved for ALL children.

  • Mayor will work to protect our senior citizens.

FEARS:

  • The new administrative will treat violence (and related issues) as a policy problems, "rather than the cultural crisis that they are."

  • Violence will continue to increase.

What "pros" emerged as most important?

1. Philadelphia is a "manageable city"

2. Cohesive neighborhoods

3. Entertainment

4. Housing

 

What "cons" emerged as most important?

1. Housing

2. Education 

3. Violence

4. City services 

 

Let's look at the pros and cons in detail:

 

1. Pro: Neighborhood pride

Why is this pro important?

     The scope and organization of the city makes it easy to navigate. City transportation systems enable ready access to/from most areas. It is easy to fit in here and find your place(s).

 

What forces or factors underlie it?

  • SEPTA – variety of forms of transportation, frequency of stops, accessibility, low cost

  • People – Philadelphian’s are basically friendly and willing to help others out

  • Plan – "The physical layout of the city makes sense." "You can visualize it."

What action steps could strengthen it? What actors should do them?

     Groups discussed this topic but did not choose to work on this issue.

 

2. Pro: Cohesive neighborhoods

Why is this pro important?

     Participants noted that the people of Philadelphia tend to identify with their neighborhoods. There is a strong ethnic flavor, and many neighborhoods allow you to interact across cultural divides, if interested. However, some neighborhoods are economically and racially segregated, supporting strong interactions within groups and little interaction across groups. 

 

What forces or factors underlie it?

  • History – Many neighborhoods are influenced by their histories.

  • Economics – Some neighborhoods are not economically accessible to a wide range of income levels.

  • Local community leadership – Local communities/blocks that have strong leaders are able to build connections, traditions and get things done.

What action steps could strengthen it? What actors should do them?

     Groups discussed this topic but did not choose to work on this issue.

 

3. Pro: Entertainment

Why is this pro important?

     Philadelphia has a plethora of restaurants, cultural activities, sporting venues, and other events, providing plenty of entertainment for its residents. One participant noted, "I could go to a different restaurant each night for a year and never go to the same one." However, concerns about accessibility, publicity and funding were raised.

     Specifically, participants noted that many activities are expensive. "The Phantoms are even pricing themselves out as a family activity." Others noted that the high-profile, well-advertised and -funded venues tend to have a "Eurocentric emphasis." "There is a lack of pride placed in the African American population of this city," and this is reflected in how Philadelphia leadership treats the cultural resources of the black community. One participant noted that the African American History Museum, Paul Robeson House and John Coltrane House are resources that were "dying on the vine."  

 

What forces or factors underlie it?

  • Supply/Demand – Attendance is a factor driving admissions prices and funding decisions.

  • Funding – Limited public funding exists. Private funding favors established venues over others.

What action steps could strengthen it? What actors should do them?

     Groups discussed this topic but did not choose to work on this issue.

 

4. Pro and Con: Housing

Why is this pro important?

     There is plentiful housing in Philadelphia, providing opportunities for residents. Some of this housing is affordable, though quality of housing varies considerably at single price points.

     Trends suggest that housing costs are on the rise. This is a concern for lower-income residents who would like to establish permanent residency through home ownership. It is also a concern for senior citizens who may not be able to afford higher taxes based upon reassessments. 

 

What forces or factors underlie it?

  • Housing/lifestyle trends – As more people move into the city and pay a premium for real estate, neighborhoods become less affordable for other residents.

  • Local redevelopment efforts – Redevelopment efforts can contribute to vast changes in housing opportunities in neighborhoods; however, frequently developers are from outside the city/community.

  • Blight – Abandoned houses and blighted properties are a safety hazard and contribute to negative community identities and perceptions.

What action steps could strengthen it? What actors should do them?

  • Empower/support community groups or CDCs to solicit and select developers or independent investors to rehab existing housing. Community groups should be permitted to impose specific guidelines on development, to maximize positive effects of gentrification and minimize negative effects.
  • Encourage and create pathways for small, community-based developers and regular citizens to become involved in community development.
  • Review homesteading provisions to encourage improved housing opportunities and conditions.

And now the cons:

 

1. Con: Education

Why is this con important?

     High dropout rates, low academic performance, lack of educational opportunity and quality educational facilities contribute to an undereducated citizenry and workforce. Youth participants noted inconsistencies in spending and curricular priorities. "They don't have money for books and papers, but they have enough money to put in surveillance cameras through out the school." Furthermore, participants noted that the curriculum and many teachers fail to engage students in meaningful learning. "The curriculum is out of touch." "Some schools have really dedicated teachers who overcome disadvantages." In other schools, there are many "apathetic teachers and administrators."

 

What forces or factors underlie it?

  • Disconnect between teachers and students

  • Staff turnover

  • Funding

  • Teaching methods, curricula and leadership dictated by test scores

  • Poor communication

  • Low expectations 

What action steps could weaken it? What actors should do them? 

  • Establish volunteer organizations to improve aesthetics of schools. Create programs that make it easy for people to donate time and resources to improve the physical conditions of schools.

  • Make teacher retention a key part of the evaluation of principals.

  • Maintain successful teachers after retirement as mentors of new teachers. 

2. Con: Violence

Why is this con important?

     Violence affects all residents and neighborhoods, but has the greatest negative impact on Philadelphia’s children.

 

What forces or factors underlie it?

  • Laws that aren’t consistently enforced

  • Lack of truth in sentencing (not locking people up for specified time)

  • Lack of prisons/overcrowding

  • "Pleading out" doesn’t solve the problem

  • Drugs

  • Family issues

  • Lack of good jobs

  • Fear of testifying

  • Police tactics 

What action steps could weaken it? What actors should do them? 

  • Support enforcement of laws/prison terms.

  • Provide loans to small business to create jobs.

  • Improve the child welfare system; increase accountability and decrease caseloads.

  • Evaluate police tactics, as deterrent to violent crime.

  • Give judges more discretion in sentencing.

  • Consider legalizing drugs.

  • Open more adult education centers, especially for people who have been in trouble with the law.

  • Stricter gun laws.

  • Consecutive sentences for people who commit crimes with guns.

3. Con: City services

Why is this con important?

     City services can improve the quality of life for all residents and can provide support to neighborhoods/residents in need. Yet, there is great inconsistency in the quality of service across city departments and from neighborhood to neighborhood. Examples of these inconsistencies are seen in street cleaning, trash collection, and street maintenance. Parks and recreation were considered relative strengths

 

What forces or factors underlie it?

  • Inequity/clout of neighborhoods – Some neighborhoods seem to get better basic (street level) services than others.

  • Tax base – Additional taxes lobbied in Center City may support better services??

  • Administration – Request are often lost/not followed-up on. "There is a lot of bureaucratic mire when you try to work with city agencies."  

 

What action steps could weaken it? What actors should do them?

    Groups discussed this topic but did not choose to work on this issue.