Philadelphia Daily Record

Vol. III No. 77 (441)

Keeping You Posted With The Politics Of Philadelphia

April 27, 2012

Philadelphia Daily Record

When We Live

WE LIVE IN CLOVER. When we die, we die all over.� So runs traditional ballad of Phila.’s historic Clover Club, which celebrated its merry annual dinner last night at Union League with bipartisan camaraderie among movers, shakers and troublemakers. Enjoying this plush affair are, from left, attorney Joseph T. Kelley, Jr. of Kelley Partners, Ltd.; Common Pleas Court Judges Charles Cunningham and Kenneth J. Powell, Jr.; and Republican 55th Ward Leader Chris Vogler.

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The Philadelphia Public Record

Calendar

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May 4Carpenters Joint Apprenticeship Committee hosts annual Contest & Open House at Training Facility, 10401 Decatur Rd., 8 a.m.-5 p.m. For info Director Charles T. Brock (215) 824-2300.

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May 5Historic AME Church’s Rev. Dr. Mary Lou Moore of “I Can Ministries, Inc.” and Wells Fargo Bank host “I Can Empowerment Expo”, 1at Union AME Church, 1600 W. Jefferson St., 10 a.m.-3p.m.

All invited to attend. Activities include financial workshops, breakout sessions for all ages.

Family event. For info Dr. Moore (215) 920-8604.

May 7Fundraiser for Phila. 9/11 Memorial at Pub & Grub, 2001 Hamilton St., 6-9 p.m. Open bar, food. Donation $30. For info Joe Eastman (609) 290-8803.

May 11State Rep. Ron Waters hosts Senior Health Expo & Luncheon for 191st House Dist. at KIPP W. Phila.

Charter Sch., 5900 Baltimore Ave., 11 a.m.-2 pm. Free. For info (215) 748-6712.

May 15Mothers In Charge hosts 9th Anniversary Celebration at Penn’s Landing Caterers, 1301 S. Columbus Blvd., 5:30 p.m. For info

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Dorothy Johnson Speight, Mothers In Charge, 1415 N. Broad St., Suite 229, Phila., PA 19122.

May 171st Annual Spring Social for Chapel of Four Chaplains, 1201 Constitution Ave., Bldg. 649 in Navy Yard, 5:307:30 p.m. $20 Early Bird, by May 16. At door, $25. For info (215) 218-1943 or Events@Fourchaplains.org.

May 19Asian Pacific American Heritage Month Celebration at Franklin Sq. Park, 6th & Race, 11 a.m.-4 p.m.

May 23Jobs With Justice annual Solidarity Reception at District 1199C, 1319 Locust St., 5:30-7:30 p.m. To be honored are Henry Nicholas, Jody Dodd, Jim Savage, Amanda Geraci and Occupy Phila.

Jun. 10St. Edmond’s Parish Centennial Dinner at Penn’s Landing Caterers, 1301 S. Columbus Blvd., 2-6 p.m.

Ticket $65 with a cash bar. For info (215) 334-3755.

Jun. 15-16-7- Annual St. Maron Church Lebanese Festival on Ellsworth Street beween 10th and 11th. Friday from 5 pm, Saturday and Sunday from 11 a.m. No admission. All welcome. Authentic Middle East cuisine and entertainment.

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Pa. Senators Hammer On Gas Prices At Hearing US Sen. Bob Casey (D-Pa.), Chair of the Joint Economic Committee chaired the JEC hearing yesterday which he called on gas prices.

“With gas prices nearing $4 a gallon, it is important that we take a close look at how these refinery closures will affect Pennsylvanians and consumers across the nation,” said Casey. “With limited pipeline capacity to import from the Gulf Coast, this loss of refining activity in the Northeast will increase the region’s dependence on foreign fuel and lead to higher prices for consumers.”

The hearing was entitled “Gas Prices in the Northeast: Potential Impact on the American Consumer Due to Loss of Refining Capacity.” The hearing focused on the impact potential closures of petroleum refineries serving the Northeast could have on prices at the pump in the MidAtlantic and New England regions.

Senator Casey has also recommended some commonsense steps that Congress can take help address the problem.

Casey outlined a bill which he will introduce in the coming weeks that will fund natural-gas

development on the state level.

Casey’s bill will provide increased funding for states to promote natural gas development and allow states to decide how best to deploy those resources – not the federal government.

Casey called on the Commodity Futures Trading Commission to use its authority to limit speculation in the oil market so that investors on Wall Street cannot continue to drive up the price at the pump.

Casey called on Congress to pass the bipartisan NOPEC (No Oil Producing and Exporting Cartels) Act. The bill would close a loophole in current law that prevents the Dept. of Justice from bring suit against members of the OPEC cartel for collusive practices. The Casey-supported bill would close the loophole and give the DOJ the tools it needs.

Casey’s colleague Sen. Pat Toomey (R-Pa.) carefully grilled industry witnesses on what said was a key cause of refiners’ woes: the mandate to include ethanol made from corn in their gasoline mix. “There are also some factors that we in Washington are responsible for,” Toomey said.

The witnesses attending the hearing were: · Diana Moss, vice president of American Antitrust Institute · Robert Greco, group director of downstream and industry operations, American Petroleum Institute · Thomas D. O’Malley, chairman of PBF Energy · Michael Greenstone, director of the Hamilton Project and 3M professor of economics at Massachusetts Institute of Technology Thomas O’Malley, chairman of BPF Energy, was blunt. “The reason for the closure of refineries in Pennsylvania is that they didn’t make money,” he stated.

“The reason they didn’t make money is that you took away their market. You delivered the market to the farm industry….

Because the use of gasoline in the United States has fallen off, we now have a mandate [for ethanol] that will go up to 12%, 13%, 14%, 15%. We have a motor industry that says, ‘we can’t really deal with that, you are going to injure the engines on cars.’ And now, if you put on top of it the insanity associated with cellulosic fuels, you will (Cont. Page 5)

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THE PHILADELPHIA DAILY RECORD

Daily Waffles From Joe Sbaraglia (The Waffleman) Yo! Here we go again with these thoughts on things that require valid ID: BANDSTAND - began in October 1952 from the WPVI building at 46th & Market Street in studio B. Bandstand's original hosts was Bob Horn and Lee Stewart.

The guys and girls went to

dance on Bandstand immediately after the last period school bell. Some arrived sooner because they cut the last period class. They did not want to miss ROLL CALL. There were other

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dances in the area, but they were not televised. Many romances started on Bandstand.

Many singers appeared on Bandstand. A lot of these stars were from South Philadelphia. When Lee Stewart left the show, Bob Horn was the host. He was replaced by Dick Clark in 1956. Bandstand was renamed American Bandstand when it was broadcast nation wide on the ABC network.

The show moved to California in 1963. Many of the kids on Bandstand were from South Philadel¬phia. Some of them still visit the many nightclubs in the area when they have oldies nights.

There they dance to the music of their youth. I guess this is their way of trying to recapture those great Bandstand days.

ACK-A-ME - Acme supermarkets. For example: Let's go to the Ack-a-me to buy our groceries.

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THE PHILADELPHIA DAILY RECORD (Cont. From Page 3) ultimately take away another 1015% of the industry.

O’Malley continued, “I chair a company that has three refineries and I am not completely sure that my three refineries can continue to operate in the future.

And since two of them are in the northeast, we may be in a more

difficult situation they you might believe. This is a total mess and it really does need to be fixed.”

Robert Greco of the American Petroleum Institute added, “When you look at future projections of demand for US gasoline, it’s flat or declining, and the two big drivers are the increased ethanol mandate which under EISA 2007 is going to drive you

to 20-30% of the gallon being taken up by ethanol or some other bio-fuel and increasing CAFE standards. So we may be driving more, we may be using more cars on the road, but they will be using less hydrocarbons, and that’s only going to increase the pressure on the refining sector.”

Toomey To Chair Conservative Group US Sen. Pat Toomey (R-Pa.) was selected yesterday to be the next chairman of the Senate Steering Committee, a caucus of conservative senators that includes the majority of the Republican Conference. He will take this post in early September.

“Sen. Pat Toomey is a proven and trusted conservative, and I’m very glad he’s taking on this new role,” said outgoing Steering Chairman Sen. Jim DeMint (RS.C.). “I’ve fought hard over the last few years to help elect new conservatives to the Senate, and it’s very rewarding to see them step into positions of leadership.

I’ve enjoyed chairing this group for the past five years, and I look forward to working closely with Pat and the other Steering members to advance conservative principles at this critical time when our country needs them

most.”

“I’m honored to lead the historic Steering Committee,” Sen. Toomey said. “It is a privilege to be entrusted with this position.

Sen. DeMint has been a courageous leader, and I look forward to building on the great work he has done. The Steering Committee will continue to provide conservative solutions, especially to limit government overreach, restore fiscal responsibility, reinvigorate free enterprise and maintain a strong national defense.”

Established in 1974, the nonpartisan committee provides a forum where Senators can work together to discuss and promote conservative legislation and policies.

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THE PHILADELPHIA DAILY RECORD

EPA Grants Funding For Green Philly School

WATER COMMISSIONER HOWARD NEUKRUG, right, joins in applause as EPA Regional Administrator Shawn M. Garvin announces grant for green stormwater engineering at a S. Phila. school.

A $200,000 grant announced yesterday by the US Environmental Protection Agency will help fund projects to make South Philadelphia’s George W. Nebinger School and surrounding streets greener and healthier.

EPA’s grant, with matching funding from the Philadelphia Water Dept. and the nonprofit Partnership for the Delaware Estuary, brings the total award to $400,000 that will go towards a host of green features at 6|

Nebinger School and the adjacent neighborhood. The projects are part of the city’s wide-ranging plan, Green City, Clean Waters, to control pollutant-laden stormwater that inundates the city’s sewer system and causes sewage overflows into area waterways. EPA and the City of Philadelphia signed a partnership agreement earlier this month to help ensure the success of the City’s plan.

“This grant will help the city re-

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alize the environmental, economic and community benefits of the Green City, Clean Waters plan,” said EPA Regional Administrator Shawn M. Garvin.

“In controlling stormwater runoff, we’ll also be helping students appreciate ways of preventing pollution and creating cost-effective, high-performance green streets adjacent to the school.”

In addition to the benefits for Philadelphia, controlling

THE PHILADELPHIA DAILY RECORD stormwater runoff is critical for reducing pollution to the Delaware River and Bay – the focus of joint efforts by PDE, EPA, and PWD as part of the National Estuary Program. All three are now teaming up with the School District of Philadelphia to develop what is intended as a national and international model for stormwater management and educational programming at the Nebinger School.

The school is located at 6th & Carpenter Street in South Philadelphia.

Efforts at the Nebinger School will focus on using green stormwater infrastructure as a classroom, field and laboratory tool, and demonstration opportu-

nity for students and the community. The green tools that may be integrated into the design of the school yard include rain gardens, porous play surfaces and pavement, and stormwater planters.

These features will help manage stormwater runoff from the school yard and select adjacent streets.

Several streets close to the Nebinger School have been chosen as potential Green Street projects based on critical connections they create between significant neighborhood amenities and businesses, such as the Weccacoe Playground and the business corridor on Passyunk Avenue between 6th and 10th Streets, which is part of the

Passyunk Business Improvement District. Green tools that may be integrated into these Green Streets include stormwater trees and tree trenches.

Officials said the project may provide an opportunity for Philadelphia students to collaborate with similar schools in the City of Rio de Janeiro, Philadelphia’s sister city in stormwater management. This collaboration is an extension of the Joint Initiative on Urban Sustainability, a partnership among the EPA, Brazil’s Ministry of Environment and Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the City of Rio de Janeiro, and the City of Philadelphia, which was formed to advance sustainable cities.

SEPTA Cheers Lucky Workers SEPTA released the following statement on a stroke of luck which was not on yesterday’s schedule.

“SEPTA would like to congratulate a group of employees who won Wednesday’s Powerball jackpot.

“The 48 employees will share a prize of nearly $173 million. They purchased the winning ticket at the Newsstand at the Gallery.

“At this time, the employees wish to remain anonymous.

partments throughout SEPTA Headquarters. The group is made up of people of different ranks and positions, including both union and administration/management.

“The group consists of a wide-range of people. Some have worked for SEPTA for as little as two years, and others have been with the Authority for nearly 40 years.

“SEPTA is extremely pleased to see this group of dedicated employees share in this good fortune.”

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THE PHILADELPHIA DAILY RECORD

GSK, Foundation Drop $1M On Job-Training Programs During the British American Business Council Breakfast with His Royal Highness The Prince Edward in attendance, Mayor Michael A. Nutter announced pharmaceutical and health-care company GlaxoSmithKline and the Philadelphia Foundation will provide $1 million in grants to support WorkReady Philadelphia programs.

“This grant will make a tremendous difference in the lives of young Philadelphians that benefit from the programming offered by WorkReady, and it will also create an employee pipeline for area businesses,” said the Mayor. “I appreciate the commitment GlaxoSmithKline has shown to our city and region, and I challenge other area businesses to follow its lead so that even more youth can be served.

It costs only $1,600 to provide a summer opportunity for a young person. There is no better investment that we can make in our future than to help our young people achieve success.”

The money will fund 515 educationally-enriched employment opportunities for young people through the WorkReady Philadelphia summer programs and help launch a new bio-medical employment training program. WorkReady Philadelphia 8|

is the city’s system of youth workforce preparation programs that is managed by the Philadelphia Youth Network.

The $1 million includes $750,000 from the $5 million GlaxoSmithKline Inspiring Youth Endowment Fund and $250,000 from the Fund for Children. Both funds are administered through The Philadelphia Foundation, which has undertaken a comprehensive study of the out-of-school time needs of older youth to inform future allocations.

Prince Edward, the youngest son of Queen Elizabeth II, visited Philadelphia Thursday and Friday to honor Her Majesty’s Diamond Jubilee year and to support the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award youth-development program in the city. The BABC breakfast recognized GlaxoSmithKline for the creation of the $5 million fund benefiting youth in Philadelphia, including a $500,000 designation to The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award Philadelphia Program.

This program was established in 1956 by HRH Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, who is the husband of Queen Elizabeth and Prince Edward’s father. The program mentors 14- to 25-year-

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olds through self-selected activities in community service, physical recreation, skill development and an adventurous journey that includes outdoor experiences.

To be funded through the $1 million grant announced today are: • WorkReady Summer programs, which provide valuable exposure to workplaces across the city as well as weekly professional development seminars. The programs challenge youth to understand the correlations between work experience, skill attainment and high school completion and how those variables impact their potential for college and career success. Participants also can attain credits through the School District of Philadelphia.

• WorkReady’s Industry Pipeline Model, which provides multiyear training for 11th- and 12thgrade students in industry-identified skills. The funding will allow for development of a new bio-medical employment training program that will prepare young Philadelphians to enter high-wage, high-demand positions in that industry.

Applicants interested in applying for the programs may visit PYN’s youth website at http://www.mypyn.org.

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Microsoft Organizes School Forum Here School of the Future, in conjunction with the Philadelphia Science Festival, Philadelphia Tech Week, and Microsoft Partners in Learning, is hosting a Regional US Forum for Innovative Educators and Learners tomorrow.

The Regional Forum is part of a larger series of Microsoft global events recognizing innovative teachers and school leaders who creatively and effectively use technology in their curriculum to help improve the way kids learn while increasing student success.

This event is designed to promote the sharing and scaling of exceptional practices of learning that incorporate technology in the classroom, recognize and celebrate leading educators and innovative schools, and engage educators intellectually while offering opportunities for professional development and to collaborate and learn from peers across the region. Philadelphia’s

one day conference will be comprised of the Regional Educator and Learner Project Competition, speakers, workshops, and technology exhibits.

Keynote speakers for the event will include Anthony Salcito, VP for worldwide education at Microsoft, and Mary Cullinane, senior VP of corporate and social responsibility at Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.

K-12 educators can enter projects that demonstrate an innovative use of technology to enhance teaching and learning in their classroom or school in this regional competition for an opportunity to travel to Washington and Greece. Last year, out of the thousands that applied to the National Forum, 100 educators from 25 states were selected for a spot to compete on Microsoft’s corporate campus in Redmond, Washington. Three projects will be selected from Philadelphia’s

regional competition to compete in Washington this summer.

Winning projects will be scored based on a comprehensive judging rubric that incorporates research-based criteria for 21st-century teaching and learning.

Students can also submit their work and projects that showcase their innovative use of technology on a school or independent project for competition at the Regional Forum. Students will compete for Microsoft prizes and three winners will be chosen and honored at the event. General conference participants can register to reserve a place at www.sof.philasd.org. Participation at the event is free.

School of the Future is located at 4021 Parkside Avenue. The event runs 9:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m.

To inquire, contact Kate Hayes, khayes@sof.philasd.org.

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THE PHILADELPHIA DAILY RECORD

PHA Signs Accord With Its Police The Philadelphia Housing Authority and its police department have reached an agreement on a new five-year contract that includes wage increases totaling 13%.

The officers, who patrol public housing sites, have been working without a contract or pay raise for more than three years. To compensate them for that period, PHA will award them a pay raise of 7.5%, retroactive to Apr. 1, 2011. In addition, the officers will receive a 2.5% raise effective April 1, 2012. Then, in the final year of the contract, they will receive a 3% increase on Apr. 1, 2013.

“We are committed to agreements with our unionized workforce that are fair to our employees and to taxpayers.

With this contract, we are telling

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our uniformed police officers we appreciate their service, and we are also keeping within the financial realities of what our funding will allow,” said PHA Administrative Receiver/Executive Director Michael P. Kelly.

PHA has also agreed to pay the officers three years of back clothing allowance.

In a significant change mirroring other PHA union contracts, officers will be switching from a defined benefit pension plan to a defined contribution plan. Members will contribute 5.5% of their pay into the plan to be matched

by PHA. PHA has 26 uniformed police officers who mainly patrol older public-housing sites. That is just a fraction of the number of officers PHA employed in past

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decades when old-style publichousing sites and high-rises were virtually walled off from neighborhoods and crime was extremely high. With newer public housing built into the city’s street grid, City police are able to patrol PHA communities just as they would any neighborhood.

The PHA’s lone board commissioner, Karen Newton Cole, voted on the contract’s approval at the April board meeting.

PHA recently named former Philadelphia police Capt. Ben Walton as the agency’s new police chief.

The Philadelphia Housing Authority is the nation’s 4th-largest housing authority, serving more than 80,000 rental residents.

PHA is also a major real-estate developer.