Committee Hearing, December 7, 2004

COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA PUBLIC HEARING - COMMITTEES ON FINANCE AND TRANSPORTATION - - - Room 400, City Hall Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Tuesday, December 7, 2004, 2:20 p.m. RESOLUTION 040799 - Resolution calling on the City Council Committees on Finance and Transportation to hold public hearings to gain an update on the status of the SEPTA Market Street El Project and its continuing impact on residences, businesses and neighborhoods in West Philadelphia and beyond. PRESENT: COUNCILWOMAN JANNIE L. BLACKWELL COUNCILWOMAN BLONDELL REYNOLDS BROWN COUNCILMAN DAVID COHEN COUNCILMAN MICHAEL A. NUTTER COUNCILMAN RICHARD T. MARIANO - - - V A R A L L O Incorporated Litigation Support Services 1835 Market Street, Suite 600 Philadelphia, PA 19103 215.561.2220 215.567.2670 2 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. P R O C E E D I N G S - - -

Good afternoon. We would like for our colleagues who are in the building to come to Council chambers because we will begin our Committee hearing on Finance and Transportation with regard to Resolution No. 040799. We will ask the clerk to read the title of the Resolution.

Resolution No. 13 040799, a Resolution calling on the City Council Committees on Finance and Transportation to hold public hearings to gain an update on the status of the SEPTA Market Street El Project and its continuing impact on residences, businesses and neighborhoods in West Philadelphia and beyond.

Thank you very much. Let me note that this is a continuation of Council's investigation of the SEPTA El Project and its impact on the Market Street El Redevelopment Project, which goes 3 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. from 46th to 63rd Street. I'm glad to have such interested people and many of you who can offer advice to us as we consider this subject and the impact of SEPTA on the businesses and on the neighborhood. We would now call forward Faye Moore, CEO, SEPTA. Thank you very much. With her is Frances Jones, and with them is another gentleman, whose name I don't know, but we'll allow you to introduce him. Feel free to pull up a chair.

Good afternoon. As mentioned, I'm Faye Moore. I'm SEPTA's General Manager. I'm joined to my right by Frances Jones in Government Affairs, and to my left, I am joined with Mr. David Braverman, who is an outside attorney in case we have some questions on the matter I'm going to disclose to you.

Thank you.

I think in 4 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. front of you you have received copies of testimony and some handouts. I'm here today to provide an update on the Market Elevated Reconstruction Project in West Philadelphia. SEPTA staff have prepared and submitted an update to the report submitted to Council last year on the MSE project. I'm also joined behind me by staff with direct responsibility for project activities, including construction, affirmative action and DBE compliance and community and business outreach. They are prepared to provide greater detail on the items I will be reporting on and to answer questions. Last year SEPTA appeared before Council to speak about our 567 million capital investment project to rebuild six existing stations at 46th Street, 52nd Street, 56th Street, 60th Street, 63rd Street in Philadelphia and Millbourne Station in Delaware County to replace 11,000 feet of guideway structure with a new single column bent structure. Reconstruction of the Market 5 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. Elevated portion of the Market Frankford line is designed to revitalize one of the Authority's most vital transit service links, which carries in excess of 100,000 daily riders. When SEPTA testified at this hearing, we told Council the project was expected to be substantially complete in 2007. Today I want to update you on the overall construction schedule and clarify our previous statements. In construction language, "substantially complete" means the majority of the work is completed, but project closeout activities continue. When the MSE project is substantially complete in 2007, the community will see the key components of the new guideway and stations, but they will also continue to see daily construction activity as the contractors work to final completion schedule for 2008. We're all aware of the impact a project of this magnitude and complexity has 6 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. on the daily life of the residences and businesses in and around the El structure. We understand the community is anxious to see the disruption of workers and equipment end and Market Street return to regular pedestrian and vehicular traffic. So from this update going forward, the project dates we will report on will be final completion milestones. As a reminder, there are five major construction contracts for the MSE project, ATC Buildings at 52nd and 63rd Street, the construction of automatic train control facilities. Two, scheduled final completion was achieved in 2002. Foundations: Construction of foundations for guideway structure and ductbank and utility housing. Final wrap-up efforts are underway. Scheduled final completion is this month in 2004. Stations: Work at 56th and 60th Street Stations is underway. Work at 46th and 52nd Street scheduled to begin in 2005. Scheduled final completion 2008. The guideway: Preparation work is 7 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. underway. Construction work to demolish existing structure and construct new structure is scheduled to start in 2005, and scheduled final completion is 2008. Cobbs Creek is the final package, and I will be providing more detailed update on this contract in a few minutes. In the area of DBE participation, to date there are 41 DBE firms, construction and professional services, designated for participation in the project. 7 million or 16 approximately 31 percent of the total 17 professional services contracts. SEPTA has developed a DBE contact information system that provides DBE subcontractors with information on short-term lending and bonding programs and workshops to assist in the areas of marketing, business development and construction management. SEPTA staff also works to ensure prompt payments to DBE subcontractors through the 8 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. Invoice Payment Report Tracking System.

Included in your packet is a copy of the most recent Affirmative Action Progress Report, September 2004, updating EEO/DBE goals, work hours, et cetera, for construction and professional services. I'd like to report that as of September 2004, 30 minority trainees, 29 African-American males and one Hispanic female, including individuals living within the five-project zip codes, have been placed on the project. Minority labor hours represent almost 27 percent of all hours worked on construction hours for this project. Just as a point of introduction, I'd like for Mr. Isaac Johnson, who is in the audience, to stand. Mr. Johnson is actually one of the trainees. He started out as a trainee. He went through DAP, and he is now a full card-toting member of the United Steel Workers of America. So we just wanted to give you an opportunity to meet Mr. Isaac Johnson. Given the size and complexity of the MSE project, we're working to keep the 9 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. residential and business communities updated about project activity. In particular, we're trying to build a partnership with businesses in the project area by supporting ongoing business promotion campaigns, area business association efforts, distribution of a Business Resource Guide and business mitigation efforts. The Ride, Shop and Win Campaign program with Clear Channel continues to encourage shoppers to patronize businesses in West Philadelphia and Eastern Delaware County. More than 200 area businesses are participating in the 2004 Holiday promotion, which features direct contact with the more than 25,000 households in the expanded project area. In response to local business concerns about loss of customer parking and access due to construction activities, we have developed two temporary parking facilities at 54th and Market and 52nd and Arch. I can also report that as of today, leases of three lots, 52nd and Arch, 53rd and Market, and Market at 10 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. 57th, have been sent to the owners for execution, and we are waiting for the lease for the 53rd and Market lot from Public Property. There are additional parcels on 7 Market Street between 50th and 59th Streets 8 that have been or will be acquired through 9 sheriff's sales to develop additional 10 temporary off-street parking. 11 While these efforts move forward, 12 the Authority continues to work with the 13 Philadelphia Parking Authority on parking 14 enforcement issues for vehicles making 15 deliveries and shoppers who patronize 16 businesses along Market Street. Responding to cleanliness concerns, we initiated a monthly program and have coordinated 17 cleanups along Market Street around the stations between 45th and 63rd Street with City Year and the Philadelphia More Beautiful Committee. The most recent cleanups were conducted on November 16th and 30th. In addition, we started a 11 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. construction site walk-through program to address community concerns about trash and dumping problems. Every Friday and Monday the active construction areas are surveyed and a checklist report is submitted. To date, more than 100 inspections have been completed. Safety remains a paramount concern to SEPTA to safeguard those who live, work, worship and visit the blocks around the El, adults and most especially our children, and we continue to reach out with safety information and programs. A few minutes ago I referenced the Cobbs Creek package. This contract covers construction of Millbourne Station and 63rd Street Station, construction of the guideway structure from the Millbourne abutment through 63rd Street. Work on this contract was scheduled for final completion in 2005. It has been widely publicized that we have been experiencing problems with the contractor for the Cobbs Creek/Millbourne contract. Even with our continued efforts, SEPTA has been unable to resolve the 12 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans.

outstanding issues and to get the contract moving forward. Prior to coming here today, SEPTA terminated for cause the contract with PKF for the Cobbs Creek and Millbourne work. It is never easy to terminate a contractual relationship. The Cobbs Creek/Millbourne project has consumed 81 percent of the original contract time, yet only one-third of the contract values and only about one-third of the work has been completed. With no solid plans presented to accelerate construction efforts, the Authority determined it had to protect itself and the riding public from non-performance on this contract. To protect the taxpayers' interest and SEPTA's assets on a contract of this dollar magnitude, when we signed the contract, SEPTA obtained surety bonds. This is insurance where a bond provider will step into the place of the contractor to complete the contract work. Today we also gave notice to the insurance provider that we have terminated our relationship with PKF on the Cobbs 13 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. Creek/Millbourne Station work. In filing this notice, we must give the insurer a reasonable amount of time to assess available options or options available to advance the contract and keep the work moving to completion. The project team and other SEPTA staff will assume responsibility for these work locations until the insured names another contractor to complete the contract. In the interim, assessments are underway to see what is needed to open the area around 63rd Street to pedestrian and vehicular traffic. Responsibility for the existing El structure has been and will continue to be managed by SEPTA's in-house infrastructure department engineers. Safety will not be compromised. The Market Street Elevated Reconstruction Project is a monumental capital improvement project. I recognize it is also an undertaking that tests the patience and good-will of the communities. SEPTA is committed to working with the community, the 14 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. residents and businesses and the local officials to try and resolve issues as they occur, because this major investment will enhance transit service for West Philadelphia, Eastern Delaware County and the region. I ask for your continued support of public transit and your patience as we work towards our construction milestones. That ends my comments, and we are available for any questions that you might have.

Thank you very much. Certainly we have noticed as we pass this project every day that there's been no work going on and no cranes and nothing, and obviously we heard rumors that the prime contractor wanted out. So we hear you today saying that you've terminated their contract.

Yes.

Maybe that will make a difference somehow in this project. As you know, one of the reasons we 15 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. called for these hearings is because the neighborhood businesses heard that this could be extended as far as ten, and people are just frightened about that possibility. Let me note that to my left is Councilwoman Blondell Reynolds Brown and to her left is Councilman Rick Mariano. We thank them for being here, and certainly we're happy for their interest in this detailed project that has created so many problems for us and for the businesses, as well as the community, when we talk about -- especially, Ms. Moore, and your noting that the prime contractor is gone. So what are our contingency plans? What happens next, and when will that be? What can we expect to see happening when?

And you're specifically asking me about Cobbs Creek?

I'm asking you about Cobbs Creek, but I'm asking you about the whole project.

Okay. Because the rest of the project is moving. 16 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans.

Pardon me?

The rest of the project is moving. You have a stations contract, and that work is underway. The guideway project is moving. The ATC project is done. The foundation, most of us refer to that more as the Driscoll project. Driscoll will be wrapping it up, and by the end of this month, they will be gone. So you have had duct work and foundation work along the corridor, with the exception of 63rd and Cobbs Creek, pretty much done. The problem area is indeed Cobbs Creek. They were notified today. A normal playout could go as follows: We're assuming they will not report tomorrow. SEPTA staff, SEPTA project management team, will be there to protect and safeguard the construction area. Since we've notified the bonding company, the bonding company then has to make the determination of when to replace PKF. We have to give them what we describe as a 17 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. reasonable amount of time for them to assess their options and report back to our legal counsels.

So if this project is to be completed in '08, this could even extend that; is that not correct?

Well, if you do it in math -- because I do it in non-construction time. Initially this project was supposed to stretch over a four-year period. It was supposed to stretch over a four-year period. About a third of the work is done. So you still have about two years, two and a half years of construction efforts really to get done. If we conclude our efforts with the surety, say, by February or March of 2005, there is a good possibility it can still run in the same track that we have and the total program will not extend beyond 2008. Mr. Counsel reminded me that we have an excellent bond, and in that bond, we also -- unlike some bonds where you are given the same vendor that you sort of terminated, 18 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. in this case we have the right not to accept PKF if the surety wanted to give him back to us. So we believe if we have this in place, say, February, March, even April of next year, there is still enough time that it can be done within the program schedule. So right now we are still saying the Market Street Elevated Project program schedule is in 2008, so December 2008, for everything to be done.

Let me note that we have a copy of the updated report, December 2004 Community Update, but we also pulled out our copy of the July '03 Community Update report that you list is raised by issues at Council hearings on May 7th and June 3rd, 2003. And so we've had several hearings on this issue. This happens to be the third formal hearing on this issue, and so the issues we raise we'll put under right now the issue of old business, because we have some questions with regard to that. The structure of the report says the 19 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. same, we note, and we note here under Lighting that you list 220 light fixtures that would be installed. We note that at that time, the church at 60th Street, 60th and Market, was robbed for the first time in its history in all of that, that that minister is now gone, and you mentioned -- and we have the captain, Captain Thrush, for the 16th District to us here and prepared to answer any questions. We thank him for all the work he does in the 16th. He's been a blessing to us. But we also note that in this report, one of the things that we want to talk about, for example, is the minority business participation and goals. We're happy to see a young man who was trained, but we still hear from the community all the time that there's no way in for participation, whether it be minority participation or community participation, and then in spite of the fact that we have this schedule that says we have minority/community participation, in reality there are very few people who have had an opportunity to work on the project. 20 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. So perhaps we can mention that as a place to start and ask you to respond in that regard. We have an amendment to the question. Councilwoman Blondell Reynolds Brown?

Good afternoon. As you proceed to address Chairlady Blackwell's question, please speak to the process that's currently in place designed to ensure that folks of color from that community get equity and opportunity on this project.

And this particular question is related to the employees, people working on the project? We're going to ask Ms. Lily Clate, who heads up our EEO/AA portion. That way, we don't run the risk of giving you incorrect information.

Thank you. We note also that Councilman Michael Nutter is here, and as you know, he's Chair of 21 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. Transportation and Public Utilities Committee.

I'm Lily Clate. I am the Project Manager for the Affirmative Action Program for the Market Street Elevated Project, and I'm happy to answer any questions you may have regarding the employment piece of this contract or this project. Could you repeat again the question that you had? I'm sorry.

Could you start with the process used to ensure that the outcome is one that reflects people of color and residents of the community gaining opportunity on the project, period.

SEPTA is working very closely with the contractors, the prime contractors and the subcontractors, as their work comes about to ensure that they are performing outreach and have strong recruiting strategies in place so that we can identify workers for the project. One of the things that they're required to do is to give us an assessment as to what numbers of people they may need, when 22 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. they may need them, what trades they would need and the unions they would be affiliated with. In addition to that, we have allowed people from the community to come to -- we refer them to the construction work sites out at 63rd Street, out at 49th and Market, which are the two contracts that we're working. That's the Market Street constructors for the stations contract and the PKF contract at that particular time. And people have been going there and they have been filling applications out and being hired for positions as they're available. Primarily the operating engineers and laborers have been the main employment areas at this time. We've also been referring people through the training program, which is DAP, where we have so far had 30 people from the community that have been brought on board for the training program. They're working hours, gaining construction work experience, and we have at this time four that have been hired as a full-time union employee. Mr. Johnson is 23 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. one of those employees. So far, we have 70 people from the residents that have been hired and working on this project.

PKF, in the testimony on , it speaks to the, quote, terminated for cause. Was one of the reasons for termination related to inability to help SEPTA in its goals around minority participation?

No. That was not one of the primary reasons, no. 14

Councilwoman, can I ask a question on your questions?

Please.

When Councilwoman Blondell Reynolds Brown questioned, I was talking to one of the staffers over there, so I might have missed this. You're talking about some people got some jobs from the community. Can you tell me what unions and what jobs they got? Because I 24 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. think it's important to the people in this Committee and the people in this Council that they're not just getting jobs for the life of the project. It's jobs that they can enter into apprenticeship programs to follow through.

Yes. I refer you to our Affirmative Action Progress Report as of September 2004, and that provides a breakdown of the different trades that have been utilized so far, and it gives you the number of hours that have been worked.

My question is -- I can't find that. Maybe Frances has a copy for me.

Six pages in.

Do we know offhand what unions are getting in? And my second part of that question is, are they going to get a job -- for instance, I'm a member of Electricians Local 98. I just don't want to see people put on for the life of that project. I want to see a young man or a young woman from that 25 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. community learn to be an electrician or a carpenter or sheet metal worker or something so when that project is done, they can support their family for 20, 30, 40 years after this. Is that happening or are we just taking care of the people in the hood and then getting out and forgetting about them?

No. Once they become a union cardholder, that's a career for them.

A union cardholder is just something you get. You have to go to an apprenticeship program for four or five years. You have to be prepared for that apprenticeship program. In some cases, people need to be -- myself, I needed to be tutored on the math. I was out of high school for a while. This is not something, don't hand me an apprenticeship program and then when the project is over, nobody wants to talk to me because I got thrown out of the apprenticeship program or I blow hot on a marijuana test a year later and I'm out. 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. I mean, that's not SEPTA's thing, but that's our thing. We want to make sure people are getting into something that's a lifelong trade for them. Can you answer anything like that?

One of the things I can say, for example, on the foundations contract, which is wrapping up now, it's scheduled for completion December this year, union workers from that particular contract are gravitating over to, say, for example, the foundations contracts and they are being picked up there for employment opportunities.

Like, for instance, you have E.J. Electric here. I know E.J. Electric. So obviously someone that's working for E.J. Electric is in Local 98. They're probably an apprentice, maybe a journeyman if they live in the neighborhood and they're already in it, but when E.J. leaves, that person is going to need a job and they're going to have to go back to the union hall to get a job. I just wanted to make sure 27 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. they're not a seasonal employee as opposed to a registered apprentice. That would be our hope, and I'm speaking for the Committee, I hope. Do you know what I'm talking about?

I think we need to also explain more about how diversified apprenticeship --

The Diversified Apprenticeship Program.

Right. Part of the reason that -- and I think it was through some of the efforts of Senator Williams who received funding for DAP. Part of the reason that DAP and SEPTA's job access program sort of joined hands, DAP would indeed do some of the things you just described, get them ready, life skill information, et cetera. They would then get some practical on-the-job training on this project, with the idea being that within the time frame, that they could be a trainee on our project. Someone would be so impressed with them that they would then be sort of picked to go further into apprenticeships and then become that union 28 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. member so they could have then the opportunity to go from our job to anybody else's job in the state, in the country, et cetera.

The state has certain qualifications for registered apprentices. For instance, my son is a registered apprentice. He's a 19-year-old. He doesn't have the job because I was an electrician or a City Councilman. I'm sure he would have got to be -- I'm being facetious. I'm sure it has something to do with me being an electrician and a City Councilman. A lot of young men and women in the Councilwoman's district and the Councilman's district that don't know anyone and they don't know that the first week in April every year the electricians take applications. They go down there. They see a bunch of people that don't look a whole lot like them. They see a lot of authority figures. It's better. Because the business manager understands, we've had this talk, and he's a peer of mine, but there's a lot of things that go on and it's not -- SEPTA is not 29 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. a welfare agency, but we appreciate that. I think state and federal, whatever money it is, federal money, we need to make sure that there's something that looks past this particular project. I mean, we can give a 20-year-old from the Councilwoman's district something to make 10, 11, dollars an hour 9 for a year, year and a half, two years up to 10 15. I want to see her making 38 dollars an 11 hour, plus enough money to support a family 12 for the next 20 years, and I think we should be all doing that. I've been out of this for a while. I've been here for longer than I'd like to admit, my third term. I used to be able to look at these and tell you who are union contractors, who is not. I don't know who is anymore.

It's harder to tell now.

I'd be embarrassed. I would say if there's some non-union contractors on there, there's no way to track them guys, except through the state. 30 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. At least we know if it's Local 98 or Local or Local 19, we know where they are, we see them, they come around, they talk to us. But we need to constantly, as elected officials, to make sure these young people are getting a trade, so when we're long gone from this earth, they're able to support families and do things like that. I would just like to see, if at all, if possible, we can have some follow-up on what happens to them when this project is done.

We could do that. We could also --

I know you got a lot on your plate, but if it's not too expensive.

Hey, no 20 problem. We can also --

Then there's no raise for the fare either? No 23 problem either?

I won't go that far now. 31 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans.

I had to throw it in there.

See, I was on a roll there for a while. But we have mentioned four that are already in apprenticeship programs or whatever. We can actually follow up with those four individuals and tell you what unions.

That's what I would like to know.

We can find that out.

Thank you very much. Thank you, Councilwoman.

Surely. You were on the question of process, outreach recruitment. You can continue.

Yes. Yes, ma'am.

But the training piece, which is what DAP supplied, is 32 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. critical, because they get them job-ready.

Yes. But in terms of the employees that are needed to meet the actual work hours for the project, that recruitment and outreach is critical for us, and we're working closely with the contractors to ensure that they do have viable recruitment strategies in place, that they are reaching out to the community for their employment opportunities.

Then who is to be held responsible when the goal is not hit, the contractor or SEPTA?

Technically the contractor is being held responsible. SEPTA is monitoring their performance in meeting that goal, their goals. We're also working with the Office of Federal Contract Compliance, who is also responsible for monitoring mega contracts such as this Market Street Project, to ensure that minorities and female are getting equal opportunities for employment.

33 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. To the number 30, how many of that are women, how many -- let's back up with the numbers, because you started to give us a breakdown of where you started and where you are now, which is four. So provide those numbers again for me.

We have a total of 30 trainees that are participating or have participated in the program.

And they've been in training for how long, approximately?

Approximately, what, about a year and a half maybe. About a year and a half.

The training efforts can stretch that amount of time, but some of the individuals have been in there varying time frames, some three months, some six months. So it could vary by individual, but overall, the program has been in place about a year and a half.

Okay. All right. So you have 30 trainees who 34 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. have been in for a year and a half. Work me to the number of four. That's the number that have graduated; is that correct?

Yes. Well, what happens is, there is a number of hours that the trainees are allowed to work. For example, each trainee is scheduled to work 1,000 hours or have 1,000 training hours. Once that trainee has completed those hours, they are eligible to be hired to go through -- at that time, they may have gone through the apprenticeship, so that they can be placed on as a union worker. The four that were mentioned here have gone through that process and, as a result, have been hired. They are now being captured as regular workers, productive or -- I guess you can say productive-type workers where they're actually being counted for work hours.

A full-time union employee?

On the certified payrolls, for example. 35 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans.

One thing I've learned in my time here is, there's the apprentice stage, then there's the journeyman stage, and then what else after that?

It's apprentice and journeyman. They'll call a journeyman a mechanic, but it's the same thing.

So they've been hired as what now? What are they?

Apprentices.

They're apprentices.

And what assurances, if any, are in the process to help them move through the journeyman stage so that once the SEPTA initiative is behind them, they are officially union members? Does your process factor that in? Should your process factor that in? I'm simply asking. 36 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans.

They are sponsored by that employer, that contractor.

Okay.

Once they get into that program, that contractor has taken them on. They will be sponsoring them forward into the union.

But once they get into the apprenticeship program when that job ends, it's pretty much up to them and the union.

Exactly.

Because that contractor can go out of business. It's up to you, you have to maintain your hours just to keep a record and turn it in every month, and that can be reviewed by the states or whatever. Every trade is different, but it's like 1,000 hours to your next pay raise. So every hour you work, you want to work as much as you can so you get your next pay raise. It eventually hits a plateau at whatever a journeyman's rate is. 37 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans.

One final question and then I'll hold for here. Are there any safeguards in the contract that you have with the contractors to ensure that once the project is over and that trainee, now journeyman, still remains with that company? Do you follow me?

No. There is -- no. 11

We follow you, but the answer is no. 13

It's essentially up to the contractor?

And that worker.

Got it. Okay, then. Thank you.

You're welcome.

Thank you. Councilman Nutter?

Thank you, Madam Chair. 38 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. On that same issue, just so we can be clear, and we've gone over this one more than a few times, not just with SEPTA, the last part of that is, if you go through the program, you get your union card, you're taken on now by the particular contractor. Is it then true that for that person at that point, whether they work or not is a function of whether or not they get called to work by that particular contractor?

If they're a part of the union, it's my understanding that if the work with that particular contractor is complete, through their business agent they can work on another project or with another contractor.

If they get called.

Yes.

So while it is good to go through an apprenticeship program, and we encourage that, and to get a union card, we encourage that, it does not necessarily mean that you now have any sense 39 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. of what most of the rest of us in this room 3 would consider pretty much a guaranteed employment. It's a function, obviously, of what work is going on, what jobs that particular contractor pursues and then whether or not you individually get called; is that correct?

That's correct, sir.

Is that how it works?

Councilman, let me be the unofficial expert on this.

Absolutely. Having been nowhere near this particular process other than in this room.

Very fortunate. There's only so much SEPTA or anyone else could do. Rick Mariano, the apprentice, once I get through my apprenticeship program, you have to go wherever the union tells you to go. Sometimes you can get close to home. You go beg. 40 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. Once you become a journeyman, at least in the electricians -- every trade is different, but they're all pretty much the same -- you don't have to wait for the union. You can get your own job. It's called soliciting your own work. You can go out and I can say, There's a job at 52nd and Market. Nutter Electric is the electrical contractor. Mike, would you hire me? You may know me from apprentice school. There's a couple minority contractors in business. Larry McCray comes to mind. I was actually Larry's apprentice, and actually, I did all the work when Larry was in charge of me. He became a big contractor and I'm sitting here making a third of the money that he makes. So figure out who was smarter. But then you can go to the union hall.

I don't think anyone has ever been in charge of you.

Thank you. Thank you, Councilman. But what happens is, 41 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. there's either work or there's not work. So if there's no work, nobody works.

Got you.

White, black or Puerto Rican, nobody works. The problem here is -- let me call it what it is. When you go down there and you don't know anyone and you're not anyone's son or no politician sends you, the hard part is to feel comfortable amongst people you may not be familiar with, regardless of your race or ethnic background. Things are getting a lot better. Again, the things we need to do beyond SEPTA -- you can only take people to water and you can't make them drink, the old adage goes. You're right, but once they become a journeyman, it's pretty much up to them to be able to -- if you go to a job and stand around for eight hours, you're going to be the first guy that gets laid off. If you can't pass -- for instance, they had drug tests on the stadium. I'll bet you everybody didn't pass the drug screen test, and they're random drug 42 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. tests. You can figure out the rest.

I got it.

Thank you.

So that was the one issue. Second is, Councilman Reynolds Brown raised the issue and I want to go back to it. And we've had some conversations about this, but this appears to be a very recent action. The PKF contract, that happened today?

Yes.

And so what does that now mean? And if you've gone over this, just tell me that you did and I'll read the testimony.

We've gone over it, but I can repeat it.

That's fine. No. 21 Do you have someone else lined up?

No. The official notification went to two companies, one PKF, the second to the surety as the insurance company. We have to give the 43 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. insurance company some amount of time to assess what it's going to do.

I understand. No problem. Let's go back to the -- what is this called? The Affirmative Action Progress Report. You've got a variety of companies listed, you've got hours, you've got trades. For a different agency that comes to us or actually has a regular reporting requirement with us here in City Council, what I would like to ask -- the pages are not numbered, but you have construction area zip codes from which you've now extrapolated that there were 40,000 hours and 10.54 percent of the work was done by individuals from these areas. When I came in, there was a discussion going on. Councilwoman Reynolds Brown was talking about 30 people who had gone through a program and I think four had graduated. All of these numbers get thrown around. What I would ask -- and this kind of a co-chaired Committee, but Councilwoman 44 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. Blackwell started this off. If you can get to the sponsor of the Resolution and Chair of Finance, we'd like to get down to the name level in this conversation. I'd actually like to know who we're talking about from the different zip codes.

We have that information, sir.

I know you do. So whether it's worked on the site, went through a program, graduated, didn't graduate, all of this data, while this is very important and quite interesting from a statistical analysis, there are real people that are affected by this and we would like to know who they are.

That's not a problem.

I guess I'd give one caution, and it's only that we have avoided giving complete names because of some degree of privacy. So what I think I'd like to do is just get back to all the individuals 45 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. and let them know their names are going to be released just so they will know. Because, again, these are public documents that will be circulated all over the universe, and I'd like for them to know that their names will potentially be all over the universe.

Well, I understand that, and I appreciate that.

If that's okay with you.

That's why I prefaced the comment by saying that we get similar reports from, for instance, OHCD for a variety of City-related projects. These are all public projects, they're all public documents. You work on a public project, you're pretty much rest assured that somebody knows about it. So I think in an effort to make this process as transparent as possible, it would be helpful to know as we go through this that it's not just numbers on a sheet of paper. We believe the numbers, but it's helpful when you have the background information to go with it. 46 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. That's when you really get down to the nitty-gritty of this.

We'll figure out a process, but we know what you want.

Here comes your good counsel getting ready to tell you something, trying to get you out of trouble.

To add on, we've been advised to compliment my colleague's, the Co-Chair's, statement. We understand that somewhere in the neighborhood of 238 names were submitted. Something like 36 or 38 passed your training and either five or nine people ended up working on the project. Now, that's the unofficial information we just received. So we certainly would appreciate -- and that's considering the DAP program. So we would really like to receive the detailed information that the Co-Chair requested.

Do you have a response?

Well, some of 47 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. the information that you're referring to is contained in the report here on .

Is that the December report?

Yes.

5 of 6? Okay.

Yes. The last bullet covers some of that information.

But it does not address the pieces that you're referring to, the number of people that started off and how did we get down to the number that we came with.

Let me ask this question, and I'm sure it's somewhere within one of these reports: How many people are either working or have worked on this job?

As of last November, we had a total of approximately 800 people that had been employed.

November 2004?

2003. 48 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans.

I'm sorry?

2003. We're in the process of reconfiguring our database to capture all of the most current information. We will have that information by the beginning of the year.

Well, what is your latest data for 2004?

We have only our work hours through 2004, through September of 2004, at this time.

But you don't know how many people worked since last November?

Not readily. We changed vendors and we have to go back and reconstruct some of the information. So we have hours. Now we have to populate the information we have, hours, with a real person, and we're doing that as of November 2004.

And the maximum hours indicated, something like 14,000 hours, come up to about six months 49 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. maximum that anybody worked. So at any rate, we have many aspects of this project we'd like to mention and we'd like to go on to the issue of parking and what's happening. We have some posters on either side that indicate some of the problems with parking. We'd like to talk about the lots. And we'd like to say that back when we had hearings over a year ago, we talked about using 48th Street from Market to Haverford for parking. We talked about various lots, because we have to allow parking for neighborhood businesses, for vendors, as well as for people, customers, as well as for people who ride the Market Street Elevated project. We are very disappointed at what's happening with regard to lots. We're very disappointed with what's happening with regard to people being ticketed. We already have businesses who can't survive, who are closing down. They're being ticketed. People are being ticketed. And, of course, given what I heard Judge Kelly say on the radio today, the 50 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. worst is yet to come. But in any rate, we're very concerned about people who are already in serious financial trouble receiving tickets, as well as their patrons, possible patrons being ticketed. So we'd like to talk about parking as you see it in terms vendors, the businesses, customers and people who ride the El tracks.

Frances Jones, Government Affairs at SEPTA. At this point, there are two lots, one at 54th and Market Street and the other at 52nd and Arch, are in the process of being -- going under contract, and work will start imminently in constructing them to make them available for parking. In addition, working very closely with your office and Councilman Nutter's office, there are approximately 16 parcels that are over in Public Property that we're working along with Public Property. We've reviewed the lease. Your office has reviewed 51 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. the lease, and it's now in Public Property. And we're in the process of working with them to establish parking, putting together a large parcel with those smaller parcels so that 6 there will be parking available for patrons or 7 for business people. 8 In addition, we're working closely 9 with and coordinating with the Philadelphia 10 Parking Authority to try to mitigate some of 11 the problems that the businesses and their 12 patrons were having around parking in the 13 project area. 14 And so we are coordinating with the 15 different agencies that are responsible or 16 have some part in the parking issue in West Philadelphia around the project.

And let me note that we talked about this when we had hearings back in May and July of '03. It's not a new issue. We are very frustrated, as they have to be the victims of this, about it taking so long and about people being ticketed. They already don't have a place to park. 52 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. Let me note that when this project started, every aspect of this project has been difficult. As you know, when we did the initial walks, the sidewalks had big holes in them, and we said that you've got to put metal plates or something, and we had to work through having sidewalks open and streets closed. We had to work through advertising on the El and putting signs on the fence so that they would know businesses are open, like Foreman Mills, for example, around the holiday season back then and the 4th of July back then. So we feel that we should not have to fight every day every aspect of the project. It's very, very disappointing. And I don't mind. I don't mind. It's my job and my responsibility to work with businesses, neighborhoods and residents, as well as potential shoppers, but it is frustrating when we have to go through these problems over and over, the same problems year in and year out. That is my frustration with this. And now I understand that there's 53 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. been -- and we know we've been trying to get ready for this hearing -- that there's been some talk about ticketing people who are in the intersection since underneath the El track people park. They can horizontally park, except for the through streets, like Hirst Street, Ludlow Street, except for through streets so that people can get through. Now, my concern is this: We don't want people ticketed. Somebody has to be there or there have to be signs made that say, You can't park here or that there's a through street. People don't necessarily notice it. If they're told they can park under the El platform, they just park. They may be in a rush. Their mind is other places. They don't have to know that they're not allowing other traffic that may be going south like on Hirst Street and they can't get through. They don't know that. But we do not support any system that further exacerbates our problems by asking the Parking Authority or the Police Department to ticket or further penalize 54 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. anybody associated with the project or people who may shop there.

Councilwoman, as a part of our outreach around the project, we participated with the Parking Authority, the local police districts, your office and all the representatives from the different elected officials' office and the Managing Director's office to try to deal with the parking issue to make sure that we were all on the same page, particularly as it related to the lack of on-street parking on the street and the ability to parallel park under the El. And so it was a cooperative effort with SEPTA, Parking Authority and the local police. We regret that apparently there have been some people who have been ticketed, but, again, we worked with the Parking Authority in a cooperative effort, along with the police in specific areas where the work was occurring. And so it's unfortunate that people were ticketed, but, again, there was a cooperative 55 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. effort and a collaboration with the police and the Parking Authority. In addition, our consultants who are out on the site on a day-to-day basis, when there were questions or concerns about where to park and how to park, our consultants were there also to assist the business people, as well as the patrons with any problems they had around parking.

See, I could accept that if -- and Captain Thrush is here, he can correct me if I'm wrong. I could accept that if -- and with all the people there, you said a coordination plan. Nobody checked with me. Nobody told me that there was some coordinated plan, because the last time we met about three weeks ago maybe, maybe a month ago, nine out of ten of the businesses were saying they're having big problems with tickets that they can't pay. Now, given the nature of this project, this is why we are asking you for a plan, a detailed plan -- I thought we would have it today -- of what happens and when, 56 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. meaning which blocks will be open when, which blocks will be closed when. And maybe I didn't notice that in your folder, but we need detailed plans. Because you may ask Mr. Tucker, for example, to monitor the 5600 block of Market, but then next week it changes. And that's one of the reasons why the businesses are closing, because as various phases of the project open, it closes, you go to the next block and then when you get back to that block again, as soon as people get used to going back to those stores, they close it again. And for whatever reason, the project -- I don't know whether it's the nature of the project or the nature of the planning. That, I don't know. I haven't been able to get on that end of it, only on the problem end of it. So that people keep getting ticketed, and it's not their fault if they don't know the rules change all the time. Given the fact if you try to talk to Police Department, you talk to the Parking Authority and you have your guy out there, 57 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. then why do people continue to complain all the time and why can't you say, sir, or have somebody out there, if you got all these people who are able to be out there and say, You can't park there today, Ms. Jones, this is going to be closed up for a week. It will be closed up for ten days, but you can park there next week, or something like that, other than people not knowing. Where there's no law, there's no 12 transgression. People are being penalized when they don't know that things keep changing.

Councilwoman, I'd like just like to refer to the phone cork board that's right in front of you, which is a prime example of what we're calling a parking alert, which is what we put up and what we distribute in advance of any changes going on. So prior to any change occurring or prior to a street close or anything like that, we do provide information. We provide flyers. We provide as much information as possible as 58 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. we move to another phase in the project.

Well, something is wrong because nine out of ten people wouldn't complain that they're ticketed if -- nobody wants to get a ticket. Who can afford it? We can all lose our jobs, lose our homes from paying these expenses. I'm happy to pass these around. I'll ask the Sergeant-of-Arms to make these posters available so that everyone can see them. We understand they're legitimate concerns, but if people know that the roles keep changing, they can adjust, but you can't expect people to adjust when they don't know what's happening. And they don't know what's happening. Nobody wants to get a ticket. Nobody. Nobody can afford them. Now if you get a moving violation, they can lock you up, go to your house, take your car, go to your job. They can do all this stuff. So it's gotten even worse. So we really, really don't want people to feel that they're victimized by 59 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. it. As you know, we've had businesses who the first year were complaining they were losing and 30 percent. Eight months later, 6 they were saying we're up to 40 and 50 7 percent. I've had businesses who come to me 8 saying, Councilwoman, I'm closing down. They 9 had to let their employees go. And then 10 they're saying, I can't stay open. If I'm a 11 restaurant, I can't afford to buy the food. 12 People won't come. 13 It's very, very frustrating to hear 14 businesses come to you with the pain in their 15 eyes and their inability to survive because of 16 problems like this that can be corrected, that 17 can be dealt with. 18 There's some problems that are 19 bigger than we are, since we're so far into 20 the project. I would dare to tell you, if I had to do it again, I wouldn't support doing this project in my district. Having said that, we're this far into the project and certainly we feel that issues like this can be addressed. 60 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. People shouldn't feel that they're victims of being ticketed when they don't know what the rules are.

Councilwoman, your points are well taken and we'll review our notification process, as well as try to work more closely with the businesses in the project area.

Thank you very much.

And you will indeed be included in the coordination efforts.

Thank you very much.

You're welcome.

Another issue that we'd like to mention is the complaint about property damage due to utility interruptions. One person complained last summer when electric went out five to nine times, causing complaints. I mean, we could just go to Risk 61 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. Management. But these are issues where beauty shops and some of the beauty shops complained about problems with utility, and you know about utilities in hair shops and beauty shops, you've got to have that stuff functioning.

When we were given notification in advance, we notified the businesses in turn that the electricity or the water or whatever was going to be turned off. There were some instances where we did not get notification or did not find out until some time maybe less than 15 hours. 16 In some instances, there was one 17 particular occasion where there was some 18 disruption based upon something that occurred 19 right on the dime, right there. So there 20 wasn't time enough for notification. But 21 where we did know in advance, we tried to 22 notify the businesses to let them know that 23 there wasn't going to be water or there wasn't 24 going to be electric in advance.

Well, 62 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. my question is, what am I supposed to say to these people when they call and say, I have a hair shop and I don't have lights? What are we supposed to tell people when they're not notified? I don't understand. We can't do our job because of all of these instances. This is just one example of the many problems we face. So we say that to all of you here. You understand. What do you say to somebody who calls and says, Councilwoman Blackwell, you say you care about us, you say you represent us, how come nobody tells me -- I have people here and I don't have any lights, I don't have any heat, I don't have any whatever the situation is, I can't walk through pavement, my people can't even get through the street. Nobody tells me. What are we supposed to tell people? And how could a project of this magnitude with multi-million dollars, how could a project of this magnitude -- my goodness, for all we're spending, you could put up some sidewalks in all this time from the length of the project 63 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. and redo them again at the end. I don't understand why we don't hire people to make it right, to give the public respect. If you're spending -- what's the total project, 527 million or something?

567 million.

All right, $567 million. You tell me what's a million or two more going to do to make life more bearable for people who are victimized by this project.

Councilwoman, we share your concern and the concern of those that are impacted in the residential and the business community in West Philadelphia, but by the very nature of the magnitude of the project, in some instances, our hands in tied and there's very little we can do because it is a construction project and all of the variables that are involved in a project of this magnitude.

That is so unacceptable. We also -- 64 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans.

I was going to say, that was not the answer that I was prepared to give. To the degree that we know about events, we notify our Customer Information Center that's out there. To the degree that there are problems, we would encourage them to get in touch with the CIC. If it's something that we're doing, we should know about it. We should indeed be giving timely notice to individuals. There are, unfortunately, some instances where PECO is out there and PGW is out there and other things are out there and we don't know on a timely basis. Now, in those instances, and I think those are some of the ones to which Ms. Jones might be referring, in those instances we don't always have timely notice. But I would also encourage anybody, anybody that calls you, tell them to please log in information with the Information Center that's out there. We have Mr. Tucker and some individuals, and they deal with those issues immediately. So we can also help with that. 65 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. Maybe the notification wasn't as timely as it should have been beforehand, but we can definitely respond to the issue very quickly.

When did this project start?

Approximately 1999.

So we're talking 1999. That's when we announced West Philadelphia to move. We formed a non-profit corporation. I respect everybody who works on the project. I think that you do an excellent job insofar as your power is concerned, but if -- from 1999 -- this is the end of 2004. If we don't have a system in place now, when will we have something that respects people, and how can you expect these people not to be frustrated? We asked, for example, for Commerce Department and you to work together on a no-interest loan and grant program. We don't have that. Even the programs for which these folks applied, they tell them the money runs 66 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. out and now their collateral, and now what they have is so limited, but we don't see special programs. We've asked for special programs to be created for them, given what has happened. We don't see a big concern for these businesses, to help them survive. Obviously, they don't have anything left. How can they have savings? How can they have anything left at this point in the game, and how come we don't have a grant program? Why don't we have a low or no-interest loan program? And even if we talked about it for the end of the project, my God, we've been going on since 1999. This seems to me something now that should be in place. It's just unconscionable. We have a moral responsibility to people, as well as an elected responsibility. You have to do right by people who elect us and who expect leadership to stand up for them. And we're not doing that. Again, I believe in positive action and I believe in a positive agenda, and that's 67 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. why I haven't been looking forward to this hearing. I don't like a negative agenda, but I don't know what else to do when people keep coming to me saying, We elected you, what are you doing to help us? Then I have to do what's at my disposal, which is to call another hearing, that's why we had the last two, and to try to see what we can do to certainly get them some help. And it appears that we are where we were, and, that is, that we don't have these issues worked out. We talked about in our other hearings, we talked about the parking issues, we talked about the lots, we talked about lighting. At least we have some more lights. We talked about all of the things that we mentioning today. There's nothing new. A scripture says there's nothing new under the sun. Well, apparently that really, really serves us well for this project. And we've been asking, again, for a program that we share. And $567 million, we can't do anything but watch people close down? That's just not fair. It's not moral, and it 68 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. certainly is not -- it's just not right. We might as well go into one of the other issues. We also understand that -- maybe we'll stay under old business first before we go to new business. Talk to us a little bit about the escalators and what's happening there and the bus route and how that's working.

The escalators that you're talking about, the 46th and 60th Street, those escalators? They have indeed exceeded their useful life and we cannot repair them. So in an effort to try to help the area, we created what we call the 31S, which is a shuttle bus. So it prevents people from having to climb the two or three flights of stairs. I will tell you that from a ridership perspective, it is not being overly used. It is a very light ridership.

Well, I suppose it has to be, because people just don't know what to do. I'd now like to call on some other 69 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. folks who are here, unless you would like to say something else, Ms. Moore or Ms. Jones. I'll ask you to stand by.

Thank you for your time.

Thank you very much. Captain Thrush, would you like to say something, please? This is our wonderful captain in the 16th District. That's an area where we have a lot of activity. We have a lot of problems in our community. It's a wonderful community, but he's fielding all of the activities there, as well as this Market Street El Project, and we thank him for taking his time, and we saw the other representatives from the 18th, Lieutenant Carbanero and -- CAPTAIN THRUSH: I'm also covering for the 19th. Actually, I'm talking today for the whole Southwest Division.

Absolutely. CAPTAIN THRUSH: For the 70 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. record, I'm Captain Sean Thrush of the 16th District. I would just like to share what you just said with the frustration. I deal with the community every day, like you do. And I'd also like to say that they're doing a good job. I do sit in on the meetings. It is a very large project, and I think the key -- I talk to Maury every day also -- is the feedback from the community, because in order to educate them or let them know what's going on, that's the key. They call me with the same frustration that they're calling you, Why did I get these tickets? What did we do wrong? And the bottom line is, Where else can I park? I just see you have the Parking Alert No. 1. I got about 50 of them delivered to my office last week. I've been distributing them. That's a very positive sign, because now we have a response for them. I'm hopeful, as they just said, that the temporary parking lots, that they will become -- the sooner they're available, the 71 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. better, because the people, as you said, they're very frustrated. They don't want to get the tickets. My officers don't want to issue the tickets. We're primarily at this point just looking at public safety. We can't block the streets. We can't block the intersections. You can't block the sidewalks. It's common sense, but people are frustrated, and I understand that. The police officers that are working on that specific area have been educated. We run tags now to find out -- if they're the people that live in the area, we'll go knock on the door. Often times if they recognize the car, we'll put a 48 or a note on the window, You shouldn't park here, it's dangerous, it's not safe, but don't issue the summons. Some people just don't care. They're that frustrated. They park the car and say, Well, write the ticket. What else can I do? And I'm sure you get those same phone calls. 72 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans.

Absolutely. They tell me they can't put it in their pocket, that's for sure. CAPTAIN THRUSH: Overall I think we're moving in the right direction. As I said, that Parking Alert No. 1. And just to summarize, if we can educate them, our engineer first puts signs up, paints the lines, put the notices up where the temporary parking is, then educate the people, let them know there's an alternative, we won't have as much problem with the enforcement, because they will, as I said, have an option. If they know what the options are, it makes it a lot easier for the Police Department.

Thank you, Captain. And we agree, until we have these parking areas straight, what do you expect people to do? Not only that, the Streets Department, we'll call on them next, has agreed to do a study, because we had hearings this morning on Walnut Street and the problems with them going from three lanes to two and a half. 73 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. But this project is adjacent to the El. They changed the traffic lights from 40th to 63rd and now we're experiencing those problems and these as well. But as we said earlier, if people knew what the issues were, knew how long -- because as soon as maybe somebody gets used to that, then they change all the rules again. And people certainly have a right to expect that they know when they're violating the law so that they can make a choice not to do that. CAPTAIN THRUSH: Exactly.

We thank you and your officers for trying to be understanding, because it's just very frustrating for people who don't know what to do, don't know where to go and just can't seem to get any relief for this. But, again, we ask SEPTA to have somebody there for these through streets, have somebody there, get whomever and have them there to let people know in the mornings or rush hour or whenever that they can't park there, so that the police are doing their 74 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. part, so that we don't have the people being victims again of a system that they didn't create and of all of us who are supposed to try to help them. Thank you, Captain. CAPTAIN THRUSH: Thank you.

Thank you for all you do. Kasim Ali, Streets Department. Charles Denny, Streets Department. We thank you. These gentlemen do a wonderful job for us, and as always with people who do a great job, we know we call you all the time, more than we should, but we appreciate your commitment to our City.

Okay. I'm Kasim Ali. I'm the District Traffic Engineer with the City Streets Department.

Charles Denny, the Assistant Chief Traffic Engineer.

I guess we call you on so many aspects of this project. We asked you to look at the Walnut 75 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. Street traffic and how this affects that, because we do have that legislation in Streets Department dealing with the lanes of Walnut Street. Do you get a lot of involvement on this project, and, if so, what kinds of issues do they ask you to work with?

Well, we have a Committee formed. We periodically used to meet at Parking Authority. SEPTA was indeed part of it, Parking Authority, us and basically all the relevant agencies and main contractors. And the thrust of the whole Committee -- including our enforcement people, all the police districts. The thrust of the Committee was basically to find alternate parking so these guys are not tempted, the local residents and business owners, to park illegally or under structure, which is a lot of times unsafe also, because now that they are in second phase where a lot of demolition is going to take place, it will be more dangerous to park in the vicinity. 76 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. So I think we need to move that forward in one way or the other. We all need to work together. And once we identify the lots we're going to use, which hopefully are in the vicinity, then this problem is going to go away.

Thank you very much. I remember one of our early meetings, maybe two years ago, I don't remember, time goes so long, that we talked about even 48th Street between Market and Haverford. We looked at 46th Street, but that looked overcrowded, and I suppose that nothing happened with that request. I suppose that SEPTA didn't push the issue, because we asked them to look at that as an alternative at one of our hearings a couple years ago. So at any rate, we thank you for your availability to be here at this hearing in case we have other questions, and, again, we thank you for a commitment to the citizens of our City.

I do have one suggestion. 77 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans.

Yes.

That would be marking X's in the street in areas where the through streets are so people can identify that that's a through street, an area they couldn't park. So it's just simple paving markings and marking an X.

Say that again, Mr. Denny.

Marking an X in the street where the through streets are so people can see the X, they can see that's an area they shouldn't be parking in. We use X's along the side to indicate bus zones. We can use X's to indicate areas where they shouldn't park along the curb line. So we can use an X in the middle underneath the structure in areas where there's a through street to indicate people shouldn't be parking there.

That's an excellent suggestion. Ms. Moore, could you have someone work with Mr. Denny and Mr. Ali in that 78 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. regard? That will help.

Of course.

See, I tell you, when we communicate, something so major can be worked out with not a lot to do. Thank you very much. Thank you both.

You're welcome.

Is there anyone here from Commerce Department? Thank you. Oh, yes. Thank you. Please come forward. Thank you for your patience. Thank you very much and thank you for being in attendance at the meeting the other day.

You're welcome. Bill Fox from the Commerce Department, Councilwoman.

Thank you very much. I know we didn't meet with you early on, but we hoped that the Commerce Department would -- we know at the end of the project we 79 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. needed a low or no-interest loan, but we would hope that Commerce would work with us now on trying to help businesses where they are at this point. I knew that at somewhere along the line it would be my job to try to fight for funding, but I haven't even been given any suggestions. Not from you, because you weren't involved in the meetings, and we appreciate your involvement now. Because I've been talking over the years about what we need to do to try to help businesses survive. So I look forward to working with you. Maybe you'll be our point person?

Yes. Our Commerce Director, Stephanie Naidoff, has asked me to be more involved, and we want to be involved and hopefully we can come up with some solutions to a few of these problems.

Thank you. We'll stay in touch with you, because we haven't been successful thus far, so we look forward to having the opportunity to work with you so that when we have our next hearing, 80 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. we'll have something positive to report, and thank you very much.

It's a pleasure working with you and your staff, Councilwoman.

Thank you. Mr. Lance Haver. Thank you. Thank you very much. We appreciate your being here today.

Good afternoon, Councilmen. My name, for the record, is Lance Haver. I'm with the Mayor's Office of Consumer Affairs. And I do apologize. I will also be negative. I think that part of the problem here is the makeup of the SEPTA Board. The SEPTA Board is heavily controlled by the suburban interests. I would be curious to know if any of the suburban projects like the rebuilding of the Melrose Park Station have had anywhere near the same type of problems, whether the neighborhoods have had anywhere near the same type of complaints as been what's going on here. 81 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. Second, the SEPTA Board has chosen to hold all of its meetings at 3 o'clock on Thursday afternoons. Recognizing this is probably the major construction project in the history of SEPTA, one would have hoped that they would have at least had one or two meetings at a Board level out in the community so people could be heard. They've chosen not to do that. Three, when it came time to build the Blue Route, the suburban interests were very concerned about noise, yet when it comes time to rebuild the El and think for the future of the stores underneath the El, we don't even talk about sound barriers. These, I think, are indicative of the SEPTA's Board's thought of the people in that neighborhood and what we deserve versus what the people who live out by the Blue Route deserve, and I think that's a very real difference, and I think it's unfortunate and I think it's indicative of the type of problem that we face.

Thank 82 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. you very much. We certainly totally agree. We have tried to talk with Board members, with people who know Board members. We met with our Congressman. We've met with our state people. We've met with everyone, trying to even get some money, and as Booker T. Washington said, "Lower your buckets where you are." So last year we came up with a small little stipend for businesses, and we're trying to do it again this time, although we're still caught up in the Mayor's cut-back phase. But we totally agree. The meetings that we've gone to in the neighborhood were so charged because people felt so disrespected. I mean, for example, I've been to meetings where they talked about all the hiring, and then you have the whole 50 people in the front of the room lined up, the whole audience lined up, and say, What do you mean you're hiring, and, Here I am, and, We were told to come back, We were told to go to this meeting, We were told to go to that meeting and, Here we 83 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. are, nothing happening and nobody contacted me. I mean, from the beginning, it's been absolutely horrendous. I don't go to meetings where there's no agenda and where people don't have a plan about where they want to go. So, therefore, I prefer to try to do it in a forum where we can have some dialogue and not make empty promises or tell people we're going to do things for which we do not plan. We appreciate and appreciate your help and your continuing to work with us on this issue, because we really, really do need your input.

Thank you. There would be one other thing. I was wondering whether we would care to send a bill to SEPTA for all the additional work the Streets Department and the Police Department have had to do as a way of creating a fund to compensate some of the businesses that have been damaged.

Oh, 84 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. listen, we need to do something. For $567 million, there must be some money some place. I have no idea what has happened and how come we haven't allowed for some business relief out of that huge budget, why there hasn't been some relief for these businesses that are directly affected. Thank you.

Thank you, Councilwoman.

Thank you. We'd love to work with you in that regard. Thank you very much. Next we have Mr. Jerry Jordan, Hank Willis and Bill O'Connor. Come forward. We are very, very happy to have you. These are business owners who are located and who are affected by this project. We thank you for your patience. I tell you, I'm embarrassed every time I see you, because I know when people have been wronged, and I do believe in God and believe in trying to do the right thing by my job. Certainly feel free to pull up a chair. We do 85 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. respect you and we do apologize for all that you've been going through. Please identify yourself and begin your testimony.

I'm Jackie Willis. I'm here representing two things. I'm representing our business, Will Press Products, Hank and Jackie Willis, at 6011 Market Street, and I also am an officer of our business association, 60th Street West Market Street Business Association. So I'll bring up concerns of both.

Thank you.

I also have pictures here, but only if someone wants to look at them --

Thank you.

-- of some of the things that I'll be talking about. I've already said what I'm representing. There are concerns -- I want to talk first about one of our concerns as a 86 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. business. One of my major current concerns is the construction of a huge pillar right in the center of our door at 6011 Market Street.

A huge what, Ms. Willis?

It's a pillar, a post, cement post, right in the center of our door. Now, my husband and I have been involved in meetings since the beginning of this project, and one of those was that there would not ever be a structure right in your door. It would be between buildings or in front of vacant buildings or in front of a place with a space, but not right in front of the door. It encroaches on our property to the amount of about seven feet and interferes with future plans we might have had for that space. In the early years of planning, we were told by representatives of SEPTA that such structures, as I just mentioned, would be not placed between buildings to obscure the front entrance of a business. 87 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. SEPTA has not been in contact with us regarding this obstruction to our business, although we have informed them of our concern. I have driven along Market Street, and very seldom -- I didn't see anywhere where such a structure as this, a huge cement structure, was right in front of a door. Other issues affecting all of our businesses, and now I'm talking as an officer of our business association, are the following: Loss of revenue everyone knows about, but no compensation, except what the Councilwoman Jannie Blackwell has secured for us, has come forth, and we have lost up to 75 percent of our business, many of us. We have asked for a moratorium on taxes. We are paying taxes just as before and we have no income coming in. There are discretionary funds that perhaps could be used to relieve us of certain taxes that are affecting us as businesses that are not doing business because of this construction. I feel there is less police presence in our area now. It looks like a war zone, 88 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. and I think we should see the presence of police. We had foot patrols before. And with those huge trucks and fences that are up, you cannot see around certain corners and all, and at night it looks very dangerous. So don't forget us just because construction is going on there. We still need policemen walking the beats. The Parking Authority met several times regarding how they could help businesses with their parking concerns. I went to one meeting where they talked about giving tickets to business people. They did it on Baltimore Avenue, but nothing has happened. New laws have come out regarding how we should park, and as has already been mentioned here, people have received tickets. Other incidents, which we had to refer to Baker & Associates, we did get a good response. We're in contact with Michael Tucker, and many cases he has responded, and we appreciate that but, I think you should still note about why we needed to call him. There was a hose running. Now, 89 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. there's a big hole in front of our store where they're going to put the pillar and there was a hose running from the construction site at 60th and Market draining into that hole. Now, we know when it gets mushy and rainy and so forth, that was going to be a problem, just standing water, sitting in that hole. So we had to call about that. There was also at one point a porter-potty sitting in front of businesses when it should have been down on the corner where the work was taking place, and the odor of it was flowing in front of our businesses. Now, these fences that are up can be moved back and forth, but they put them in such a way that it really is hard on people living in the area to even get around these fenced constructions. There was a fence at Edgewood and Market so close to the phone booth that no one could get around it with a baby carriage or a shopping cart. So you could not even come on the sidewalk leading up to the businesses beyond that sidewalk.

Excuse 90 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. me, Ms. Willis. I will pass these pictures around so some of you can see what we're talking about while she's speaking. Thank you. Continue.

Right. You actually could not get past the fence and the post. And these are just things -- the fences are made so they can be put in such a way that traffic can take place. Pedestrians or handicapped, you have to be there to see how hard it was for them to walk all around the way to get to one part of the street, when with just some consideration to the people there and locating them in such a way that it would make transportation and walking easy. When work is at a standstill, traffic is still blocked off. Now, they mentioned that the contract at 63rd and Market is no longer, that they're not even -- I mean, that has ended, but look how long that has been blocked off. We were blocked for about four weeks from 60th to 63rd, and neither traffic, walking or riding traffic, was going 91 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. on at that point. And if it was, the people who were walking, it was very hard and difficult, especially for the elderly. When they stop construction and no 6 work is going on, I cannot see why the fence cannot be removed so that construction can take place and some of these side streets can be opened up. About a couple of days before Thanksgiving, I will say that they opened up the street so traffic could flow on both sides of the street, but we were hurting up to that point. And, of course, as I mentioned before, we need monetary help to offset our losses. And that might be forthcoming, but a tax break would also be helpful. But not only should we consider the businesses, we should consider the people that live in those areas, because I've seen people struggle to just walk from Edgewood to 60th Street. Thank you.

Thank you, Ms. Willis. We note that for many of you, 92 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. because the streets run the same as downtown, they have had streets closed from Chestnut to Arch and then you have little streets in between, and a lot of seniors, you can't get through the sidewalks, everything is a mess, and then when it rains, it's muddy. It's been a real, real -- it's been an absolute horrendous problem. And let me note that we've also asked the Administration -- and I say this to Commerce as well -- we have asked about the taxes. We have asked that they be deferred or forgiven or forgotten, something, some help, but it appears that for some reason these people, their plight has not been taken to heart as it should be by those of us who have the responsibility to try to help in this matter. And we would like to note that we hope that somebody can come forward after they make their remarks. I wrote down five issues that Ms. Willis spoke of. One are the pillars and what happens with the holes that are being dug 93 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. and the odors therein when it rains, et cetera. Second was moratorium on taxes. Third was their financial compensation during this construction issue, and fourth was the discrepancy regarding how funds are used and fifth was fences. It seems to me that that's easy. The whole issue of fences being moved around, they do them all the time, should not even be a question. So I stand corrected, if you would like to correct those terse notes I made, Ms. Willis.

That was basically it.

Thank you. Thank you.

Good afternoon, Ms. Blackwell.

Good afternoon.

My name is Jerry Jordan and I own the restaurant at the 5211 Market Street, and I've been up there 94 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. possibly four years. I remodeled the whole restaurant. I put $200,000 in the restaurant. Before SEPTA started, I was doing a good business. I have ten employees working for me. After SEPTA started, I went from 100 percent down to 80. I had to lay off. And I went from 80 down to 40, and from 40 to zero. I still have to pay the bank each week. That's $500 a week. That's $2,000 a month. Whether I'm open or whether I'm closed, they want their money. The second thing is, I just heard SEPTA speak about how to clean up 52nd Street and keep everything -- I'm up there every day. They have cars up underneath the El there. They had a wreck, an accident, with a station wagon car. They pushed it right up underneath the bridge, right in front of my building up underneath of there. It hasn't been cleaned. It's dirty from 53rd all the way down there to 50th and Market. Mostly up there you have the hacks up there that park their cars. You have a lot of the people just walking around up there. 95 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. Nothing has been cleaned. If some of the SEPTA people that are here today go up there right now, they'll see it's dirty from one end to the other. They will see abandoned cars under there. They will see cars -- there's been accidents pushed underneath of there. Something has to be done, and they always say that they're going to try to do something with us. Nobody has been around. They bring you papers, Mr. Jordan, we're going to do this or can we help do something. They will say they're going to do it and don't do it at all. And I want to know, why is it that you can't park on the street when you had meters like before and still have to park underneath the El? You at least have more cars park on the street, because if you're underneath that El, each post you only can put two or three cars. And then they say about the lots to park. Now, in my restaurant, I have a lot of older people, senior citizens, that come to 96 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. eat. They're not going to walk two blocks at a parking lot to come eat in my restaurant or to shop. They'll keep riding and go somewhere where they can park. Now, SEPTA says, We're trying to do something for the businesses. They're home. They're home asleep while we're suffering. And if we don't meet anything, we have nothing, and there's nobody going to -- the same thing with me. If I'm going to a restaurant or going to a store and I see there's nowhere to park, I'll keep riding. I'm not going to have my wife get out of the car and walk a block or a block and a half to go eat or a block and a half to go and shop, where there's so many other places. And at nighttime, it is dark. There's no lights but two lights up from 52nd and Market down to 53rd. And I wish some of the SEPTA people that's here today go out there and take a ride up there. It's very dark. You have two lights on one end to the other, and it is dirty underneath of there where those cars are, and you have abandoned 97 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. cars. And I would appreciate it if they did more action than do a lot of talking, because we're the ones that are suffering. I had to close my business down. I had to lay off ten employees behind this, and there's nothing else I could do until they get -- now, they're going to come back next year or so, because the beams that they put in the middle there down in the ground, they have to let that stay for a long while so it settles. They're going to come back again and close us down again. And then when they close us down again, the people are not going to come up there. I asked people to come off the bus and come down the steps from the El. I said, Don't you like to shop up here? The first thing they say, No. We want to hurry up and get the bus home.

They say, There's nothing up there for us. And it's a shame. But I'd appreciate it if SEPTA put a little more effort in doing things like they say they're going to do. I appreciate this 98 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. very much. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Jordan. And we note -- and I know I say this every time I talk about SEPTA, and, that is, at 55th and Market, we were out there when we had to prevail upon them to get porter toilets, because the workmen were urinating on people's steps and in their lines. I mean, that is just the ultimate insult and disrespect of a community. And certainly, again, I don't believe that it should be too difficult to check on lighting. We ask that that be done between SEPTA and -- Mr. Denny and Kasim, would you all work with me on that and try to get some light out there? And, again, that's why this time we asked when we passed this little stipend, because it's not enough to even mention, that we put 250,000 in it just to provide for a cleanup so that we can have a neighborhood group, keep the area clean so we don't have to beg people to sweep every day. 99 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. It's just so unbelievable that from 1999 till now we have to beg for every human kind of service. We're not supposed to have to do this. Thank you.

Good evening --

Good evening.

-- Councilwoman. My name is Louis Yancy. I am a landlord business man. I don't have a business in the 5200 block, but I am the landlord/owner of the property at 5248, 52nd and Market, and I'm here because nobody -- well, I thought nobody was addressing the landlords' issue in this whole manner where we have to pay taxes and we have to abide by all the rules and regulations of the City, but we're not getting any compensation or we're not getting any consideration. Like Mr. Jordan has said, I've been up there on 52nd and Market Street and it is very dirty. There are lots of things. I'm 100 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. not there every day like he is, but I do have to go up there and check on my property even though it has been vacant for months now, because nobody wants to start a business up and the one that had started up, he had to fold up. So most of my issues were addressed by the other two, so I won't take up the Council's time reiterating them, but we do need some more consideration from SEPTA. And once I asked about it when it first started, they told me there was nothing I could do, nothing for me as the landlord. It's like "get out the office" almost, not literally saying it, but almost just "get out the office, you're not a business person." But I am a business person. That is income for me, and I have lost a lot of income based on the fact that I can't get a tenant to rent my property. And that's all I had to say. Thank you.

Thank you very much. We totally agree, and as you know, we're trying to do a commercial corridor 101 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. revitalization, and I don't know how we're supposed to attract businesses to these areas. And my greatest fear is that by the end of '08, if we finish then, we won't have any businesses open. So we'll have an El, a new El, but we won't have any businesses there and we will have blighted area underneath and we will have no place for neighborhood people to shop, who are used to dealing with their neighborhood businesses, and seniors who can't go in town to get their hair done or to go shopping or to go to the supermarket or buy the other items they need to have some decent quality of life. It's very, very frustrating to say this over and over and over and over again, and we're very unhappy to have to do that. Do we have anyone else here who would like to testify? Thank you. We note that we did talk with Bill 23 Wilson, who mentioned that he and Jim Baker are going to be dealing with some new initiative with regard to the SEPTA project, 102 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. and we look forward to any fresh energy that we can have. Thank you.

Madam Chairlady, my name is Walter L. Anderson. I'm the owner of Andy's Auto Center at 58th and Market, which I have been there for 35 years. It looks to me that this is not City renewal; it's black removal. Because the ones of us that are old enough to remember, from 32nd and Market to 46th and Market were a lot of black businesses there, and they got rid of all of them. I've lost about 80 percent of my business since this thing has started. I'm going to try my best to hold on, but we're going to have to have some sort of relief, and I imagine the only kind of relief we can get now is taxes and financial. Madam Chairlady, thank you very much for allowing me to have something to say.

Thank you, Mr. Anderson. We thank you and ask that you try to hold on. And certainly we want to know if anybody there has any response to the 103 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. concerns that the businesses have raised. If you are not prepared, we would ask that you prepare something that you can give to us by the first of the week. And let me say that at this point in this whole process, we feel that if we don't get some relief, then we're going to have to decide what we, as their leadership, needs to do to try to help them. I don't know what that will be at this point, but I will tell you, from 1999 to now, it's just too long, and we are not prepared to continue to try to look business folks in the face and tell them, Well, we're sorry. Well, we keep asking them. Well, well, well. It's wrong. It's irresponsible on all of our parts who deal with this issue, and certainly we would be prepared to go to the next level if we do not have some redress, some talk about what we can do to help these businesses. I can only tell you that we are going to prepare to try to do something else from our level and beyond. So having said that, thank you 104 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. again. Is there anyone else here who would like to comment? (No response.)

We thank you very much. Councilman Cohen, we're about ready to wrap it up. Would you like to have something to say, sir? The Chair notes that Councilman Cohen is in the room. He's been a major supporter of this project and of our concerns for the neighborhoods and the residents from the very beginning. We're very, very happy that he could come to the hearing, and we thank him for being here.

I think it's very important what everybody is doing. I think it's an absolute disgrace what SEPTA is proposing to do. I'm, therefore, delighted at this hour to find so many people in the room 22 here. So keep on your fight, with Councilwoman Blackwell helping to lead the fight. I think we're going to get a 105 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. turnaround, but nobody knows how long that will take and we've got to be ready to work very hard every day of the week. To think of Comcast having $30 million made available as a special grant after the $66 billion offer to Disneyland and no money for SEPTA, it makes one wonder what life is all about in Pennsylvania. Thank you.

Thank you, Councilman. We had like to thank all of those folks who are there on the site who are trying to do their part. I'd like to thank my staff, especially Alisa Orduna-Sneed, Marty Cabry, Jeff Felder, Darwin Beauvais. We'd like to thank all well-meaning people who want to help us have some positive resolve to this horrendous problem. Thank you very much. This hearing will be recessed subject to the call of the Chair, and I note we look forward to hearing a response on the five issues we raised certainly by the first of the week. 106 12/7/04 - Res. No. 040799 - Finance & Trans. Thank you very much. (Committees on Finance and Transportation hearing adjourned at 4:00 p.m.) - - - 107 CERTIFICATE I HEREBY CERTIFY that the proceedings, evidence and objections are contained fully and accurately in the stenographic notes taken by me upon the foregoing matter on December 7, 2004, and that this is a true and correct transcript of same. ______________________________ MICHELE L. MURPHY RPR-Notary Public (The foregoing certification of this transcript does not apply to any reproduction of the same by any means, unless under the direct control and/or supervision of the certifying reporter.)