Clarke Proposes Protections for RCOs
Council President Darrell Clarke, via Councilman Jones, introduced a ballot measure that would provide legal protection to Registered Community Organizations (RCOs) in Philadelphia.
RCOs are local, neighborhood-level organizations that play a role in the zoning process. As Hall Monitor has documented, local RCOs who oppose large-scale development can become the target of developers. With a significant advantage in resources, developers can draw out the legal process until RCOs have exhausted their own resources.
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Council President Clarke likened the current RCO system to an unfunded mandate, as the groups are required to play a role in the zoning process but do not receive any funding or support from the city.
“In recent months…(various RCOs) have been threatened with lawsuits by developers for not supporting (a project) or for raising an appeal,” Clarke said.
The text of the ballot question is as follows:
Should the Philadelphia Home Rule Charter be amended to provide for indemnification and defense by the City in connection with claims made against any registered community organization arising directly out of the lawful participation by such an organization in zoning matters and related land-use process?
If approved by the voters of Philadelphia, the city charter would be changed to include these protections.
Jones To Convene Hearing on Pharmacies
Councilmember Curtis Jones introduced a resolution “authorizing the City Council Committee on Public Health and Human Services to hold public hearings exploring the effects of recent pharmacy closures, including Rite Aid, in the City of Philadelphia and the impact this has on prescription access and vital pharmacy health services for senior citizens.”
According to the resolution, the Rite Aid chain has closed or will close 20 Philadelphia pharmacies, including 18 over the last year and six in the last month. The closures affect the First, Second, Fourth, and Tenth Council Distrcits.
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The resolution offers civil unrest and corporate financial issues as the main reasons for the closures, which has led to difficulties in Philadelphians filling prescriptions, including seniors who are prescribed 25-30% of all medications.
Jones said the city needed to understand the pharmacy closures quickly, as Philadelphians are being adversely affected.
“This was not introduced by a single action of filing for bankruptcy,” Jones said. “But by a series of causes and responses ranging from (issues in) Kensington to shoplifting in Center City, (which causes us) to look at the accumulation of pressures causing our valuable partners in Rite-Aid and CVS to leave.”
Gilmore Richardson Holds Hearing on Chester Trash Incineration Plant
Earlier this week, Councilmember Katherine Gilmore Richardson chaired a meeting of the Environmental Committee to hear testimony regarding Philadelphia’s exporting of trash to Chester’s incineration plant.
According to information from 2019 published by the Energy Justice Network, Philadelphians create 1.4 million tons of trash per year. Of this, 55% goes to landfills, while the other 45% is burned in incinerators. 24% of Philadelphia’s trash goes to the Chester incinerator, which is run by waste management corporation Covanata.
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Councilmember Kendra Brooks said the Chester incinerator is one of the largest in the country and is a major cause of toxic pollution.
“The burning of trash is one of the dirtiest and most harmful ways to dispose of waste,” Brooks said. “In Chester, more than 38% of the children suffer from asthma, while the national childhood asthma rate is 8%.”
Zulene Mayfield, chairperson of CRCQL, (Chester Residents Concerned for Quality Living) said the community impact of the plant, which opened in 1992, was immediate.
“The smells from both the trash burning and the choking fumes from the 18-wheeler truck traffic, and the particulate matter landing on cars and penetrating our homes (were noticeable immediately),” Mayfield said.
The Chester incinerator, the largest in the country, burns 3500 tons of trash per day, 98% of which originates outside of Chester, Mayfield added.
Gilmore Richardson said Philadelphia should find alternative ways of waste management while being cognizant of how the city’s actions impact its neighbors.
City Prepares for SEPTA Strike
With SEPTA contract negotiations coming down to the wire, the city released contingency guidelines should an accord not be reached by the October 31st deadline.
If the strike occurs, the following services would be suspended beginning Wednesday, November 1st, at midnight.
- The Market Frankford Line
- Broad Street and Broad Ridge Spur Lines
- City Transit Bus, Trolley, and Trackless Trolley Routes
The following services will continue:
- SEPTA Regional Rail Lines
- SEPTA Customized Community Transportation (CCT) Service
- LUCY Shuttle service
- Norristown High-Speed Line
- Trolley Routes 101 and 102
- Frontier and Victory suburban bus service
Anyone who requires special accommodations and qualifies for CCT are encouraged to register with CCT prior to a service disruption. Customers can contract SEPTA at 215-580-7145 to make arrangements.
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