We will include in our reports to Council and to the public that information. 185 2/15/02 - WHOLE - BILL 020036 Specific to that.
Well, I don't know whether that would be satisfactory, but at least let's get it on the road.
We have always been open for dialogue, and we remain open to dialogue.
Well, would you begin to initiate it by requesting the dialogue?
Miss Birchett, please identify yourself for the record and proceed with your testimony.
My name is Ruth Birchett. I'm pleased about this opportunity to testify here and I thank my Councilman, the Honorable Darrell Clarke, for the notification of this hearing. 186 2/15/02 - WHOLE - BILL 020036 I want to commend Council and our mayor on continuing to work toward bringing this important bill forward to reality. Our neighborhoods -- and we represent an area of North Philadelphia -- is extremely deteriorated, and we're in desperate need for support with regard to restoration of housing, also the prevention of the continued deterioration of our community. We also are in need desperately support to strengthen and restore our social structure to a way that it would be more desirable and that our quality of living can be as other Philadelphians have it. With regard to this particular bill, I would like to express particular concern and interest, rather, for the Appendix 1, which makes reference to the urban redevelopment condemnation by RDA, and it speaks about the Redevelopment Authority's ability to request that the City Planning Commission certify areas as blighted. What I would like to state to you in reference to that is that while I understand that might be a process that's needed to enable things to happen with regard to the revitalization, I 187 2/15/02 - WHOLE - BILL 020036 would like to have you know that there is particular concern that such -- how you achieve the designation. What I mean is that too often in the past, it has been a regular practice that the City Planning Commission has not sought the input of the very people who are affected by the decisions that they recommend. And therefore, I'm very, very concerned that disadvantaged people in historically disfranchised neighborhoods will once again, under the hopes of a better day for the neighborhood, may end up being played even further out of position than we are today. And so I caution you and also ask, what kind of process will be underway that ensures that the City Planning Commission does acquire legitimate input from people who reside in the neighborhoods where they are making decisions and plans for and recommendations for, in particular, families that are long-term residents of this community, families that may be third, fourth, fifth generation in these communities, who are vested, well vested by the presence of their continued residence here in these communities. Essentially, all I'm saying is that we do 188 2/15/02 - WHOLE - BILL 020036 not want people planning so far above our heads that we don't -- that our interests really aren't being served. These departments exist to protect us and to serve us and, we fully expect to have that happen. Consistent with that too, I understand from my Councilman, that in the area of housing preservation activities, that there will be funds to expand the existing programs that are identified in this area. This is extremely critical. I am very pleased to hear Pat Smith acknowledge that the existing programs are overloaded, over-inquired into. It's true, it's true. You have -- you are hard-pressed to try to get the kinds of resources that you need to repair your home, particularly given that many of these neighborhoods where people are seeking to access a home repair program or whatever are people who are low- to no-income as well. And so this initiative really has to have and has to take into account to avoid wholesale displacement of people who virtually have few other options in terms of where to go. It really has to take into account what kinds of programs you will 189 2/15/02 - WHOLE - BILL 020036 offer to help people stay where they are, but also to strengthen where they live as well. It is wonderful that new housing is finally coming to our community, but it is a stark contrast between the condition of the old homes that are there and the people's individual financial ability to keep pace with the improvements and the new housing that is there.
We are not just concerned about people who will become our future neighbors; we are incredibly concerned about the people who are our existing neighbors. And as new days are on the horizon for our community, we want to enjoy them too. Now that better days are coming, we don't want to be displaced in our communities. , in our communities, that these people's contribution to the stability that exists -- in many terms the only stability that exists -- within these neighborhoods not be disrespected. And so I would like to see and would truly like to see and hear what are the specific ways in 190 2/15/02 - WHOLE - BILL 020036 which this Council and through this bill and the NTI initiative will elicit the input from individual citizens -- and be they block organizations or whatever -- regarding the planning for our areas.
Miss Smith, would you approach the witness table and answer the question, please. (Miss Smith returns to the witness table.)
With me is Maxine Griffith, Secretary of Strategic Planning, also Executive Director of the City Planning Commission. Maxine will talk a little bit about the planning strategy.
The concerns that the speaker addressed are concerned that we have heard before and we understand them. I would refer you to my earlier written testimony, where we have included as part of the NTI planning process a community hearing and review. Every plan that's promulgated out of NTI will be presented at the community level in a venue chosen jointly by the Councilperson and the Administration. The plans will be presented and we 191 2/15/02 - WHOLE - BILL 020036 will provide an opportunity for public testimony and to record that testimony. Plus I would mention that of the 40 -- I think we're up to 40 plans that we have presently reviewed, not developed but reviewed. All of these plans are plans that have been generated by community-based organizations, either community development organizations, block organizations, or other community-based entities. Many of them have been developed in concert with Councilmembers. So we are very cognizant of the need to work very closely with community members and not to promulgate plans without their input. As a matter of fact, one of the questions that's been often asked is, where is the plan? And in part, our answer is, although there is a planning process in place, we would not even think about generating a plan without community involvement and, of course, we really can't do that until this legislative process has been completed.
Thank you very much. Thank you. Thank you both for coming in to testify. We appreciate it. 192 2/15/02 - WHOLE - BILL 020036 Our next witnesses are...
Sharmain Matlock-Turner, Tully Speaker, and Galon Tyler. (Witnesses come forward.)
Good afternoon, sir. Please identify yourself for the record and proceed with your testimony.
Yes. My name is Tully Speaker, and I'm here on behalf of the Logan Square Neighborhood Association, and I bring you greetings Council President Verna and other members of City Council from the Logan Square Neighborhood Association and admire the tangle of work you have here. It is clear that this legislation's a work in progress and that there is a lot of work that needs to be done with it. I'm impressed with the variety of requests. I'm here to speak in favor of the broad concept of the Neighborhood Transformation Initiative, even though the Logan Square neighborhood is already a quite vital and vibrant and economically viable area. This is the area from Broad Street to the Schuylkill River, north of 193 2/15/02 - WHOLE - BILL 020036 Market Street, up to Callowhill. It is largely residential. There are a large number of large corporations, many small businesses in this area. The area has been developed over the last 30 to 40 years by individual initiative, single properties at a time -- in some instances two or three properties by a commercial developer, but always, almost entirely, by individual initiatives. I come to speak now with regard to a specific transformation which we would like to see; that's the transformation of one block, the between 22nd and 23rd Streets between Arch and Walden Streets. This block is occupied by an open-air parking lot which works -- it isn't beautiful, but it works, and also shared -- that block is also shared by an eight-story cast-concrete industrial building. This is best known perhaps as "the old Daily News building." This building is in a state of serious disrepair. There are many broken windows, and glass falls from those windows when the wind blows. There is falling concrete, pieces the size of man's fist, the size of a person's head, pieces the size of cinder blocks. They fall from heights of six to 194 2/15/02 - WHOLE - BILL 020036 eight stories, and they represent a danger, a safety hazard to both pedestrians and vehicles. We would like to see some correction of that as a part of the Neighborhood Transformation Initiative. There is also -- and again, we're interested in the Transformation Initiative. There is also a very severe loss of tax revenue because the owner of that property has not paid taxes for as long as we've been able to rifle back through the tax records, and has not made mortgage payments to the City, which is the mortgage holder. We think the City is frankly being gypped. We think that the City ought to get its taxes. We pay our taxes, and the City ought to get its mortgage payments. I would like to find a way in which I could avoid mortgage payments for upwards of eight years and not have anybody complain. We would like to see if situation reversed as part of the Neighborhood Transformation Initiative because that would allow this, our neighborhood, to undertake the transformation of that building, that property by individual investors. We're not asking for a lot of money, 195 2/15/02 - WHOLE - BILL 020036 but we're asking for the resolution of a problem site. We certainly are happy to be available to help shape this bill, if you want our input. I thank you for your attention and I'm happy to answer any questions if you have some.
Thank you very much. We appreciate you coming in to testify. Are there any questions of this witness? (No response.)
Sharmain, please identify yourself for the record and proceed with your testimony.
Thank you very much. Sharmain Matlock-Turner, President and Executive Director of the Greater Philadelphia Urban Affairs Coalition and I'm here today to testify on behalf of supporting NTI legislation before you. I also want to thank you for the opportunity. I was here during the last hearings to testify on behalf of my community association, 196 2/15/02 - WHOLE - BILL 020036 the Ogontz Avenue Revitalization Corporation, and I had an opportunity to leave my testimony with you about one of the programs that we think is going to be very interesting as a part of NTI. I want to thank the rest of the members of Council for giving me an opportunity to testify today. Also here with me is James Connor, Vice President of Community Development at Beneficial Saving Bank. Jim and his bank are partners with GPUAC in many ways, including through a GPUAC committee which Jim is an active member, our Community and Economic Development Committee. For the past 33 years, GPUAC has been working in Philadelphia to fulfill its mission of bringing together business and community leaders to solve urban problems. GPUAC's programs provide a wide range of services, from community development, workforce development, health, neighborhood and community services, and education. We are here today to talk about NTI and work we can do together in the area of community economic and business development. I hope to impress upon you the tremendous impact that we can make if City Council will support us in our efforts 197 2/15/02 - WHOLE - BILL 020036 to work with the City towards seeing that NTI is a successful program. Each of these issues fits within in Mayor Street's Neighborhood Transformation Initiative and in particular within the neighborhood preservation activities. Jim Connor, whose bank will celebrate 150 years of service to the Philadelphia community next year, will speak at the end of my comments about a part of the initiative with the Reinvestment Fund, the Community Legal Services. And housing counseling agencies. GPUAC's Economic Development Projects Unit will also be working with the Neighborhood Transformation Initiative to make sure that there are opportunities for minorities and women as a part of the Mayor's initiative. I also want to talk a little bit more about the Community and Economic Development Committee, which I'll called "CED" for short while we come here to talk to you today. We want to make sure that as a part of your deliberations that the issues of predatory lending, financial literacy, and home-improvement lending are a key part of neighborhood preservation. Our CED Committee is 198 2/15/02 - WHOLE - BILL 020036 comprised of banks and other area corporations, CDCs which Rick Sauer co-chairs, and other community organizations, community development intermediaries, and local government officials. Led by the banks and CDCs, the committee members have recently charged themselves and GPUAC with bringing all necessary parties together to address these three critical issues. I know that everyone in this room 11 understands the devastation caused by predatory lending. It wipes out years of hard work by elderly homeowners, undermines stable neighborhoods, and hastens the decline of struggling ones. We all know that we need stronger protections to prevent fraud again City homeowners, but we also need bail-out funds to help victims of predatory lending, and we need to get better information in homeowners' hands and to offer them better alternative loan products so that they don't become victims in the first place. Our focus on financial literacy stems from the fact that suseptibility to predatory lending does not occur in a vacuum. Too few residents of low-and moderate-income communities understand our 199 2/15/02 - WHOLE - BILL 020036 financial system, too few understand budgeting and debt management, too few are economically empowered.
They go to the check cashers, they go to rent-to-own centers, and they open their doors to predatory lenders, and all of their hard-earned wages too often get sucked out of their pockets and out of the neighborhood. In the future, all Philadelphians will receive a good financial education in our schools, but for now, we hopefully have to play catchup. We need to reach people in classrooms and community centers and churches, on the job, by computer and newspapers that financial literacy cannot be achieved by classroom instruction alone. We also need a marketing and public- relations campaign that hits home. We need to motivate our citizens to learn how to take control of their financial futures. Of course, nothing motivates as well as opportunity. So if you want to stop predatory lending and have better-educated homeowners, we need to develop and market alternative home- improvement loans. The Redevelopment Authority has the Phil Loan Program, and every bank has at least 200 2/15/02 - WHOLE - BILL 020036 one home-improvement loan product. But without casting any blame, it's fair to say that many of these are 20th-century products chasing after a 21st-century problem. The predators capture the market that these loans were missing, and now we need to recapture that market. We need to develop user-friendly, flexible home- improvement loans that are more affordable than predatory loans, and then we need to market them all over the City, especially where people need them the most. We also need to address the improvement part of home improvement. Too many homeowners suffer from shoddy repair work by incompetent or unscrupulous contractors. We need to build work inspections and project oversight into more home- repair loans so that homeowners can assure themselves that they are getting the quality work they expect. Let's remember that many predatory loans are initiated by home-improvement companies. Predatory lending, financial literacy, home-improvement lending. These are three big neighborhood-preservation issues that require significant resources, including public funds, but 201 2/15/02 - WHOLE - BILL 020036 unlike demolition or some of the other parts of NTI, they do not depend on City government alone. Groups like ACORN and the Housing Counseling Association have begun to take back many neighborhoods from predatory lenders. GPUAC is developing innovative approaches to financial literacy. The Ogontz Avenue Revitalization Corporation enlists, among others, have developed neighborhood-based home-improvement loan programs that include contractor quality controls and that are helping to stabilize neighborhoods. All of these groups are working closely with banks and other lenders, and they are securing commitments from financial institutions to increase their lending and marketing efforts. With these grassroots initiatives sprouting up all over the City, there have been two missing elements that have prevented large-scale impact: The first missing element has been the coordination of these efforts. Groups have sometimes been working in isolation, sometimes at cross periods. And often, we have failed to leverage each other's strengths. GPUAC's Community Economic Development Committee has resolved that it 202 2/15/02 - WHOLE - BILL 020036 will be a part of changing that and has agreed that it will assist in a coordinating role. We want to work with all of those involved: ACORN housing agencies, CDCs, and of course banks, City Council and the Mayor to develop bigger and better initiatives to address predatory lending financial literacy, and home-improvement needs. The second missing element has been a commitment from City government that will devote the necessary funds to allow grassroots initiatives to succeed. The Office of Housing and Community Development has been supportive, and it can within its budget constraints move forward.
We are hopeful that through NTI, City government will invest significant public dollars towards these efforts. The inclusion of neighborhood preservation within NTI offers a renewed commitment by the City to invest its money in fighting predatory funding and expanding home ownership education and financial literacy and opportunities for homeowners to maintain their homes. Each of these activities will help homeowners have a safe and decent home and will help preserve neighborhoods. 203 2/15/02 - WHOLE - BILL 020036 In closing, I would like to remind us that the Neighborhood Transformation Initiative is not just a six-year plan for spending public dollars; the ultimate success of NTI will depend on our actions today, next year, and ten years from now. It will require an ongoing commitment by all levels of government and a long-term partnership between government, our residents, community groups, and the private sector. GPUAC has been building such partnership successfully for the past 33 years. We stand ready to do so again. We invite all members of Council and the City and we to join together to make sure that this initiative is a renewal for our community. Thank you very much. And I'd like Jim Connor just to say a few words about an initiative that has already been started as a pilot program with the Reinvestment Fund and Beneficial Savings Bank.
Thank you. Madam Chairperson, honorable members of Council, good afternoon. I am James Connor and I am with Beneficial Savings Bank. Miss Matlack-Turner has asked me to 204 2/15/02 - WHOLE - BILL 020036 describe a pilot cooperative effort to address the predatory-lending situation in the City. It is a joint effort, including Community Legal Services, Housing Counseling Association, Beneficial Savings Bank, and the Reinvestment Fund. The Reinvestment Fund initiated the program and has asked Beneficial to join them in this pilot program designed to refinance consumers out of high-cost predatory-loan situations. Community Legal Services, the Housing Counseling Association, or with the consumers on the issues necessary to extricate them from their current loan situation [sic]. Beneficial Savings Bank will process a new loan, get to it a closing, and assign it to the Reinvestment Fund, who will be the ultimate investor, with our bank servicing the loan for its duration. Rates, fees, underwriting criteria are essentially determined by the Reinvestment Fund, but they are consistent with the market terms currently available today. It is still a very new initiative; however we think it is a very important one and one that we can use as a model for a larger initiative going forward. 205 2/15/02 - WHOLE - BILL 020036 We are currently working with GPUAC, City Council and the Mayor's Office, as well as other various community leaders that Sharmain has alluded to to develop a program going forward to address this very necessary issue. I thank you for your time, and I'm available for any questions. Thank you.
Thank you. The Chair recognizes Councilman Cohen.
Thank you, Madam President. Do you think a city bank could play a role in helping assist private-banking industries?
I'm thinking there may be certain households that can't meet any kind of banking requirements with respect to the amount of risk involved.
That basically is true, Councilman, and I think it can be documented that there are certain people basically who cannot afford certain loans and basically should not get 206 2/15/02 - WHOLE - BILL 020036 them, and they should go through counseling to determine that and determine what their limits are, as well as part of the financial literacy that was alluded to by Sharmain that they should be education to who are the good guys and who are the bad guys.
Well, all the education in the world will not may not be able to raise their funding (inaudible).
That, unfortunately, is a fact of life; however, those who can, we want to make sure that they know who they can go to and know what their limits are and whether they can afford that.
Are there any 207 2/15/02 - WHOLE - BILL 020036 other questions from members of the committee? (No questions.)
Thank you. Sir, would you identify yourself for the record and proceed with your testimony.
Yes. My name is Galon Tyler from Kensington Welfare Rights Union. Good morning -- I mean, good evening -- good afternoon.
I've been here since 9, but I'm here to speak on behalf of our director, who's in Washington D.C. on some other matters. My name is Galon Tyler and I'd the lead organizer for the Kensington Welfare Rights Union. And or organization works with, like, hundreds of family every day who comes in that needs problems with, like, food, clothing, and housing problems. You know, if you having problems with utilities and other such and -- but we usually be the last stop when they are unable to obtain any other types of services from the City. We mostly work with people around the housing issue here. Right now we have, like, 208 2/15/02 - WHOLE - BILL 020036 currently two families that are a victim of -- they're fire victims that are currently waiting for some type of transitional housing from the City that we have living in some abandoned housing, waiting for some affordable housing from the City. Also, we have, like, a couple of domestic-violence families that are living in abandoned HUD houses, waiting for some affordable housing from the City. We have, like, a number of other stories that could I talk about all day that are people that are coming into our office that are in desperate need of, like, affordable housing. But my real reason -- what my real fear is that soon, there are going to be, like, new families that are going to be cut off when they reach their five-year time limit with TANF, and this summer, we're assuming that there's going to be tons and tons more people displaced, not being able to afford their housing, and we wonder where in the NTI plan is there a plan for these families that are not going to be able to afford housing. And we know that a great deal of money has been allocated for cleaning up the City of Philadelphia, but what plans has been made for the 209 2/15/02 - WHOLE - BILL 020036 soon-to be-crisis? This is why our organization is set up to protect the needs of the Philadelphia working-poor and would like to see a program and development consultant hired by the City Council to regulate the report -- to regularly report to the City Council and to the community on how the NTI program is going so that it's a problem or something that occurs, we can immediately address them and take some type of action. We think this is extremely important since we have seen firsthand how the City has already struggled to relocate families. By implementing this monitoring process, it might save us from a disaster in the years to come. So thank you for allowing me to speak here today, and also, the Kensington Welfare Rights Union is committed to working with the Philadelphia Affordable Housing Coalition to make sure that families making less than 18,000 a year have an opportunity to be able to live in some type of affordable, accessible housing.
Thank you very much. 210 2/15/02 - WHOLE - BILL 020036 Any questions from members of the committee? (No questions.)
Do we have anyone else to testify? Is there anyone else to testify? (No response.)
I believe we're waiting for a couple of members to return to the chambers. Councilman Nutter, did you want to be recognized since we don't have any other witnesses?
No, not really. I did have a couple questions. I wasn't in the first round, and I did have a couple questions on two items that were in the bill, and I just wanted to ask the Administration about it.
Would the 211 2/15/02 - WHOLE - BILL 020036 Administration please come forward. (Miss Wilkerson and Miss Smith return to witness table.)
Thank you. Good afternoon. On of the program framework in the bill -- and I meant to ask this question actually back in December -- there's, I guess, a bullet point or a diamond that talks about repair of streets, driveways, curbs and sidewalks and retaining walls, and provision of utility infrastructure and public facilities. The question was based on many, many conversations we'd over the years; obviously that's something that I'm certainly in support of and looking forward to. My question was, that's the only place either in the program statement, now program framework, or anywhere else that there is any reference to those particular items, and I didn't see it in, I think it's Roman numeral V under "Neighborhood Preservation Activities," which is -- I mean, that sounds like it's kind of a part of it, and so what I didn't understand was just, what was that going to be and how would that work? 212 2/15/02 - WHOLE - BILL 020036
Yeah. I think what we tried to do in structuring the financing is to preserve maximum flexibility so that, you know, as you go into a neighborhood and begin assessing what it is that's critical to stabilizing that neighborhood, we wouldn't find that, you know, that we don't have a strategy, and I think we meant to include that in the framework and in the bond financing structure, so that, you know, in the event that's an activity that is appropriate to undertake, there would be a vehicle for it. I think that the City's ability to do that is going to be extraordinarily constrained. It's not meant to supplant the City's Capital Program and Budget, but I think there are situations where you go into a neighborhood and, you know, it may be that the most appropriate thing to preserve the investment and the stability of a neighborhood is by addressing some of those issues, and that's why it was put there.
Right. No -- and, again, I'm glad that it was in there; the three of us have had a lot of conversation about that. From a programmatic standpoint, is it 213 2/15/02 - WHOLE - BILL 020036 something that would fit under that general category of "Neighborhood Preservation Activities," Roman numeral V on ?
Yeah. We're convinced that as the ordinance is currently constructed, you know, integrating both the service agreement and the program framework, you know, it will be a activity that is permissible and fundable.
It would also be a part of the development, you know, where you do land assembly for redevelopment activities so -- from a programmatic standpoint.
This list was intended to show the examples of types of things you can finance with tax-exempt financing.
Okay. Is it also possible, though, to use those funds -- I understand the redevelopment concept where you may have full-scale demolition and you're literally 214 2/15/02 - WHOLE - BILL 020036 rebuilding a block. Some of our conversations, though, has been more in the realm of pretty much fully stabilized neighborhoods where there is no 5 demolition activity, and this may be the activity. Are you saying even with the constraints, that you would be able to use these funds to do on a block that has full occupancy but is showing that type of distress or wear and tear, that you would be able to use the funds for that as well?
I think that it would be a permitted activity. You know, I think then there's the whole -- you know, I mean, it would be permitted. I think there's, you know, that you can use the whole budget trying to do that kind of activity.
So I think we have to refine it, but it would be a permitted activity, yes.
Okay. And, Miss Wilkerson, in your initial answer, you did make reference back to -- I think you said, paraphrasing, that you didn't want these plans to supplant or substitute for Capital Budget dollars. 215 2/15/02 - WHOLE - BILL 020036 I think you were not here on Wednesday, but I am sure that you got an update --
Yeah. There was a little bit of discussion with the City Planning Commission Director -- I know she has an additional title -- and a person from the Law Department about that particular issue, and I don't know that we've gotten to a complete resolution of that but, I mean, are you -- I don't want to stretch it any further than you're willing to go but, I mean, are you saying that there are these opportunities with capital dollars, or do you not want for the moment want to --
Oh, no. On that issue, I'd have to defer to the City Solicitor. I don't think that was the...
I mean, I figure with the two lawyers at the table, I might be able to get something by you but -- (Laughter.) 216 2/15/02 - WHOLE - BILL 020036
So while you were fully updated, you wish not to be a part of the discussion, right.
No. We're seeking clarification and guidance from the City Solicitor so that everybody will be on the same page on that issue.
Okay. A couple of last things. In, again, a slightly less distressed but still neighborhoods that are in need of various activities, what's your best idea at the moment of the blocks that have the one to three vacant, all others occupied, which the unfortunate universe of that is, usually in those neighborhoods, there are virtually no active CDCs because generally, people don't start a CDC to fix two houses on a block. And, again, in a lot of those neighborhoods, you have the storefront property phenomenon; it used to be a cleaners, it used to be a butcher shop, it used to be a store, it's usually got retail on the ground floor -- or formerly had 217 2/15/02 - WHOLE - BILL 020036 retail on the ground floor, often with a residential up top. Sometimes that's the only thing that's really a mess, but it's big and it's a big mess. Is anything targeted to deal with those kinds of situations as well as the one to three vacants with no CDCs in sight?
Yes. It would be the encapsulation strategy that would be targeted for that very kind of situation. We have identified the Housing Authority as a development resource for stabilizing properties. We are also working with and trying to identify home-builder/private- developer capacity to help us tackle that issue. I think that one of the good things that has been added to the process is the step that requires the Administration to really sit down and develop plans in reaction to a Councilmember's interest in tackling specific projects like that. And what we've committed is to come up with a strategy and also come up with the development resources so that we will be out there trying to identify the home builder, figure out, you know, can the developer really do it, is there a small 218 2/15/02 - WHOLE - BILL 020036 contractor active in that neighborhood that could be enlisted into the initiative. We've got to really cast the net much broader and bring additional development resources to the table, and I think that step in the development process will, you know, in the back-and-forth with City Council will really force us all to, you know, sit down and be much more creative and put real things in place.
In that same regard, tell me a little bit about -- just a little -- both on the encapsulation side as well as -- and I'm pleased to hear about the -- whether it's the home builder model or some other local neighborhood person that's kind of in the house renovation business or building renovation business. What I've not really been clear on, at least to date, having nothing to do with NTI -- we've been doing encapsulation for a couple of years. It was never crystal-clear what actually happened after encapsulation, which is a good thing in and of itself but, I mean, obviously, we do encapsulation, we still don't own the property, and what's the second step of the marketing of that 219 2/15/02 - WHOLE - BILL 020036 property? 'cause our goal, naturally, is not just the encapsulation; our real goal is putting a body in that house and having somebody live there.
And the framework speaks to that, that we can't just encapsulate for encapsulation's sake, that as part of that and running concurrently with that is the acquisition planning, and we see two types. For example, the properties that the City, on a test basis, encapsulated last year, we shared those addresses with members of the Board of Realtors, who sit on one of our stakeholder groups, because they may be able, you know, within their group, identify Realtors who could track down the owner and get it under agreement of sale and get it into the private market. Worst-case scenario is sometimes there is not a way we can avoid, let's say, a public process, in which case we've also simultaneously -- not sequentially, have scheduled or slated those properties for an Act 94 taking, and then once we have control, then we can bundle them, issue an 220 2/15/02 - WHOLE - BILL 020036 RFP, using a program like the Home Ownership Rehab Program and say, These properties are available under the HRP Program, we can provided up to $25,000 in subsidy. With the addition of the bond proceeds, we can expand that. We are talking about -- because we have more flexible income requirements with bond proceeds, the homeowner need not be, you know, just simply meeting the CDBG criteria. And that's some of the work that we're beginning to (indiscernible) out in some terms of the policy and programs with the Redevelopment Authority.
So that we can be responsive to communities where there isn't a CDC in line.
I think you touched on this earlier, and I apologize, and I'll take the very shortened response to it. There's been a lot of discussion either State or City or regulatory relief on either, I think, the Act 94 process, possibly even a sheriff's sale, everything in the realm of acquisition disposition. At the moment, without 221 2/15/02 - WHOLE - BILL 020036 locking yourselves into anything, if we got all the relief that we wanted in whatever the proposals may be, do you have a sense of how long it would take from identification, taking it in, and getting it out? I mean, do we have a particular goal in mind if we got every relief that we wanted in an ideal system?
We're starting the benchmarking process. We want to work with what we want as opposed to --
What we want to do is establish a very specific goal. In six months or nine months -- no more than nine months, we'd like six months -- we want that to be the goal. And what gets us there is the legislative reform, the application of appropriate technology, and that's -- and obviously, the one thing that has slowed it down a lot that no one talks about is a lot of times, when the request is made to acquire 222 2/15/02 - WHOLE - BILL 020036 the property, there isn't the cash to proceed with the condemnation. And so you wait for the cash to be made available before you can even proceed with the condemnation. So with the proposed $50 million for land assembly and relocation in NTI, that money is available for that -- for acquisition purposes so we're not waiting for cash to come on line in the future CDBG year to carry out an acquisition activity. So, Councilman, I think we would get back to you when we establish our benchmark goal, and by establishing those goals, then that forces us to look deep into the system on how to make improvements to it.
Okay. Lastly, I know there had been a little bit of discussion of this earlier, and I apologize for a bit of a procedural snafu. I did want to ask, though, at least on the record, your perspective on -- this is obviously unique, and the development of these various ideas, I think, deserve recognition. As we go through this process, I think we're anticipating NTI, or its framework or its 223 2/15/02 - WHOLE - BILL 020036 activities, to going on for somewhere in the neighborhood of three, five, seven years. (Indiscernible; parties talking over each other.)
I'm just going to move on from there, okay. (Laughter.)
In that context, in large programs that are multi-year and have various funding resources, in other situations, more grant-funded, foundation-funded kinds of activities, often there is kind of an ongoing or realtime, as well as a longitudinal study is often done. Is that something that the Administration would look upon favorably in terms of not only seeing what's going on and getting in essence a third-party evaluation, but also -- I mean, at some point in time, somebody has to tell the story of NTI and what it's done, the impact that it's had and things that we can learn from. Do you have any reaction to that? 224 2/15/02 - WHOLE - BILL 020036
We are talking about that. I mean, I think it's something we've talked about from the beginning that, you know, we set out goals when we first proposed NTI back in April, you know, we have goals for the different segments of the housing market. You know, we did stretch and have always talked from the beginning about monitoring and assessing how well we did do. And Pat, who has a history of coming out of the foundation world, has begun thinking about possible, you know, sources for funding that kind of assessment of the project, and I think that is fair, and are taking a look at that now.
And from just very, sort of like preliminary sort of, like, background conversations, when we first launched NTI, there is, I believe, interest in looking at an evaluative component to the initiative that we might be able to get private support for.
Right, and whether that might be local or even on a national level like Urban Land Institute or an entity like that?
I mean, I think it's important. I think these are -- and I think 225 2/15/02 - WHOLE - BILL 020036 that's -- you know, I think that is important. I think that, you know, I think it will help all of us, you know, as in the coming months, we start trying to propose programs and budget and, you know, we wrestle with what it is that gets funded and what doesn't get funded, I think it will be important, you know, to try to stick to the model and not just sprinkle dollars around, but always ask ourselves, you know, what's going to be the impact of this. You know, are we going to really stabilize neighborhoods, is this going to, you know, turn around an area and take something that is now a wasteland and make it, you know, a vibrant and redeveloped area. And I think that by, you know, asking the questions, by having an assessment, you know, a structured assessment done, you know, it's a way of keeping all of our feet to the fire.
Did I say that? I'm sorry. 226 2/15/02 - WHOLE - BILL 020036 (Laughter.)
On of the bill, it talks about working with the Councilperson in the district about bid packages related to demolition and encapsulation. Obviously, there are other programmatic activities, preservation activities and the like. Will that same protocol, I guess, if you will, or process and procedure extend to the other components of NTI, I guess, at least with regard to bond funds?
Yes, it does. And we outline that role and how that plays out under the -- for all activities: Blight elimination, land assembly, housing investment, and neighborhood preservation in the framework.
As we've said, I think one of -- as Joyce talked about in her open testimony, the conversations that we've had over the last months, I mean, one of things that really became clear to the Administration is putting in place the appropriate process. Sometimes we make assumptions that project advance when they really don't advance, and 227 2/15/02 - WHOLE - BILL 020036 sometimes it really is sitting up front and talking through what is that's needed to advance this; or if you run into a difficulty, why is that the case, how do you resolve that. Some things are totally unforeseen, you know. If a funding commitment from the housing-finance agency falls through. And so I believe that the process we outline in that conversation and in that dialogue is critical to the success.
Finished? Okay, are there any other questions or comments by members of the committee? (No further questions.)
This will conclude our public hearing. - - - 228 2/15/02 WHOLE - PUBLIC MEETING - BILL 020036
We will now go into our public meeting, and the Chair recognizes Councilwoman Blackwell.
Thank you, Madam President. A technical amendment is being submitted, and it has already been circulated, with regard to the Economic Opportunity Plan, so we submit that. Madam President, I move for the adoption of the amendment. (Duly seconded.)
It has been moved and seconded that the amendment be approved. All in favor will signify by saying aye. Those opposed? The ayes have it. And the Chair recognizes Councilwoman Blackwell.
Thank you, Madam President. I move that Bill No. 020036, as amended, be reported out of committee with a favorable recommendation and a recommendation for a suspension of the rules so as to be considered at 229 2/15/02 WHOLE - PUBLIC MEETING - BILL 020036 our next session of Council. (Duly seconded.)
It has been moved and seconded that Bill No. 020036 be reported out of committee with a favorable recommendation, as amended, and also a recommendation that the rules of Council be suspended so as to permit consideration at our next Council meeting. All in favor will signify by saying aye. Those opposed, nay? The ayes have it. I thank you all very much for your patience. Have a good weekend. (Proceedings end at 2:53 p.m.) - - - 230 CERTIFICATE I HEREBY CERTIFY that the foregoing proceedings of the Council of the City of Philadelphia's meeting of the Committee of the Whole of Friday, February 15, 2002, are contained fully and accurately in the stenographic notes taken by me and that this is a true and correct transcript of same. RE: Bill No. 020036 _______________________________, Josephine Cardillo Registered Professional Reporter and 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.)