Stated Meeting 1 2/24/2022 COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA STATED MEETING Via Microsoft Teams Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Thursday, February 24, 2022 10:15 a.m. PRESENT: COUNCIL PRESIDENT DARRELL L. CLARKE COUNCILWOMAN CINDY BASS COUNCILWOMAN KENDRA BROOKS COUNCILMAN ALLAN DOMB COUNCILWOMAN JAMIE GAUTHIER COUNCILWOMAN KATHERINE GILMORE RICHARDSON COUNCILMAN DEREK S. GREEN COUNCILWOMAN HELEN GYM COUNCILMAN KENYATTA JOHNSON COUNCILMAN CURTIS JONES, JR. COUNCILMAN DAVID OH COUNCILMAN BRIAN J. O'NEILL COUNCILWOMAN CHERELLE L. PARKER COUNCILWOMAN MARIA D. QUINONES-SANCHEZ COUNCILMAN MARK SQUILLA COUNCILMAN ISAIAH THOMAS MICHAEL A. DECKER, CHIEF CLERK Stated Meeting 2 2/24/2022
Thank you, and good morning to everyone. We're going to get started, but before we begin the Council session today, I would like to make the following announcement: Due to the continuing threat to public health from COVID-19, City Council is currently meeting remotely. We are using Microsoft Teams to make this remote meeting possible. Instructions for how the public may view the meeting and offer public comment are included in the Stated Meeting notice that was published in the Daily News, the Inquirer, and the Legal Intelligencer prior to the meeting, and can also be found on PHLCouncil.com. I now note that the hour has come. The Clerk will please call the roll to take attendance, and members that are in attendance, just say a couple of words to make sure that your image is displayed on the screen. Mr. Decker, please call the roll. Stated Meeting 3 2/24/2022
Good morning, Council President, colleagues, and the City of Philadelphia.
Good morning, Council President, colleagues, and the City of Philadelphia.
Good morning, Council President. Good morning, colleagues. And good morning, Philadelphia.
Good morning, Council President. Good morning, colleagues. And good morning to our city.
Good morning, Council President. Good morning, colleagues. I am present.
Councilman Johnson. (No response.) Stated Meeting 5 2/24/2022
Good morning, Council President. Good morning, Council colleagues. I'm present.
Good Stated Meeting 6 2/24/2022 morning, Council President. Good morning, colleagues.
Good morning, Council President, colleagues. Present.
Good morning, Council President. Good morning, colleagues. I'm present.
And good morning. And I think Councilwoman Brooks is here now.
Good Stated Meeting 7 2/24/2022 morning, Council President. I'm present. Thank you.
Good morning, Council President. I'm present. Councilman Johnson.
Councilman Johnson and Councilwoman Brooks are in fact present. Thank you very much. We've established our quorum. So we're going to start with our invocation, and to give our invocation this morning, the Chair recognizes Pastor Clarence Wright of Love Zion Baptist Church. He is here today as my guest. I would ask all members and guests to please bow your heads for the invocation.
Good morning to all, to our honorable Councilmembers and the President of our Council. This is the final week of Black History Month, so to start off this Council session, I would like to Stated Meeting 8 2/24/2022 our city who is worth recognizing and share some of his words. In our Black christian faith tradition, we have the Bible, which is our sacred text, but we also have the hymn book, which is also important. So as an invocation today, I want to read the words of the hymn "We'll Understand It Better By and By," which is by Philadelphia native Charles Albert Tindley. This hymn has encouraged me and I think it speaks to all that we're going through in our city and our nation. It says, we are often tossed and driven on the restless sea of time, somber skies and howling tempest oft succeed a bright sunshine. In that land of perfect day, when the mists have rolled away, we will understand it better by and by. We are often destitute of the things that life demands, want of food and want of shelter, thirsty hills and Stated Meeting 9 2/24/2022 trusting in the Lord, and according to his word, we will understand it better by and by. Trials dark on every hand, and we cannot understand, all the way that God would lead us through this blessed promise land. But he guides us with his eye, and we'll follow until we die, for we'll understand it better by and by. Temptations, hidden snares often take us unawares, and our hearts are made to bleed, many a thoughtless word or deed, and we wonder why the test when we try to do our best, but we'll understand it better by and by. By and by, when the morning comes, when the saints of God are gathered home, we'll tell the story how we've overcome, and we'll understand it better by and by. Gracious God, our creator, bless our city, bless this Council, and help us to do your work. In the name of the one who Stated Meeting 10 2/24/2022 and who still guides us, we pray. Amen. (Amen.)
Pastor, thank you so much. Thank you. We really appreciate your spiritual guidance this morning. Thank you so much. And our next order of business is the approval of the Journal of the meeting of Thursday, February 17th, 2022, and the Chair recognizes Councilman Squilla.
Thank you, Mr. President. I move that the Journal of the meeting of Thursday, February 17th, 2022 be approved. (Duly seconded.)
Thank you. It has been moved and properly seconded that the Journal of the meeting of Thursday, February 17, 2022 stand approved. Stated Meeting 11 2/24/2022 by saying aye. (Aye.)
The ayes have it, and our Journal is approved. And our next order of business is request for leave of absence, and the Chair recognizes Councilman Squilla.
Thank you, Mr. President. On behalf of the members of Council, there are no requests of leave of absence today.
The Chair thanks the gentleman. We're now going to have a motion on the Sunshine Act, and the Chair recognizes Councilman Squilla for a motion concerning certain legislative matters that may arise during the course of today's session of Council that were Stated Meeting 12 2/24/2022 on the Calendar prior to the circulation of today's session.
Thank you, Mr. President. I move that any of the following matters, if considered today, may be added to the agenda for this session of Council and, as required by law, subsequently published on the amended agenda after the consideration of those matters: resolutions authorizing hearings, amendments to bills on first reading, the consideration of bills vetoed by or re-called from the Mayor, resolutions taking substantive action to be voted on in this session, a motion to withdraw a bill or resolution that is not on the Calendar, and a motion placing a bill or resolution on or returning a bill or resolution from the Suspension Calendar that is not listed on today's Calendar. The purpose of this motion is to provide the public with notice concerning possible actions by Council Stated Meeting 13 2/24/2022 to be included in the Calendar that was published prior to today's session. (Duly seconded.)
Thank you. It's been moved and properly seconded that the legislative matters stated by Councilman Squilla may be added to the agenda for today, should those matters arise during the course of the session of Council. All in favor indicate by saying aye. (Aye.)
The ayes have it and the motion carries. And our next order of business is communications. And I would ask the Clerk to please read the messages from the Mayor and any other communications that he may have in his possession. Stated Meeting 14 2/24/2022
From the Mayor to the President and members of the Council of the City of Philadelphia, I am transmitting herewith for the consideration of your honorable body an ordinance amending Chapter 10-700 of The Philadelphia Code, entitled "Refuse and Littering," by revising the annual fee for neighborhood sanitation and cleaning services and exempting owner-occupied duplexes from the annual neighborhood sanitation and cleaning services fee requirements; all under certain terms and conditions.
Is that it? Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Decker. Our next order of business is the introduction of bills and resolutions. And by way of a reminder, we are asking that all resolutions, including privileged resolutions, be placed on the Final Passage Calendar for the next session of Council, unless they Stated Meeting 15 2/24/2022 are being referred to committee. In our current remote environment, this procedure will provide the appropriate opportunity for public comment. I would like to thank you very much in advance for your anticipated cooperation. Mr. Decker, would you please read the titles of the legislation that's being offered today by our members.
Yes, Mr. President. Councilwoman Parker offers one bill and one resolution. On behalf of Council President Clarke, an ordinance amending Section 2-305 of The Philadelphia Code, entitled "Office of Property Assessment; Chief Assessment Officers; Powers and Duties," by further providing with respect to the manner in which assessments are determined for certain properties that are subject to resale restrictions; and by providing for additional reporting requirements with Stated Meeting 16 2/24/2022 respect to such properties.
Mr. Decker, I just want to make sure everything is formalized. It's not clear that Councilwoman Parker may be here today, so I'm a little concerned by having the legislation being offered by her if she's not present. Can you read that again and have it being offered by Councilman Jones. Sorry about that.
Councilman Jones offers one bill and one resolution, entitled "An ordinance amending Section 2-305 of The Philadelphia Code, entitled 'Office of Property Assessment; Chief Assessment Officers; Powers and Duties,' by further providing with respect to the manner in which assessments are determined for certain properties that are subject to resale restrictions; and by providing for additional reporting requirements with respect to such properties." Stated Meeting 17 2/24/2022
Also on behalf of Council President Clarke, a resolution authorizing the Philadelphia Land Bank to dispose of 809 West Firth Street and 2955 North 8th Street located in the 5th Councilmanic District.
Councilwoman Gilmore Richardson offers one resolution, entitled a "Resolution declaring March 6 through 13, 2022, during Women's History Month, as Women in Construction Week in the City of Philadelphia, and honoring Women in Nontraditional Careers for their commitment to support, increase, and advance the participation of women in construction, manufacturing, and transit careers in the Philadelphia region."
Councilman Jones Stated Meeting 18 2/24/2022 offers two resolutions, entitled a "Resolution honoring and congratulating Philadelphia native Arthur 'Art' McNally, for his career's outstanding impact on modern football officiating and his revolutionary induction into the Pro-Football Hall of Fame as the first ever on-field official to be enshrined."
And a resolution recognizing and honoring former Philadelphia Eagles coach Richard Albert "Dick" Vermeil for his distinguished 15-year NFL coaching career and congratulating him on being inducted into the National Football Hall of Fame in 2022.
Excuse me. Stated Meeting 19 2/24/2022 Excuse me. For the record, just for the record, Mr. President, that's co-authored by the sports member, which is Isaiah Thomas.
Councilman Johnson offers two resolutions, entitled a "Resolution honoring the life and legacy of comedy legend Bob Saget, a Philadelphia native and Temple University graduate, on the occasion of his passing."
And a resolution recognizing Philadelphia's own DJ Diamond Kutz for her selection as a co-host of the upcoming reboot of the seminal Stated Meeting 20 2/24/2022 television program, "Yo! MTV Raps."
Just for clarify for the listeners, Michael Decker, It's DJ Diamond Kutz, just for the record.
There you go. Got to get it right. Thank you, Councilman.
Councilman Green offers one resolution, entitled a "Resolution recognizing Temple University James E. Beasley School of Law on the 125th Anniversary of its founding."
The Chair recognizes Councilman Green. Did you want to be recognized? Stated Meeting 21 2/24/2022
Not on this matter. It's in reference to the Consent Agenda and bills called up. I'll ask to be recognized later.
Councilwoman Brooks offers two resolutions, entitled a "Resolution expressing the Philadelphia City Council's firm support for workers at Starbucks in Philadelphia who are attempting to form a union, and urging Starbucks to accept card check neutrality."
And a resolution honoring the life, work, and accomplishments of Jacqueline "Jackie" Wiggins, whose dedication to serving, teaching, and advocating for marginalized populations has immeasurably strengthened Black communities and the City of Stated Meeting 22 2/24/2022 Philadelphia as a whole.
Councilwoman Gauthier offers two resolutions, entitled a "Resolution honoring the life and work of Reverend Dr. Evelyn C. Graves, for her lifetime of dedication to community activism and innovation in the creative and performing arts through the founding and leadership of Evelyn Graves Ministries."
And a resolution authorizing the Philadelphia City Council Committee on -- the City Council Special Committee on Gun Violence Prevention to conduct public hearings to explore the role of the Philadelphia Roadmap for Safer Communities Tactical Team as part of the City's comprehensive response to unprecedented gun violence.
Councilman Thomas offers one resolution, entitled a "Resolution honoring and congratulating Champion of the Week and Black Business Crawl organization, the Philadelphia 76ers Buy Black program, and past recipients Spergo and Girl Contracting, Incorporated."
Councilman Squilla offers one resolution recognizing and honoring Michael J. Bradley Jr. as the Grand Marshal of the 250th Annual Philadelphia St. Patrick's Day Parade.
Councilwoman Bass offers one resolution, entitled a "Resolution honoring the Philadelphia Tennis Club for being the oldest Black-owned tennis club in the country."
Next Stated Meeting 24 2/24/2022 week's Calendar.
Councilman Oh offers two resolutions, entitled a "Resolution recognizing and honoring Dr. Delana Wardlaw and Dr. Elana McDonald - the 'Twin Sister Docs' - for their outstanding contributions to the City of Philadelphia and crucial leadership during the COVID-19 pandemic."
And a resolution recognizing and celebrating March 6th as Lithuanian Independence Day in the City of Philadelphia.
There are no other bills or resolutions being offered today by the members, Mr. President.
Thank you very much, Mr. Decker. That concludes our introduction of bills and resolutions. Stated Meeting 25 2/24/2022 There are no reports from committee, so our next order of business is the consideration of the Calendar. Being no bills on our First Reading Calendar, the Chair recognizes Councilman Squilla -
I'm sorry. The Chair recognizes Councilman Green.
Thank you, Council President. I'd like to request that Resolution 220125 be moved from the Consent Agenda to be put on the Final Passage Calendar and that Bill No. 210685 be held.
Thank you, sir. Stated Meeting 26 2/24/2022 right. Thank you, Councilman Green. Our next order of business is the consideration of the Calendar. There being no bills on our First Reading Calendar, the Chair recognizes Councilman Squilla for a motion concerning the resolutions on the Final Passage Calendar.
Thank you, Mr. President. I move that the rules of Council be suspended as to permit the use of a Consent Agenda to consider the following resolutions on the Final Passage Calendar: Resolution Nos. 220146, 220147, 220148, 220150, 220151, 220152, 220154, 220156, 220157, 220158, 220159, and 220160. (Duly seconded.)
Thank you. It has been moved and properly seconded that the rules of Council be suspended to permit the use of a Consent Agenda to consider the Stated Meeting 27 2/24/2022 2ND READING resolutions just read by Councilman Squilla. All in favor indicate by saying aye. (Aye.)
The ayes have it, the motion carries, and we will consider the Resolution Consent Agenda shortly. The Chair again recognizes Councilman Squilla for the purpose of calling up bills and resolutions on the regular Second Reading and Final Passage Calendar today.
Thank you, Mr. President. In addition to the resolutions being considered on the Consent Agenda, the following resolutions and bills are being called up from the Second Reading and Final Passage Calendars today: No. 220155, 220009, Stated Meeting 28 2/24/2022 2ND READING 220010, 220082, 210956, 220006, 220079, 220080, 220001, 220002, 220077, 210902, and 220051. All other bills and resolutions are being held.
And I think 125 should also be added to the regular and Second Reading.
That's on the regular. It was taken off Consent.
Council President, real quick for clarification, how about 210685?
Oh, that's Stated Meeting 29 2/24/2022 being held. Thank you.
Thank you. Thank you, Councilmembers. Before we proceed, we will have our public comment session. We're going to take a brief five- to ten-minute recess to give our technology professionals some time to connect the speakers we have for today's meeting. It looks like we have a significant amount of individuals testifying today, so we'll probably need all of that time. Let's take a brief recess to allow our technology people to connect our speakers. Thank you. Be back shortly. (Short recess.)
Thank you. Thank you, and we are back. Thank you very much for your patience. So now that everyone is connected to the meeting and before Stated Meeting 30 2/24/2022 considering the resolutions and bills we have before us today, we will consider the public comment as follows: Public comment must concern matters on the Second Reading and Final Passage Calendars for possible action at a session of Council. A speaker on any of those matters must sign up in order to testify. You must call 215-686-3406 by 3:00 p.m. the day before the session to sign up for your public comment. When you call, we will take your name, your phone number, the number of the legislative item you are commenting on and whether you are in support of or against the legislation, and add your name to the list. We will telephone each person of the list during the Council session and invite them to our remote meeting. Today given the significant volume of people we have to testify, your time will be two minutes. So please adjust your testimony to reflect a Stated Meeting 31 2/24/2022 two-minute time limit. In order to be fair to all those wishing to speak, though, I intend to hold faithfully to the established time limit. And once invited to the meeting and asked to begin your testimony, a timer will be started. We will then monitor your remaining time throughout your testimony, and when there are 30 seconds remaining to your time, you will be reminded of this. Once your allotted time has passed, you will be asked to conclude your remarks, and shortly thereafter you will be muted and disconnected from the remote meeting. I also reserve the right to limit the number of speakers where repetitious comments are being made on the same subject matter, which could affect callbacks for public comment at a meeting. But please be aware that the public meeting is being recorded. So because the meeting is public, Stated Meeting 32 2/24/2022 participants and viewers have no reasonable expectation of privacy. So by continuing to be in the meeting, you are consenting to being recorded. I want to thank you very much for your participation, and I will now ask the Chief Clerk to please read the first name on our list of our speakers today. Mr. Decker.
The first speaker today is Alison Whittenberg, commenting on 210396.
Good morning. State your name for the record and please proceed with your testimony.
Hi. I'm Alison Whittenberg and I am just going to quote Nelson Mandela: It's never too late to do the right thing. I bought my family home to live in it and it was wrongfully sold, and this sale must be overturned and vacated. I've gone through all the channels. And Stated Meeting 33 2/24/2022 I guess what disturbs me is, there was a stay on the property when it was sold. So there's a lot of instances where the law isn't following the law, and I keep going to the law to try to correct it. But I think we've reached the point where we must go back in order to go forward, and as I said, my house was sold even though there was a stay on it, even though there was no diversion court, there was no service. And this has been going on. Some of the comments that I had gotten just in asking about this and when I had tried to rectify it is, "You don't have to live there, just go and buy another home." "We deal with hundreds -sorry; thousands of properties. We can't expect to get everything right." And then lastly, "I sympathize." I got that a lot. I've been to the Board of Ethics, the counselor's office, the Attorney General's office, the Judicial Stated Meeting 34 2/24/2022 Review Board, Internal Affairs, several different agencies and also, you know, trying to rectify this in court. I think there needs to be a detailed audit. And this is not going too far back in history, but this has been happening, and I think instead of just putting a Band-Aid on it or prolonging things, this has to be -- has to have a detailed audit of what exactly is going on, because a stay, it seems like it can be leapfrogged and there's sealed bids going on and -- sorry. I hear this, but I just want to say I really hope that this is taken seriously, because people need what they worked for all of their life. They need their homes. This is happening a lot to Black and Brown people. It's a systemic problem, and it must be seriously addressed. Please make history and do the right thing by the residents of Philadelphia. Stated Meeting 35 2/24/2022 Thank you. Thank you for giving me time to speak.
Thank you. Thank you for your testimony. We appreciate it.
Good morning. State your name for the record and please proceed.
Hi. My name is Daniel Trubman, T-R-U-B-M-A-N, and I wanted to take this opportunity to highlight once again that despite the rhetoric from so many Councilmembers about the importance of affordable housing in Philadelphia, we learned this week from reporting from Taylor Allen in Axios that the Habitat for Humanity project in North Philadelphia had been reduced in size to placate local NIMBYs. If Council Bill 210848 had passed in the fall as originally intended, seven households would already Stated Meeting 36 2/24/2022 be on their way to being housed. Instead, this Council acquiesced for several months of delay and reduced the number of affordable homes that will be built, all in the name of defending the illegal parking lot. It is my understanding that Bill 210848 will now pass this week. It won't actually come before this Council until April, but I hope the progressive members of this Council will recognize their continued deference to councilmanic prerogative is contributing to the housing accessibility crisis in the City. We cannot build an inclusive city for all as long as we allow free parking to be a higher priority than housing all Philadelphians in a high quality, affordable homes. Thank you.
Thank you so much for your testimony. We appreciate it.
Deborah M. Stated Meeting 37 2/24/2022 Figart, commenting on 210956.
Hello. My name is Dr. Deborah M. Figart. I'm a Ph.D. economist and I live in the Logan Square neighborhood. I'm speaking in favor of Bill 210956 to create a Philadelphia Public Financial Authority. The economy and our public health, these are two interrelated concerns in the pandemic era. The economy is not some abstract concept. There would be no economy without people. The goal of any economy is, therefore, economic wellbeing. That means full-time living-wage jobs contributing to local economic development. In our current economy, such opportunities are insufficient. Here's some evidence: According to a study by the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland, bank lending to small businesses has dropped Stated Meeting 38 2/24/2022 since the Great Recession, but small businesses are key to jobs and economic development. According to the U.S. Small Business Administration, 99.7 percent of U.S. firms with paid employees are small businesses, designed as less than 500 employees. Both current and budding entrepreneurs in our city have limited or no access to affordable capital and credit. A Public Financial Authority would help. I have published a peer-reviewed economic impact study of a proposed authority in the City of Philadelphia. The overall takeaway is that every $1 billion in new lending or investments by the Authority would yield approximately 142 million of increased earnings in Philadelphia, 3,200 new jobs, and one and a half billion in our metropolitan area gross product. Thank you.
Stated Meeting 39 2/24/2022 Thank you very much for your testimony. We appreciate it.
Good morning. State your name for the record and please proceed with your testimony.
My name is Peter Winslow. I'm a resident of Philadelphia and I'm a member of the Philadelphia Public Banking Coalition. Thank you, President Clarke and members of City Council, for this opportunity to provide public comments in support of Bill No. 210956 to establish a Philadelphia Public Financial Authority. Today as we fear for the people of Ukraine, you are providing hope for the people of Philadelphia by establishing the Philadelphia Public Financial Authority. As we witnessed the tax on democratic processes elsewhere, you are reasserting democratic values in Stated Meeting 40 2/24/2022 Philadelphia by establishing the Philadelphia Public Financial Authority. We applaud your confidence in yourselves and in the people of Philadelphia. You are asserting leadership in the face of skepticism. You are demonstrating imagination in the face of pessimism. You're exhibiting courage in the face of defeatism. At the forefront of a national movement to democratize money, you're advancing the American Project started here in Philadelphia by Quaker colonists and then pursued by Benjamin Franklin, Alexander Hamilton, and the practical visionaries who were your predecessors. Establishing the Financial Authority is akin to asserting a declaration of independence for our money. By using the well-established structure of Pennsylvania's Economic Development Finance Law, Act 102, and innovative ways, Philadelphia will pioneer the development of a more robust Stated Meeting 41 2/24/2022 and more equitable local finance ecosystem. Please establish the Philadelphia Public Financial Authority as an investment in the future of Philadelphia, the empowerment of our communities, and the prosperity of our citizens. Please approve the amendments today and enact Bill 219056 next week. Please do so unanimously. Thank you so much.
Thank you for your testimony. We appreciate it.
Good morning, members of City -- Stated Meeting 42 2/24/2022
Good morning, members of City Council. My name is Stan Shapiro and I am speaking as Vice Chair of Philly Neighborhood Networks. People often say that budgets are moral documents because they tell us how governments are going to treat those they govern with society-shared resources. Bill 210956 creating the Philadelphia Public Financing Authority is a moral document for the same reason, and it makes the right moral choices, deploying City resources to meet the neglected needs of communities across Philadelphia. Those vested in the status quo tell us that the long-term mission of PPFA to create a bank they can hold and invest City deposits is a fool's errand. Well, it feels like there's something deeply racist about the assumption that our diverse city can't do the same thing Stated Meeting 43 2/24/2022 that North Dakota did over 100 years ago. North Dakota contains half the population of our city and has built a robust and powerful $7.5 billion bank. I say we can do the same if we simply have the courage to think big. And what are the consequences, moral and otherwise, if we leave our money in conventional banks? We all know how badly big banks have treated the Black and Brown people of our city. I need not say more on that. But let's also never forget that the big banks almost destroyed the entire economy of this country and this city less than 15 years ago. And while the big banks were bailed out of the holes they dug for themselves, cities like ours were left to find their own shovels. We've also heard that this is a bad bill because we can't trust our government to manage our own money, but the financial industry, which holds and manages our money now, is the most Stated Meeting 44 2/24/2022 heavily penalized in America, having been fined the staggering sum of $331 billion, with a B, over the last 20 years for a wide variety of deceptive practices. It's as if the business model of the big banks is fraud. How can we justify keeping the people's money in companies like that even on a moral or a practical level? The choice of this Council could not be more stark. Continue the status quo that has left Philadelphia the poorest big city in America or try something different, standing up a new institution whose mission will be laser focused on helping the left-out people of our city and doing so as the primary investor of City assets. I know you'll make the right choice. Thank you.
Thank you. Thank you for your testimony. We appreciate it.
Daler Khamidov, Stated Meeting 45 2/24/2022 commenting on 220051. (No response.)
Good morning. State your name for the record. Please proceed with your testimony. (No response.)
Good morning. My name is Vesyl Kushmir and I'm a small business owner and I come from Ukraine. We was comply with all the emergencies like COVID-19 situation. We was comply with all the rules and regulation for that period of time, and we keep on doing that, you know. And I'm talking about the Bill 220051, the -- you know, what you call that? The salary -not the salary. The paid leave time. So it's going to hurt us bad. Stated Meeting 46 2/24/2022 Eighty percent of our people, of our clients, is coming from out of state, and for us like really doesn't matter. It's going to be -- we're going to have a business in Philadelphia or (unintelligible). So, you know, the reason why we still here, because we have employees here. And we started business a while ago, not too while ago, but because we have people in Philadelphia who want to work with us. Right now like some people, some employees going to take advantage of that. They might take that two weeks, you know, even though they don't need it, and that's another expenses from the business. We don't have like a huge margin in that or a big margin. We count every penny, and we will have to move to other city because the regulations are going to affect us really bad. Thank you for your time. I'm very sure you're going to make the right Stated Meeting 47 2/24/2022 decision. Thank you.
Thank you for your testimony. We appreciate it.
Good morning. State your name for the -please proceed.
Hello. I'm Stephanie Marsh, your favorite administrative aide -- Administration aide. Good morning, President Darrell Clarke and this esteemed Philadelphia City Council. I'm commenting today in support of Resolution No. 220152, which recognizes the contributions of Dr. Ethel Allen. Thank you to the sponsor, Councilmember Kendra Brooks, who, like Dr. Allen, is a Black woman representing a minority party. I called Dr. Allen Aunt Ethel, Stated Meeting 48 2/24/2022 because she was a family friend. She knew me before I was born. Her brother, Sidney, was my dad, Omega fraternity brother and my godfather. Her sister-in-law, Louise, is my mother's cousin. It takes a village. I was lucky enough to be in her village. Born in 1929, Aunt Ethel was raised at 23rd and Nicholas Streets in North Philadelphia. Her dad, Sidney, had a tailor shop on the corner. She was educated in parochial schools and graduated from Hallahan High School. She went on to West Virginia State College and majored in chemistry and biology, minors in math, as she desired to be a dentist like her uncle. By the way, the second Black female Philadelphia Councilmember was Augusta Clark, who also went to West Virginia State College. They were there at the same time. Reverend Leon Sullivan also went there. Dr. Allen later graduated from Stated Meeting 49 2/24/2022 Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine, which is PCOM. After a residency in Michigan, Dr. Allen came home, began her practice at 15th and Columbia Avenue, which is now Cecil B. Moore. She called herself the "ghetto practitioner," as most of her patients were underserved. Dr. Allen became a physician. Gussie Clark became a lawyer, both from the same HBCU, one was a Delta, the other AKA, both of them members of The Links. Dr. Allen is a charter member of the Pentail (ph) Links. In 1971, Dr. Allen gave up her practice for politics and ran for the Fifth District of City Council. So before there was Cecil B. Moore, John F. Street, and Darrell Clarke, there was Dr. Ethel Allen representing North Philadelphia as a republican. She championed women's rights, minority rights, healthcare for the poor, employment, and education. Stated Meeting 50 2/24/2022 In 1975, she ran as an at-large candidate for City Council and won. Rizzo was the Mayor at the time. She later was on the national stage and gave the seconding speech for President Ford at the Republican National Convention. She later was appointed as Pennsylvania Secretary of the Commonwealth. She was named one of the 12 outstanding female politicians in the nation by Esquire Magazine. Aunt Ethel was very bright, no nonsense, no mincing of words, had a presence that was intimidating and daunting. She called herself the FBI fat, Black, and intelligent. A few years ago, Councilmember David Oh sponsored a resolution to honor her and presented it at the school. There's a scholarship in her name at PCOM. She died in 1981 at the age of 52. She suffered from breast cancer and heart disease. Stated Meeting 51 2/24/2022 Many of you on Council today stand --
-- on Dr. Allen's shoulders. Thank you, and please adopt Resolution No. 220152.
Thank you. Thank you so much. Appreciate it. Awesome story. Thank you.
Good morning. State your name for the record and please proceed.
Hello. My name is Aaron Wise. Thank you, Council President and Council. I'm calling on resolution Ms. Elsie Wise, who was my mother, who was a longtime West Philadelphia resident and formed the West Powelton Community Concerned Council. Stated Meeting 52 2/24/2022 She was a (unintelligible) woman and mentor of the neighborhood. She made sure that the people of the neighborhood strived for excellence. She was well known and she also achieved a great deal in her passing. She was also one of the first members to hold a non-profit for the past 60 years. She's also made sure the citizens of the neighborhood strive for excellence, and she's also made sure the youth are very taken care of. She also established what's called the West Powelton Drummer Line and also a member of the community executive board. She leaves paths to her son and grandson a well-established community and a well-established neighborhood. I thank you for this time.
Thank you. Thank you for your testimony. We appreciate it.
The next speaker Stated Meeting 53 2/24/2022 is Antoine Mapp, commenting on 220155.
Good morning. Please proceed with your testimony.
Yes. I'm here. Is it possible you can come back to me? I'm in court right this second. Can I give you like five minutes? The judge is calling me.
You can try to come back to us while we're doing public comment. Mr. Decker, next.
Good morning. State your name for the record and please proceed with your testimony. (No response.)
State your name for the record and please proceed.
I'm getting a message she's not connected, Mr. President. I'm getting a message from Owenda.
My name is Geraldine Brown. Good morning, President Stated Meeting 55 2/24/2022 Clarke and Councilmembers and the Wise family. I'm the Director of Dunlap Citizens and Concerned Center and I'm here to make a resolution for Ms. Elsie Wise and her family. I'm stating that for the 30 years that we have networked in the community, I want to say that she's one of the trailblazers for community and youth, and we truly honor her for her dedication and legacy that she has blessed to carry on in the West Powelton community. Her focus more so was the youth, and she displayed that with community services as well. I've been blessed to have the pleasure of networking with her from Dunlap Community Center as well, and I just want to announce that we appreciated the legacy that she has left for her community and our community from the Dunlap Citizens and Concerned.
That's my comment on 220155, and thank you very much. Have a good day.
Thank you, and thank you for your testimony. We really appreciate it.
Good morning. Please proceed with your testimony. (No response.)