Vol. II No. 148 (308)
Keeping You Posted With The Politics Of Philadelphia
September 27, 2011
Philadelphia Daily Record
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Sep. 26Spirit of Life Award Reception hosted by Tri State Labor & Mgmt. Council honor AFL-CIO President Richard W. Bloomingdale and Edward J. Radetich, Jr., CPA and Kyler Award honoree Penna. AFT President Ted Kirsch at Hyatt Regency at Penn’s Landing, Columbus Blvd. & Dock St., 6-9 p.m. Sep. 27Score Philadelphia, Counselors to Small Business, host free technology seminar to help small business grow at Penna. Convention Ctr., 13th & Arch. Seating limited, complimentary lunch. 8:00 a.m.-4:15 pm. For details and to register www.scorephila.org. Sep. 28Democratic Ward 39B Fundraiser at EOM Club, Front & Moore Sts., 5:30-8 p.m. Tickets $50. For info Matt Myers (215) 467-4643. Sep. 30Councilwoman Marian B. Tasco hosts “Party for the People” at H&H Banquet Hall, 2036 E. Haines St., (Haines & Limekiln Pk.), 8 a.m.-12 p.m. $35 in advance. Seating limited. BYOB cabaret style. For tickets (215) 4373294, ext. 209. Oct. 1 Fishtown Neighbors Association hosts RiverCity Festival at Penn Treaty Pk., Delaware & Columbia Aves., 12-5 p.m. Family fun. Oct. 2St. Nicholas Ch. Italian Festival on 1700 block S. 9th St., 12-5 p.m., with Procession of Saints from St. Nicholas Tolentine Ch. at 12:30 p.m. Family event. Admission free. Italian food, entertainment, games. Oct. 7Mayfair Civic Ass’n hosts Autistic THE PHILADELPHIA DAILY RECORD
Endeavors Beef & Beer at Cannstatter Volksfest Verein, 9130 Academy Rd, 7 p.m.-12 a.m. Tickets $30. For info Barbara (215) 360-1569. Oct. 9World Premier of modern opera “Adea” by Pennsylvania composer Cynthia Cozette at Lutheran Ch. of the Holy Communion, 2110 Chestnut St., 3 p.m., followed by reception. Free-will offering will be collected. For info (215) 567-3668. Oct. 11Prevent A Child From Abuse fundraiser art at Tavern On Broad at Bellevue, Broad & Walnut Sts., 5:30-8:30 p.m. Sponsored by Joseph Pultrone. Tickets $50. For info, tickets, and other details Joe (267) 977-3776. Oct. 15W. Poplar NASC hosts Fall Fashion Show & Luncheon at Zoar United Methodist Ch., 1204 Melon St., 2 p.m. Donation $20. For info (215) 765-0960. Oct. 16-22 Mt. Zion Baptist Ch. hosts 97th annual Church Anniversary kickoff Concert at 50th & Woodland Ave., 3 p.m. Revival will be held Oct. 19-21, 7 p.m. All events free and open to public. For info (215) 7240619. Oct. 22Philly Cares Day targets South Philadelphia HS at Broad & Snyder Ave., 8:30 a.m.-3 p.m. For info or to volunteer call Matthew Mumber (215) 564-4544. Oct. 27Pre-Election celebration sponsored by Sean Dillon’s 66A Ward at Chickie’s & Pete’s, 11000 Roosevelt Blvd., 6-9 p.m. Tickets $35. For info (215) 637-6360. 27 SEPTEMBER, 2011
Casey Rakes Congress For Shortchanging Disaster $$$ US Sen. Bob Casey (D-Pa.) released the following statement on the Senate continuing resolution yesterday: “I am disappointed both the House and Senate continuing resolutions contain inadequate disaster relief. Shortchanging disaster assistance now is an insult to those in Pennsylvania who have been ravaged by the recent floods and will set up another funding showdown later this year. This is not what families
and businesses in Pennsylvania need as they struggle to recover. After a bipartisan majority in the Senate passed appropriate funding for disaster relief, the Republican leaders in the House slashed this funding in half. It is frustrating that some in Congress have put us in this position again and irresponsibly forced us to kick the can down the road. I will continue my fight to ensure that those families in Pennsylvania and around the
country have the resources necessary to rebuild from natural disasters. With another government shutdown looming there is no other choice but to pass a temporary funding bill now. Partisan bickering should not threaten another government shutdown nor get in the way of helping Pennsylvanians in need.”
Senate Dems Press Their Own Jobs Plan Yesterday, State Senate Democrats unveiled their revised jobcreation plan, called “PA Works Now,” which they claim would create 80,000 new jobs and leverage billions in private investment to generate jobs and economic activity. It’s a picture of what the Democrats would do if they had any say in Harrisburg – which they don’t. State Senate Democratic Leader Jay Costa (D-Allegheny) said job creation is the number-one priority for this fall’s session of the General Assembly. He added the PA Works Now package does not require new broad-based taxes, is fully paid for and does not put additional strain on the State General Fund. “PA Works Now features a new investment vehicle called the Pennsylvania Investment Bank that will quickly pump $1.2 bil25 AUGUST, 2011
lion into the economy and create jobs,” Costa said. “Our goal is to jump-start the economy and create new jobs in the shortest possible time. “Job creation is the most important issue lawmakers must tackle this fall.” The Democrats’ plan includes renewed investment in job-producing programs and public works such as water and sewer projects as well as money for new business investments. The plan also provides a new round of capital infusion for the state Machinery and Equipment Loan Fund and would establish Pennsylvania’s version of the successful “Georgia Works” on-the-job training program. The Pennsylvania Investment Bank would target more than $1.2 billion for water- and sewer-sysTHE PHILADELPHIA DAILY RECORD
tem reconstruction, new business investment and other public works. The bank would capture funds generated from existing borrowing capacity. The bank would use $500 million in Commonwealth Finance Authority dollars plus a half-billion from Pennsylvania Infrastructure Investment Authority. The investment bank would also utilize $80 million in funds from a proposed Marcellus Shale tax or fee along with surplus State revenues. Democrats estimate these sources would generate $180 million. “There are so many workers who are looking for jobs and even more who are worried about what is next for them in this very difficult economic recovery,” Costa said. “Our comprehensive PA Works Now plan addresses job creation and presents an opportu|
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nity to move our economy forward.” Democrats said action is needed now on their job creation plan because of the recent increase in unemployment. Pennsylvania’s unemployment rate spiked by nearly a half percent from July to August – rising to 8.2%. Since May, the number of unemployed Pennsylvanians grew by 45,000. Senate Democratic Appropriations Chair Vincent J. Hughes (DW. Phila.) decried the alarming increase in unemployment and the inaction of both the Corbett Administration and Republican lawmakers who control floor action in both the State House and Senate. “The Corbett Administration has
failed to respond to the hardship in the labor market in any discernable way,” Hughes said. “The administration is either tone-deaf to the plight of the unemployed or focusing on political wedge issues that do not create jobs. They’ve produced no new jobs plan. “The priorities of the administration are skewed,” Hughes said. Hughes criticized Corbett and Republicans for focusing on changing the apportionment of electoral votes, English-only legislation and voter ID legislation. These issues interest only “politicos on the extreme political fringe of the Republican Party. These proposals do nothing to help our economy grow,” Hughes said.
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“We are stuck debating issues that appeal to the political extreme at the expense of working families,” Hughes said. “Working men and women need jobs. They don’t need political talk. That is a sham and it’s a shame.” State Sen. Judy Schwank (DBerks) said Democrats will soon flesh out a package of bills that would specifically help women, minorities and young people find jobs. State Sen. John Blake (D-Lackawanna), who previously served as secretary of the State Dept. of Community & Economic Development, said PA Works Now would inject much-needed capital into business investment and jobcreation programs. “There is no question that our recovery from the recession is soft,” Blake said. “The State has a responsibility to incent private-sector investment for job growth.” Other area Senators who attended the news conference included Democratic Whip Anthony H. Williams (D-W. Phila.), Caucus Secretary Christine M. Tartaglione (D-Kensington), Andy Dinniman (D-Chester) and Daylin Leach. Senate Democrats unveiled a previous version of PA Works earlier this year. It didn’t go anywhere in the Republican-controlled Senate. Clearly, though, Democrats are hoping this platform will ring a bell with voters in 2012, if not with their fellow legislators in 2011. In this, they are following the gameplan laid out in Washington by President Barack Obama.
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THE PHILADELPHIA DAILY RECORD
27 SEPTEMBER, 2011
CCP Will Lead The State In Job Retraining A $20 million federal grant was awarded today to the state’s 14 community colleges to create and enhance educational programs that will quickly retrain laid-off workers in Pennsylvania for jobs in the high-demand fields of energy, healthcare and advanced manufacturing. Community College of Philadelphia will be the consortium leader and the state’s community colleges will work with the Pennsylvania Dept. of Labor & Industry, industry groups and more than 25 companies, such as Exelon Generation and Nestle Purina Petcare, to retrain residents for careers that have been identified as having a high demand for skilled labor. The $20 million grant is part of nearly $500 million in grants announced today in a telephone conference hosted by Second Lady Dr. Jill Biden, Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis and Under Secretary of Education Martha Kanter as part of the US Trade Adjustment Assistance Community College and Career Training program. These TAACCCT grants can be used to hire staff, buy equipment and develop curriculum, according to federal officials. They also will be used to develop free online learning materials for students. Biden, a community-college faculty member, said the grants will help community colleges team with businesses to accelerate training of residents for “jobs in highgrowth industries” and will help to fuel the nation’s economic recovery. Kantor described community colleges as the “backbone of 27 SEPTEMBER, 2011
higher education, especially for older adult workers.” Solis, a former community college administrator, said community colleges are “community assets” and understand the needs of local employers. “These federal grants will enable community colleges, employers and other partners to prepare job candidates, through innovative programs, for new careers in high-wage, high-skills fields, including advanced manufacturing, transportation, health care and STEM occupations,” Solis said. One of the goals of Pennsylvania’s business/community college partnership is to educate residents in as little as one year to receive industry recognized certificates that will allow them to immediately fill job openings. Over the next three years, the goal is to award more than 2,400 of these skill certificates, particularly in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) fields. “Our challenge will be to help laid-off and underemployed workers to understand that short-term and long-term skill retraining is essential if they are to meet the labor demands of Pennsylvania employers, who are reporting skills gaps when screening applicants for new jobs,” said Stephen M. Curtis, president of Community College of Philadelphia. The 14 community colleges will work together to develop both standardized and customized courses contoured to the labor needs of area businesses and inTHE PHILADELPHIA DAILY RECORD
dustries. The idea is to quickly create a skilled workforce to meet regional labor demands. Workforce Investment Boards from around the state have identified significant demand for labor in the fields of advanced manufacturing and logistics; energy distribution, production and conservation; and health care technologies, such as medical records and health information technology. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, 57 percent of people who work in a trade-related field in Pennsylvania have only a high school diploma or equivalent, and nearly 60 percent of Pennsylvania’s trade workers are 40 to 60 years of age. Congressman Chaka Fattah (DPhila.) said the $20 million TAACCCT grant Pennsylvania received is the largest grant in the nation. Fattah called it a way to “jumpstart capacity-building in the curriculum, particularly focused on training for advanced manufacturing, energy and health-care jobs.” The TAACCCT program also is designed to have a lasting impact on higher education, emphasizing the use of evidence in program design, collection of student-outcome data and conducting evaluations to build knowledge about which strategies are most effective in placing graduates in jobs. The TAACCCT grants are part of the Health Care & Education Reconciliation Act, which included a total of $2 billion over a four-year period. The first $500 million – the first installment of the $2 billion – was distributed yesterday. |
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Hundreds Turn Out For Tartaglione Senior Expo Hundreds of local seniors packed the gymnasium at Camelot’s Excel Academy for State Sen. Christine M. Tartaglione’s (D-Kensington) annual Senior Expo. “This is always the best event of the year,” Tartaglione said. “It brings together seniors from my district with students who put in a lot of effort to host them at the school. Everybody has fun and
everybody learns something.” The Senior Expo featured dozens of exhibitors with products and services that can help seniors navigate the sometimes complicated system of services available to them. “Getting face-to-face answers to questions makes some important decisions easier,” Tartaglione said.
“The Senior Expo gives them a chance to keep up with a rapidly changing world.” Students from Camelot’s Excel Academy helped transform their gymnasium into a crowded marketplace that included free help from state, federal and city agencies, as well as vendors ranging from home security systems to therapeutic footwear.
Saturday Service Resumes Free Library Branches Beginning Oct. 8, Saturday service will be available at the Free Library’s neighborhood branches. In order to provide six-day service to every community, some branches will operate on a Monday through Thursday schedule, close on Fridays and open on Saturdays from 10:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m. Other branches will continue to operate on a Monday through Friday schedule. The Parkway Central Li-
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brary will open on Saturdays from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. All three Regional Libraries will also offer Saturday service from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. In addition, the Northeast Regional Library, 2228 Cottman Avenue, and the Parkway Central Library, 1901 Vine Street, will offer service on Sundays from 1:00 to 5:00 p.m.
Library card and check out the Free Library’s bestsellers, newly released DVDs and featured CDs, and our latest eBooks. For questions regarding Library hours, please contact your neighborhood branch, visit our website at freelibrary.org, or call (215) 686-5322.
September is National Library Card Sign-up Month, so get your
THE PHILADELPHIA DAILY RECORD
27 SEPTEMBER, 2011
Teeing Off For Charity
ENJOYING 7th annual Golf Outing at Bala Golf Club were Norman Carter, president of Board of Philadelphia Developmental Disabilities Corp.; Ralph Lewis, representing State Sen. Christine Tartaglione; and Bruce Hulick , executive director of The Arc of Phila. Photo by Bonnie Squires
Williams, Waters Invite Residents To Town Hall Meeting On Crime A recent spike in burglaries in the Cobbs Creek and West Philadelphia communities has prompted State Sen. Anthony H. Williams and State Rep. Ron Waters (both D-W. Phila.) to organize an upcoming community meeting on 27 SEPTEMBER, 2011
crime prevention and communitybased solutions. Residents are welcome to attend the town hall meeting on Thursday, Oct. 6 at 7 p.m. at KIPP Philadelphia School, 5900 BaltiTHE PHILADELPHIA DAILY RECORD
more Avenue. “This is an opportunity for the community to come together, share our concerns and devise productive solutions that will help improve our neighborhoods,” Williams said. “I welcome all Cobbs Creek and West |
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Philadelphia residents to join Representative Waters and me, as well as local organizations that provide crime prevention services, to participate in this important discussion.” Representatives from the Philadelphia Police Dept., SEPTA Transit Police Dept., Philadelphia Adult Parole & Probation Dept., Philadelphia Juvenile Parole and Probation Department, Philadelphia Operation Town Watch, the Block Captains Association, Philadelphia Dept. of Human Services and neighborhood schools will participate. For more information, call Don Cave at (215)492-2980.
Front Row, Axis Tee Off For Charity The Front Row Foundation is gearing up for its first annual charitable golf outing at Plymouth Country Club in Plymouth Meeting on Monday, Oct. 3. The event, sponsored by Axis Construction, will benefit the Front Row Foundation, whose mission is to help individuals and families who have life threatening illnesses to live their lives to the fullest by providing front row seats to various performances, concerts and sporting events. Founder of Axis Construction and Front Row sponsor William Bostic said, “We wanted to get involved because of the charity’s methods. The Front Row Foundation creates unique experiences (concerts, sporting events or other life goal experiences) that take the recipient’s mind off of what’s happening to them physically. As a bonus, these experiences are shared with 8|
the recipient’s family and loved ones and those memories live on even when, sadly, sometimes the recipients do not.” The head of the Foundation, Jon Vroman, is thankful that Axis came up with this generous opportunity to raise money and give back to hundreds of individuals and families. Said Vroman, “The foundation helps those people and their families who are braving critical health challenges and provides them with the tools necessary to live life to the fullest through positive experiences.” The event is not just a golf tournament, but it includes a lunch buffet before tee off, a cocktail hour, dinner, raffles and awards. A silent auction will culminate the night, which boasts many exciting items, including jewelry by Lagos, four tickets to a 2012 season Phillies game in the Diamond Club, a stay at a privately owned home in the Poconos, a stay at the W Hotel in Washington, D.C. and more.
Brooke, a lawyer who works too much and barely sees her kids; and Tasha, a single mom struggling to balance work, family and a divorce. “Motherhood the Musical is the rare show that audiences not only relate to – they actually can ‘see’ themselves on stage through the cast’s portrayal of common experiences all moms have,” said Kathi Glist, Motherhood the Musical producer and co-founder of GFour Productions. “From being pregnant to succumbing to driving a minivan, from facing an empty nest to anxiously awaiting one’s first grandchild, the musical really covers the entire wonderful, crazy journey of being a mom.” Anyone who has ever been a parent – fathers as well as mothers – can relate to this show.”
Motherhood the Musical® Debuts At Society Hill Playhouse by Nathan Lerner Motherhood the Musical® is a four-woman show from author and songwriter Sue Fabisch, a mother who understands that sometimes the best way to cope with the joys and trials of motherhood is to share the experience with other moms. The musical shares the humorous and loving journey of Amy, a soon-to-be first-time mom; Barb, an over-worked, underpaid, stressed-out mother of five; THE PHILADELPHIA DAILY RECORD
27 SEPTEMBER, 2011