Can you 12 tell me approximately how long that will 13 be and, as it relates to the 14 reconstruction of the ramps, how all 15 that's going to factor in? Because my concern is that October there'll probably be an opening of the casino.
I don't want to give you any wrong information, so I'd really like to turn it over to Jeff Knueppel, SEPTA's Chief --
There's some real concern about what's going to happen down on that end.
Jeff Knueppel, 321 4/21/10 - WHOLE - BILL 100115, etc. SEPTA's Chief Engineer. In and around Labor Day, we start on construction that we've coordinated with the City to create a turn-back for our trolleys that will actually come down near the new casino at Delaware Avenue, but it's all been coordinated when we should do our construction, because there's a lot of things going on in the area with utilities and road work and other things. So we've been involved in a series of meetings, and that's our time slot to go in. And I would imagine -- I don't have the information with me, but I think PennDOT will be working on that area for several years. But we'll be able to bring the Route 15 and spin it right around and bring it over to Delaware Avenue and bring it back and then run it back.
It will take 322 4/21/10 - WHOLE - BILL 100115, etc. you, yes, all the way to right near the casino.
I'm not trying to promote people going to the casino, but the reality is there are going to be people interested in traveling there, if nothing else, to see what's going on. In terms of your interaction with the City, are you aware -- because one of the reasons I ask the question, we had a casino-related meeting recently basically to talk about public safety and some of the impact of the casino. So we had the Police there and Planning Commissioner and we talked about some of the fire service, but there was really nobody there to talk about the public transportation aspect, and then this question about the ramps and how that played into the opening time as associated with the casino. And I guess my question is, do you know or are you leaving it to the City to interact with 323 4/21/10 - WHOLE - BILL 100115, etc. the general public as it relates to the potential impact as it relates to public transit?
We will do bussing, because we won't be able to run the trolley to Cumberland -- no; Madison loop. We will not be able to go to that loop, so we will have to institute bussing all the way to the end of the Route 15, and that will be announced and put out there and --
Who is taking the lead on that? I guess I just want to make sure that --
So you guys will take the primary responsibility of having community notification?
Councilman, I believe also the casino will run a shuttle to Spring Garden station, and 324 4/21/10 - WHOLE - BILL 100115, etc. that will be heavily promoted.
Frances Jones, Assistant General Manager of Government Affairs. Prior to the work being started or as we get into the work, we will have community meetings. We will advise the Council, each councilmanic district that's impacted, advise them of when we start, what we're doing and how long we anticipate it taking, as well as having community meetings, which is what we normally do.
Okay. It might be beneficial if you guys contacted Everett Gillison's Office, Deputy Mayor, because they actually have a series of meetings planned to talk about all the nuances of the operations. So you can just kind of piggyback on that instead of 325 4/21/10 - WHOLE - BILL 100115, etc. having your own.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman. On the 15, that runs, I believe, through the Seventh, the Fifth, the Third and the Fourth. So you'll hit a lot of land and Councilpeople. So those Councilpeople probably should be brought into that process.
Mr. Casey, I got a chance to work with you up close and personal before, but more intensely during the work outage, and I wanted to say that I saw you to be a gentleman, a professional, and thank you for quickly, as quickly as quickly could come, resolving this matter, and the riding public is better off because of it. And I think all things considered, it was the 326 4/21/10 - WHOLE - BILL 100115, etc. best outcome that could be achieved, and I got a chance to appreciate you. You kept me informed, even when it was bad news at times, and let me be a part of that process. So I thank you.
Thank you. I appreciate it. And one of the goals that we had going into it was to get a longer-term contract, and we achieved that with the five-year contract, so we're happy with that.
I'd like to switch gears a bit and put on my Moby Dick/Captain Ahab hat on bridges. I have had a heck of a time dealing with Amtrak on this issue, but I wanted to take this opportunity while you were here to ask, how many of your rails, your lines, which lines come across the 52nd and Jefferson bridge?
And some information on the frequency. 327 4/21/10 - WHOLE - BILL 100115, etc.
And approximately how many cars -- and I do mean cars, not just trains -- go across that bridge daily and then annually? A rough estimate. I won't hold you to the exact number.
I will tell you the R-5 Paoli is our largest line from a 328 4/21/10 - WHOLE - BILL 100115, etc. frequency of service.
There are actually several bridges there. It's kind of a difficult situation. All of them, though, that cross 52nd Street, as I understand it, are supposed to be maintained by Amtrak.
Okay. In that -- and you may or may not know this. 329 4/21/10 - WHOLE - BILL 100115, etc. There's no wrong answer, just trying to establish something here. Whose responsibility is it to inspect those bridges?
If you do, do you know offhand -- and if you don't, could you provide that to both this body but also the Committee on Transportation -- what your findings were when you went across that bridge, when you inspected that bridge?
Okay. There were more -- they were informally inspections. When the issue came up, we did send people to take a look, and we did spot one problem on the bridge that carries the Cynwyd line inbound and we actually made the repairs.
Say that 330 4/21/10 - WHOLE - BILL 100115, etc. again, please, for the record.
We looked at the inbound Cynwyd line bridge, and in one area SEPTA discussed it with Amtrak and made the repairs.
Do you have an in-depth, detailed report on what you found on that bridge?
No. We did more informal. We then talked over what we saw with Amtrak, and it was really only the one structure that I believe we found of serious concern. Otherwise, they are responsible for inspecting and maintaining.
Clearly, culpability has been established. We understand that it's their responsibility, but it is all of our responsibilities to hold people accountable for things that have a safety aspect to them.
Excuse me, Councilman. 331 4/21/10 - WHOLE - BILL 100115, etc. Jeff, is it possible for us to get a copy of Amtrak's detailed report?
We can get a copy of the detailed report that Amtrak performs and get you a copy.
The only problem with that Amtrak report, it is a self-report and it's like asking the mice to guard the cheese and them tell you, trust me. What I would hope is that Amtrak would do a detailed report because of the use of their infrastructure and come back to this body with what you find, because we had a near miss during that work outage where one of your rails, by no sabotage, for the record, accidentally caught fire. It was about a thousand yards from that very bridge. Kudos to the emergency management team that responded to that. All of the passengers got off safely. The first 332 4/21/10 - WHOLE - BILL 100115, etc. responders had easy access, a couple of steps. Deputy Mayor Gillison, myself, the Mayor, all of us were out there. But had that train had to glide to a stop on that bridge, there might have been quite a different outcome, because access is denied from the lower level. You have to traverse woods and structures in order to get there. The pedestrians or commuters would have had a harder time. So my point to you is, that bridge's safety is all of our concerns. It may not be liabilities, may not be contractual responsibility, but it should be our concerns, and I'd like you to take a look at that, and in so doing, I would be interested in sharing with the Council how many bridges are used by your body that are owned by Amtrak, and if there are similar reports, that they be provided to the City of Philadelphia. I'm moving towards my conclusion here, which is that I believe based on both the Inquirer reports but 333 4/21/10 - WHOLE - BILL 100115, etc. also internal documents to Amtrak, that we have a serious problem. It does not take an engineering degree to look up and see rusted rails. It does not take an engineering degree to see that the concrete footing is inch-wide cracked and that -- they tell you that that doesn't matter, but they were put there by some designer, some architect for a reason. And I don't claim to know what that reason is, but I'm sure if they could have saved the money on that concrete, he would have. So that is my Ahab issue. And I will tell you that there is also debris that falls from that bridge, no 18 responsibility of yours, but a concern of all of ours, and that at some point after we politely send letters, Mr. Chairman, as we politely make phone calls, as we do the dance of meetings, which is almost like a mating ritual of government, and so we'll do all of those dances to comply with what the process should be, but at 334 4/21/10 - WHOLE - BILL 100115, etc. some point in time, I will, this body will, lose its patience. And if, God forbid, a child that walks under there, because a number of pedestrians take that route, are injured, we will not be kind to those responsible, and I need your help to make sure that the safety of all of the commuters and all of the residents of that area and the City at large -- because there's a bigger bridge problem. It was chronicled, 300 bridges, most of whom, the majority of whom, Mr. Chairman, were in the state of poor, and that is written by their own hand. Amtrak wrote their own report and said they're poor. So I don't want to frighten the public or frighten you, but I am concerned, and that concern will take a form of an action, even if it means shutting down that bridge if it causes any damage to a pedestrian. So forewarned is forearmed. I would yield if there is anyone else who has any questions, but if 335 4/21/10 - WHOLE - BILL 100115, etc. not, I wanted to go on a different track.
Thank you. On the note of capital improvements, you're coming to the end of your two-year commitment under Act 44 funds. I believe that to be true. And also you're probably in the second year of your stimulus capital projects. Can you give us an indication of how that's going to impact your capital plan?
Well, the stimulus projects, we had an aggressive plan. Within, I guess, eight months, we had 90 percent of the contracts awarded. Within the year, we had a hundred percent notice to proceed to all the contractors. So that's going very well. The contractors are out there. They're working. And we -- people have mentioned about DBE percentage. We achieved a 13 percent DBE goal on the stimulus. That enabled us to do a lot of 336 4/21/10 - WHOLE - BILL 100115, etc. contracts that -- or a lot of construction projects that were on the shelf, but ready to go. So we were really pleased with that, but now with the Act 44, with the I-80 tolling being denied, Act 44 is really in question, and it really affects our capital program. And a lot of the things that weren't ready to go, City Hall station, for instance, the Smart Card project and many others, simply we cannot afford in the capital program until the Act 44 is resolved.
Are you aware of any discussions at the federal or State level that there might be some light at the end of the tunnel?
Well, there's two things. I was in DC last week and joined together with some of the older cities, Chicago, New York, Boston, Washington, DC, trying to get the federal government to support our position for the older cities, that we need to bring these 337 4/21/10 - WHOLE - BILL 100115, etc. systems up to a state of good repair. The FTA did a report identifying the seven largest cities requiring $50 billion collectively. To us it was about $4 to $5 billion just to bring our systems up to state of good repair. So we were doing that lobbying. On the Act 44 from the statewide level, we were also in Harrisburg last week talking to the Highway Coalition, talking to PennDOT, and the Governor has requested a session, a joint session, and I believe it's May 4th will take place to specifically address this issue. And, again, it not only affects transit, it affects highway. Highway even has a bigger effect.
So are you optimistic that there might be -- cautiously optimistic?
The Governor certainly has a will to get this accomplished before he leaves office, but, again, they have difficult budget 338 4/21/10 - WHOLE - BILL 100115, etc. issues in Harrisburg and no one wants to implement new taxes in an election year. But it's critical needs. It's jobs. It's jobs in the region. It's jobs in the Commonwealth. And it's critical infrastructure needs. So I'm ever optimistic for something to happen.
By way of Public Property and SEPTA, I understand we have a hold in place, kind of keep-it-as-it-was relationship by way of compensation for City-owned property; is that correct?
Are there any plans -- you mention City Hall. Could you elaborate what we could anticipate if funding is there by way of renovation of that, as well as are there any plans along with Public Property for the concourse?
That's been a subject of some of the discussions on the lease-leaseback. That's now in the 339 4/21/10 - WHOLE - BILL 100115, etc. month-to-month, and we've had many discussions with Rina Cutler to discuss those issues. My feeling is on that, people think that it's part of the transit system. If Act 44 is resolved and we have financial, we will take that burden on to repair that. But, again, that's part of the whole agreement with the lease-leaseback, which we're not there yet.
Well, as you develop that, it would be good if you would provide that information on how we can be helpful with this body. I believe that we have -- and it's not the first Administration that has looked at that concourse as a source of additional revenue by way of commerce and are looking forward to whatever ideas that we can pursue, push, champion for you at the State or federal level to get that done, because I think we almost -- one-tenth of the space could be possibly used for 340 4/21/10 - WHOLE - BILL 100115, etc. expansion of the retail aspect of that.
Finally, the tragic death of the commuter that happened a couple of weeks ago, all I want to know is lessons learned. Anything that we are going to do different? And I'd like you to elaborate on that.
Let me just say that safety for our passengers and our employees are our number one priority. The general process and procedure is when someone is sick on a bus is to notify the Control Center, I have a sick passenger. The bus is immediately stopped. We dispatch the police. We dispatch the emergency medical help. In this instance, there wasn't -- and a report that someone was sick. There was a non-responsive person on the bus. Both the operator and the supervisor did not observe any medical 341 4/21/10 - WHOLE - BILL 100115, etc. need there. And then subsequently we all know what happened. It's a tragedy for their family, certainly upsetting to our employees and to me personally. With that said, I asked for a full investigation, with the intention to implement procedures so something like this does not happen again.
Not to micromanage or to preempt whatever your findings are, but it seems to me that you have two conflicting priorities. You have to -- the train must be on time, but we have to be responsive to non-responsive folk, and I guess as we evaluate the policy, how do we either train personnel to be able to tell the difference between someone who worked the late shift and has sleep apnea --
Well, that's something we have to work out. You know, I guess fortunately we haven't had a lot of experience in this because it doesn't 342 4/21/10 - WHOLE - BILL 100115, etc. happen too frequently, but we do issue emergency medical. So far this year, from January 1st, we've had medical calls 145 times that we sent out emergency rescue to rescue someone from a vehicle. That's about one a day. So we do stop the vehicle. Again, if someone is in emergency, we're going to make sure they get the help they need. Unfortunately, in this instance, it wasn't necessarily conveyed to the Control Center that it was any type of medical need, and it was dealt with under that assumption.
Listen, and it's an unfortunate thing, and every aspect of what we do as a government, that we have to look at the possibility of fatality. The only thing we can do is to learn from it.
And then hopefully adjust our policies so that does not happen again. Finally, I don't know if -- is 343 4/21/10 - WHOLE - BILL 100115, etc. there any coordination between you and law enforcement on the analyzation of flash mobs by way of the means of transportation to the scene of the, quote, crimes? And are there -- if there is any data that could be shared with us, is that happening? I'm thinking that if all the sudden there's this huge surge at one of the -- and I'm looking for not only that, Here they come, oh my goodness, but also indeed where they come from. If they're coming from the suburbs to the City, that's one piece of information that might be vital for its prevention. If they're urban youth and kind of coming from every way and everywhere, that's another set of data that might be useful to law enforcement, and I guess my question is, are we at least talking?
We are working with the City of Philadelphia, and the Controller is also interested in this issue. We've had numerous meetings with 344 4/21/10 - WHOLE - BILL 100115, etc. the Controller, the Police Commissioner and also the School District to address this issue, and we're still looking at procedures and determining the best fit. But one of the things that we told our people is to be on the lookout for groups of children and young adults entering the system all at once. But it's extremely difficult to determine that, because these flash -- they aren't necessarily using the school passes to get where they're going. Some of it happens during the weekend when the school passes aren't -- they're not able to use the school passes during those periods of time. So there's no rhyme or reason to how they're getting there, so it's a difficult issue, but we're working with the City, the Police Commissioner.
Well, we appreciate that, because I don't believe they're all carpooling down there, so they're getting there and they're going away somehow, and if we could have an 345 4/21/10 - WHOLE - BILL 100115, etc. advanced warning, it at least allows us to respond to it by way of where they're going. I don't want to violate anybody's rights to freedom of assembly, but --
It's a concern of ours also, because it does -- if they are using our system, it is impacting our other customers.
Finally, I'd like to commend you on your MBE, WBE numbers. I had a conversation at the state level where they were talking about stimulus dollars, and I was able to point to you guys as a gold standard. I think you use that quote in your annual report. This is what I heard. I called you that, so I'll repeat it so that people know that it is valid. You are one of the agencies that we actually are trying to get our City departments to take a look at what you're doing. So kudos to you.
Thank you. It is a federal requirement on a lot of the capital projects and we, especially with 346 4/21/10 - WHOLE - BILL 100115, etc. the stimulus, we went out front and we have semi-annual get-togethers with the DBE community, let them know what projects will be coming up in the next six months, and also it's a networking opportunity for both the DBEs and primes.
So the greatest respect I can give to you and your department is to not call you up and ask you a ton of questions. And I'll yield and say thank you, Mr. Chairman, for your kind indulgence.
Thank you. Thank you, Councilman. Councilman Greenlee.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman. One question that just came up, and I know this has gotten some media attention, the whole issue of the gender identification on TransPasses. Have you looked any more at that to see if that is, I guess the word is, necessary given 347 4/21/10 - WHOLE - BILL 100115, etc. the concerns that some individuals have raised about it?
We've looked at it. We think it could potentially have a significant financial effect on the pass system with people sharing passes. That said, with the Smart Card project, we think that we eliminate the M/F stickers to avoid this situation in the future. Unfortunately, the Smart Card project is also tied into the Act 44.
The money issue. And how much is it that the Smart Card would cost?
I think there's ranges and it depends on exactly what you do. I know other --
That's what I mean. It really depends on what you do, whether you outfit each and every station, especially on the regional rail, but 348 4/21/10 - WHOLE - BILL 100115, etc. estimates are right now it's over a hundred million dollars, probably in the $120, $130 million range. It's not insignificant.
And not to belabor the point of the gender identification, but, I mean, obviously men can switch the card with men and females with females.
You say you have a feeling that it would cost money. Any study on that?
Because obviously -- and it's not maybe a large number of individuals, but there are individuals that are concerned about that.
We do have people that do share passes. I mean, there's no 23 question. We have male to male. And just looking at the numbers, we have specific passes that are used upwards to 349 4/21/10 - WHOLE - BILL 100115, etc. a hundred times a week. So we do know the sharing goes on, but we just don't want it to escalate. And we do have an end in sight. And I met with the Rage community, the Rage representatives, and I told them, I said, if you have specific issues where someone is giving you a hard time, call this person or that person, because if they're giving you a hard time, chances are they're giving someone else a hard time, and we need to bring them in and reinstruct them on how to deal with our customers, regardless of who you are. And that's the best I could do at this point, and they haven't taken advantage of that at this point.
Thank you, Councilman. There being no other questions, I want to thank you so much for your testimony. 350 4/21/10 - WHOLE - BILL 100115, etc.
You're welcome. Next up we have the Human Relations Commission. (Witnesses approached witness table.)
Good afternoon, Councilman Clarke and members of City Council. My name is Rue Landau and I'm the Executive Director of the Commission on Human Relations. I'm here with Angela DeShields, who is our Budget Officer. The Philadelphia Commission on 351 4/21/10 - WHOLE - BILL 100115, etc. Human Relations is a City agency that enforces the Philadelphia Fair Practices Ordinance, Chapter 9-1100 of The Philadelphia Code, which prohibits discrimination in employment, housing, use of public accommodations and the delivery of City services. We also process the applications of same-sex couples who wish to register their life partnerships with the City. Our Community Relations staff works with community leaders, neighborhood organizations, local businesses, schools and the police to resolve disputes and conflicts within Philadelphia's diverse communities. Finally, the PCHR staffs the Fair Housing Commission, which is charged with enforcing the Fair Housing Ordinance, Chapter 9-800 of The Philadelphia Code. The Fair Housing Commission addresses unfair rental practices in housing and other landlord-tenant disputes. 352 4/21/10 - WHOLE - BILL 100115, etc. The PCHR's budget consists of 97 percent Class 100, two percent Class 200 and one percent Class 300 and 400. We currently have a staff of 33, down from 34 in 2008 but significantly lower than the 44 staff we had in 2004. While our staff is split between three units or divisions - Compliance, Community Relations and Fair Housing - we do not delineate expenses for them. They are included in one departmental budget for the program. In FY11, $68,323 was taken from Class 100; $11,031 was taken from Class 200; and $5,700 was taken from Classes 300 and 400 for the DOT consolidation. Even with our small staff, we have continued to work efficiently and effectively. We have focused on streamlining our work to maximize our capacity. We have also raised outside funds to support some of our work. In January 2010, the PCHR launched a series of public hearings on 353 4/21/10 - WHOLE - BILL 100115, etc. intergroup conflict and school violence. The hearings are being held throughout the City and will run through November 2010. At the conclusion of the hearings, we will issue a report with findings to the School District that will include benchmarks for implementation and methods for monitoring. Since we do not have money to support these hearings in our budget, we have been raising private funds. Historically, the PCHR had two -- this is captured under another efficiency, but historically the PCHR had two Human Relations Representative 2's -- it's a job title -- doing intake for the agency. Those employees earned as much as $57,842 a year. In April 2009, one of the intake staff members retired. In FY11, we plan to reorganize the way our agency does intake to increase revenue. We want to transfer the remaining Human Relations Representative 2 who is doing intake to our Compliance Division to work 354 4/21/10 - WHOLE - BILL 100115, etc. on discrimination cases. Through the PCHR's work-sharing agreement with the federal Equal Opportunity Employment Commission, we are paid $550 for each case we close. That money goes directly to the General Fund. In FY09, the PCHR received $105,050 for the cases we closed, which is slightly less than usual because the EEOC cut back on their funding to the State and local agencies, although we anticipate it to be funded at a hundred percent of our level this year. If we're able to move the remaining Human Relations Rep 2 into the Compliance Division, we expect to generate an additional $12,000 the first year and $20,000 each year thereafter. In addition, we plan to hire at least one person with the title of Human Relations Technician at $29,580 to replace the intake employee who retired. For service improvements, we've been focusing on our internal operations to maximize our efficiency with our small 355 4/21/10 - WHOLE - BILL 100115, etc. staff.
In May 2009, our Community Relations Division reassigned its staff throughout the City for the first time in ten years. The transfer of territories has reinvigorated the staff, and they have quickly gotten to know their new communities, police districts, businesses and neighborhood organizations. With this change, the CRD's caseload has remained steady. In addition, the staff has been doing a great deal of outreach for our public hearings on intergroup conflict and school violence. For FY11, the CRD will continue to refine its work so that they can be even more effective in resolving disputes and conflicts throughout the City. Both the Compliance Division and the Fair Housing Commission are continuing to streamline their internal operations as well for maximum efficiency. In Compliance, in FY11 we will institute a new case prioritization system and case closing system that will 356 4/21/10 - WHOLE - BILL 100115, etc. allow us to close more cases. Due to our work-sharing agreement with the EEOC, the more cases we close, the more revenue we generate. The Fair Housing Commission has continued to streamline its internal operating procedures in FY11. It will implement new case management systems that will create greater efficiency. In addition, the staff will do additional outreach next year. For all of our divisions, we're also continuing to work with the staff at 3-1-1 to ensure that the maximum number of cases are being referred to our agency for services. As the only civil rights agency in the City, a significant budget cut or any budget cut would have a direct impact on the citizens of Philadelphia. Since our budget is 97 percent Class 100 and since the work of the Compliance and Fair Housing Divisions are mandated in The Philadelphia Code, any staff decreases 357 4/21/10 - WHOLE - BILL 100115, etc. outside of administrative reductions must occur in the Community Relations Division. The CRD deals with neighbor disputes and all matters of intergroup conflict throughout the City. The staff has a high success rate for resolving neighborhood conflicts before they increase to violence. They also work to raise cultural understanding and reduce prejudice throughout the City. Should any Councilmember wish to discuss any of these matters further, my staff and I would be happy to meet with you at your convenience.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Quickly, because I know it's been a long day, you've been sitting back there. The Community Relations Division, have you seen any changes either in the number of complaints that have come into that or the nature of them since you have 358 4/21/10 - WHOLE - BILL 100115, etc. been there?
We saw a slight increase in the basic neighbor disputes in 2009 and through our Dispute Resolution Program. I don't know what to attribute that to. You would think that maybe there was more people out of work and more people home. But I did -- we created maps for you again this year so you can see the changes by district, and I can get them out to you.
But most of our case levels for the Community Relations Division remained pretty steady, especially considering people were learning their new territories. It was interesting to see what cases were coming in where.
And what was the reason you shifted the territories? Was it just on volume of complaints or you wanted different 359 4/21/10 - WHOLE - BILL 100115, etc. people --
Just to get people into different areas and getting to know different things and to also make sure that we're using our language capabilities in the right areas as well.
And that same division, is that the one that's dealing with the school issue?
And I know you said the hearings run through November, so maybe you don't want to comment on this yet, but is there anything that sort of jumps out or sticks out about that so far?
We've been having some really interesting and great testimony. It's come in from students and parents, principals of the schools. The School District is asking their principals in areas to come and testify in front of us, a lot of community-based organizations as well. 360 4/21/10 - WHOLE - BILL 100115, etc. We've been seeing some interesting themes. It's very -- we've been hearing from some great principals, and it's very clear to us that a strong principal with strong leadership and team-building skills really can transform a school. We've heard from many principals in fact who have turned schools around and to hear about some of the systems that they've used. And we've heard some sad stories from students and parents as well. So we're still trying to feel it out, but there are some themes that are already rising to the top.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 361 4/21/10 - WHOLE - BILL 100115, etc. I'm overdue for coming over there and actually spending a little quality time with you guys. You were kind enough in my freshman year to make that offer, and I am determined, and I just told my staff that we're going to make a note to get over there. A couple of quick questions. I get confused with the federal OEO and you guys, how you guys intersect. Could you kind of explain that?
Sure. First of all, for our City local fair practices ordinance, it's a City law, and we cover employment, housing, public accommodations and City services. I think you're talking about the EEOC, right, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission?
So you don't deal with that? 362 4/21/10 - WHOLE - BILL 100115, etc.
We do, and if you file in our office, you're dual filing with the EEOC. They don't cover every base that we cover. They don't cover sexual orientation and gender identity, so you have to file in our office. That's not covered by the State or the feds. That comes to our office. But when you're filing with us, you're also filing with the EEOC. Sadly --
So if I file 13 a complaint with you, it hits the State and federal?
The Pennsylvania Commission also has a work-sharing agreement with them as well. The EEOC has been seeing over the years tremendous staffing cuts, and they are very overwhelmed with the amount of work they have. In fact, they'll clearly tell anybody that their case is sitting in a holding bank when they come in and they 363 4/21/10 - WHOLE - BILL 100115, etc. don't get to process them as fast as they'd like, so they send as many cases as possible to us.
I'm fascinated by conflict resolution among neighbors. Can you give us some examples of how that works out with you and what your authorities are to mediate good neighbors? Help me to understand that.
Sure. Well, one way to get to a successful mediation is you have to have both parties willing to participate, and that sometimes is our block in our getting to a resolution. The great thing is, first of all, we have a very well-trained staff in all mediation skills, and sometimes it takes a long time to get there, but these start with conversations and often will lead to a successful mediation in the end. But, again, it comes down to willingness of people wanting to resolve it. We also have a whole lot of other kind of skills that we use in the 364 4/21/10 - WHOLE - BILL 100115, etc. process. Sometimes it's impossible to formally mediate a case, but there could be other resources that we can give to people where they can help to resolve their issues. But we get a lot of neighbor calls, and sometimes they're on little issues and sometimes they're large and sometimes they are masking a much larger issue or a much different issue than what was --
I saw the darnedest thing dropping a staff person off in my district. Two young teenagers, one seemingly from one side of the block and another from the other side of the block, and they, as teenage girls sometimes do, started fighting in the middle of the street. It escalated. It went from zero to 60. And I was parking the car, and I was hoping that an adult would come and intervene, and all of the sudden, when they did, they joined in. I called the police, because, you know, my job description is somewhat limited in 365 4/21/10 - WHOLE - BILL 100115, etc. that regard, and I'm glad that you handle that. But it went from the kids to the mothers to fathers, seemingly fathers or older brothers, about to go to blows about a kid's fight. And that can cause tension over the summer, particularly because not enough recreation and positive outlets. In a case like that, is it appropriate?
That's also not in our job description. The real violence, we call the police for those as well. But we have a great relationship with all the community relations officers in the Police Department and make sure we're keeping up with the captains in the districts at all times. Each of our staff -- our staff people are --
So for an example, give me a description that does fall within your purview.
When there's neighbors who are -- it could be as simple as people throwing trash on each 366 4/21/10 - WHOLE - BILL 100115, etc. other's lawns to as large as people yelling racial slurs at each other and having cultural misunderstandings. We've had --
So it's not the violence, but the next level that could lead --
Oh, absolutely. And they do -- again, there are other levels of this. They rise -- what started as something small could end up being something where the racial slurs are being yelled and that there is going to be physical violence. But there's sometimes people with mental health issues involved and we have to incorporate some other agencies as well.
So follow that scenario out. In a case like that, the person doesn't seem to have all of their faculties or from time to time episodes. What is your authority to intervene? What remedies for a situation like that do you have? 367 4/21/10 - WHOLE - BILL 100115, etc.
Again, it's a case-by-case basis, but in general, again, it depends -- it would definitely depend on the person we're dealing with and whether or not that person is capable of sitting down and trying to resolve the issue through a mediation or otherwise with the complaining neighbors. If the person is not willing or not able to do that, we can try to make some referrals to some outside agencies and bring other people into it, including other City departments. But sometimes it is just as easy to bring all sides together and sit down and talk about it, and we have to have everybody recognize the limitations of the person who is having some trouble.
I won't take up this body's time to orientate myself to you. I will take advantage of your gracious invitation this year --
-- and get 368 4/21/10 - WHOLE - BILL 100115, etc. over to your shop, and you can spend some time giving me the tools to be able to offer that to my constituents. So thank you, Mr. Chairman, for your indulgence. It's so wonderful when we don't have a clock.
You're welcome, Councilman. Any other questions? (No response.)
There being no one else to testify, we stand in recess until Tuesday, April 27th at 10:00 a.m. (Committee of the Whole recessed at 4:50 p.m.) - - - 369 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 April 21, 2010, 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.)