The ayes have it, and that resolution is adopted. Mr. Decker, please read the title of Resolution No. 200716.
A resolution confirming the appointment of Diana P. Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 Cortes, Esquire, as the City Solicitor.
Thank you, Mr. President. Again on your behalf, I move for the adoption of the resolution. (Duly seconded.)
Thank you. It's been moved and seconded that the resolution has been adopted. All in favor say aye. (Aye.)
The ayes have it, and the resolution is adopted. Mr. Decker, please read the title of 210031.
A resolution confirming the appointment of Cecelia Thompson to the Board of Education of Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 the School District of Philadelphia.
Thank you, Mr. President. I move for its adoption. (Duly seconded.)
It's been moved and properly seconded. All those in favor indicate by saying aye. (Aye.)
The ayes have it, and that resolution is adopted. Mr. Decker, please read the title of Resolution No. 210032.
A resolution confirming the appointment of Lisa Salley to the Board of Education of the School District of Philadelphia. Stated Meeting February 18, 2021
Thank you. Chair again recognizes Councilwoman Quinones-Sanchez.
Thank you, Mr. President. I move for its adoption. (Duly seconded.)
Thank you. It's been moved and properly seconded. All in favor. (Aye.)
The ayes have it, and that resolution is adopted. Mr. Decker, please the title of Resolution No. 210033.
A resolution confirming the appointment of Reginald L. Streater, Esquire, the Board of Education of the School District of Philadelphia.
Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 Thank you. The Chair again recognizes Councilwoman Quinones-Sanchez on a motion for the resolution.
Thank you, Mr. President. I really want to thank these very highly qualified candidates for their willingness to serve on the School Board and I move for its adoption. (Duly seconded.)
Thank you. It's been moved and properly seconded. All those in favor of the resolution say aye. (Aye.)
They ayes have it, and that resolution is adopted. Mr. Decker, please read the tile of Resolution No. 200604.
Bill No. 200604, Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 entitled an ordinance to amend the Philadelphia Zoning Maps by changing the zoning designation of certain areas of land, located within an area by the Byberry Road, Woodhaven Road, the Poquessing Creek, and adjacent land south of Franklin Mills Circle.
Thank you, Mr. President. I move that Bill No. 200604 be withdrawn. (Duly seconded.)
Thank you. It's been moved and seconded that Bill No. 200604 be withdrawn. All in favor indicate by saying aye. (Aye.)
The ayes have it. Motion carries. Bill No. 200604 has been withdrawn. Mr. Decker, please read the title of Bill 210004.
An ordinance Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 authorizing and approving the execution and delivery of a Service Agreement between the City of Philadelphia and the Philadelphia Authority for Industrial Development relating to refunding of certain bonds previously issued to finance and/or refinance Alternative Funding Mechanisms for a portion of the unfunded actuarial accrued liability of the City of Philadelphia Retirement System implemented pursuant to the Municipal Pension Plan Funding Standard and Recovery Act; approving the issuance by the Philadelphia Authority for Industrial Development of bonds, notes or other evidences of indebtedness in one or more series to refund such funds; authorizing and approving the City's obligation to pay in full when due the Service Fee and other amounts payable under the Service Agreement.
Thank you. This bill has been read on two different days. The question now shall the bill pass finally. Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 Mr. Decker, call the roll.
Aye. The ayes are 16. The nays are 1. Majority of voting members have voted in Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 the affirmative. The bill passes. Mr. Decker, please read the title of Bill No. 210006.
An ordinance amending Chapter 19-200 of The Philadelphia Code, entitled "City Funds - Deposits, Investments, Disbursements," by amending Section 19-201, entitled "City Depositories," by authorizing the City Treasurer to deposit funds in Santander Bank, National Association.
This bill has been read on two different days. The question now shall the bill pass finally. Mr. Decker, call the roll.
Aye. The ayes are 18. The nays are 0. Majority of all members have voted in the affirmative. The bill passes. Mr. Decker, please read the title of 200656.
An ordinance authorizing the Commissioner of Public Property, on behalf of the City, to acquire fee simple title, or a lesser interest in real estate, by purchase, dedication, donation, condemnation, agreement in lieu of condemnation, or Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 otherwise, in parcels of land along the Schuylkill River and the Wissahickon Creek for public recreational purposes, under certain terms and conditions.
This bill has been read on two different days. The question now shall the bill pass finally. Mr. Decker, call the roll.
Aye. The ayes are 17. And nays are 0. Majority of all members have voted in the affirmative. The bill passes. Mr. Decker, do you have any additional resolutions?
A resolution authorizing the Committee on Housing, Neighborhood Development, and the Homeless to hold joint hearings with the Committee on People with Disabilities and Special Needs to examine the City's role in ensuring the accessibility of housing to persons with disabilities introduced by Councilman Johnson.
Thank you, Council President. I move for the adoption of the resolution. Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 (Duly seconded.)
It's been moved and properly seconded. All in favor indicate by saying aye. (Aye.)
The ayes have it, and the resolution is adopted.
And a resolution calling on Mayor James F. Kenney to establish and implement a COVID-19 "Operation Philly Special" mass vaccination campaign, using the Philadelphia Eagles Lincoln Financial Field, Black Doctors COVID-19 Consortium, religious institutions, Philadelphia health partners, colleges and universities and other outdoor facility locations as identified, to provide vaccines to Philadelphia residents and workers introduced by Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 Councilman Gym -- Councilman Domb.
Thank you, Council President. Before I begin my remarks in support of this resolution, I wanted to thank former Congressman Bob Brady for his coordination efforts and leadership in helping bring the Philly Special Coalition together. You know, Mr. President, seven days ago I agreed to withdraw my resolution, calling on the Mayor to direct the Health Department to put Operation Philly Special on track. At the heart of this resolution there's one simple message to the Mayor: City Council, this body, must have input into the decisions of where, how and when our constituents are to be vaccinated. A vote for this resolution is a vote for every Councilmember having a voice in where vaccination sites will be ramped up in each of our Councilmanic Districts and around the City. At the Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 heart of the Philly Special strategy is a vision to open drive-through and walk-up mass vaccination sites around the City, in churches, in parking lots and the Mann Center for Performing Arts and the largest site of them all, Lincoln Financial Field. " So let me take a few moments to double-down as well. Mr. President, our City Council helps the Mayor lead a City that prepandemic relied on 240,000 nonresidents coming in every day to work in our office buildings, eat in our Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 restaurants, enjoy our cultural institutions and, yes, pay our taxes. These privileged suburban residents, as our Mayor now calls them, pays half our City wage tax, almost half our City wage tax and makes our City one of the greatest economic engines in the region and indeed the country. And now in the time of the pandemic, we have to worry about them driving across City Line Avenue and we have to protect ourselves from them crossing the Delaware to steal our vaccines. What world is our Mayor living in. Every community in America regardless of race, creed, color or sexual orientation is confronting this moment as an opportunity -- I'm sorry, is confronting a scarcity of vaccines, and our Mayor chooses to use this moment as an opportunity to pit one community against the other. That's just not leadership. The Philadelphia Inquirer Editorial Board earlier this week called Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 the Mayor's argument against using Lincoln Financial Field confusing, as a simple identification requirement is really all that we would need to solve this issue. It's more than confusing. It's irrational and in the long run, dangerous. Colleagues, a few days ago the Philly Special Coalition released information regarding how other big cities and FEMA are working to solve the problem with big city mass vaccinations in both the quickest and most equitable manner. Here's what we found: They're all now deploying or have completed their stadiums as mass vaccination drive-through and walk-up sites. All of these cities are suffering the same shortage of vaccines as we are. Yet none of them, not one has decided to use this shortage as an excuse for failing to plan for the future. Mass drivethrough sites and walk-up vaccination sites are happening at their stadiums. Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 For the biggest cities of America, those with a million population or more, New York, LA, Chicago, Houston, Philadelphia, Phoenix, San Antonio, San Diego and Dallas, only one has no plans currently in place to use its stadium, and that is Philadelphia. Chicago stands ready. Dallas is now building out two stadium sites at AT&T and the Cotton Bowl with federal money and support from FEMA. But I want to take a minute to single out what took place at State Farm stadium recently. First, this is a stadium set outside of the city of Phoenix, Arizona. It sits in Glendale, Arizona, a White suburban area. Outside the city limits, President Biden and Vice-president Kamala Harris chose to announce their plan to vaccinate America at this stadium.
Despite the racial make-up of the city of Phoenix and the location of the stadium, they chose this site because they know something that should Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 be important to all of us in Philadelphia. They know that stadiums are the fastest way to distribute vaccines in large metropolitan areas, but also that these sites, if supported by their resources, offer the most equitable option for vaccine distribution. " And why would they say that? The answer to this question explains why this resolution and your vote is important today. C. and M&T stadium in Baltimore are being used right now to rectify the very inequities Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 our Mayor believes they symbolize. Heres why: Our Mayor believes that the only way to achieve vaccine equity is to put more small vaccination sites in underserved neighborhoods. That's why they're ramping up sites in charter schools, gyms, adult centers and independent pharmacies. Here is what the White House Task Force and every other big city mayor in America knows, the most efficient way to deal with racial inequity and vaccine distribution right now is to control distribution at mass vaccination sites and bring communities of color to them in partnership with trusted entities. That's why the President can speak of equity at a stadium in a White suburb serving a very large Latino population, because they all understand that no big city in America will ever have the capacity or the resources to vaccinate 50,000 to 100,000 people a week using normal neighborhood-based channels alone. And they certainly won't hit Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 immunity levels if we focus solely on building new channels in underserved neighborhoods. Don't get me wrong, they all understand that it would be better if we could vaccinate folks in the health deserts where they live. Do you think Black mayors around the country don't want to vaccinate communities of color in their neighborhoods? Of course, they do. They all have mobile vaccine units and community center programs in their plans as well. But that doesn't stop these mayors and their councilmembers from using stadiums as a means to achieving both speed and racial equity in vaccine distribution. C. Mayor Muriel Bowser or Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot refusing to deploy their stadiums to achieve the fastest vaccination rates in a fair and equitable system as possible. You don't hear these mayors railing against white Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 privilege as a reason for not putting in play with their cities' large assets they have in the fight against COVID. None of them deploy only community-based approaches to attack the problem the vaccine (inaudible). They also see that stadiums distributing a controlled supply chain of vaccines are a critical component to achieving speed and equity. Instead of excuses, they are building up their transportation systems right now to carry their residents to living in health deserts to where the vaccines are, using transportation systems as tools in the fight to achieve vaccine equity. Where in any Mayoral briefing on COVID has SEPTA been mentioned. That is why the District of Columbia right now can build equity in its distribution system through the use of zip code algorithms because they control the vaccines at their mass vaccination sites rather than give up the control of their vaccines to smaller Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 health systems and pharmacies in the neighborhoods. C. is using control of its vaccine supply to enforce racial equity goals, our Administration is pleading with people in Phase 2 from jumping the line and taking Phase 1 doses from those who need them most. When you control the vaccine supply and distribution, as we suggest at the Linc, you can force equity in distribution. When you don't, you're forced to hope and pray that people do the right thing.
In the Philly Fighting COVID and PHMC debacles, we saw what happens when you depend on hopes and prayers. President Clarke and my colleagues, we can't continue to watch from the sidelines as every big city in America moves to achieve racial equity through the use of stadiums alongside community-based approaches. We cannot watch FEMA resources be put to use at a smaller location that has its own logistical challenges to overcome. Not Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 when we're staring at a vacant stadium location fit for use and, in fact, being promoted across the United States as a model for mass vaccine distribution. All because our Mayor believes it's a symbol of white privilege. We must act today and call on Mayor Kenney to adopt Operation Philly Special as a critical component of our fight against this deadly disease and have a plan ready to implement when the vaccine arrives. And that means number one: Establish the Linc as Philadelphia's FEMA mega-site and begin working with the Eagles and FEMA to bring this site online as fast as possible. Linc alone can vaccinate more than twice the number of people, vaccinated through every current site in the City on the best vaccination week we have seen. While bringing the Linc online, work with the Mann Center, our partnering Black churches and parking lots in every neighborhood of the City to do the same. Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 Second, commit to vaccine resources to these sites to fulfill scheduled appointments. Third, work with SEPTA to establish a comprehensive system and schedule for trolleys, buses and subways targeting underserved communities to bring them to our Philly Special sites. Fourth, build one uniform web platform and telephone hotline not five months from now, but five weeks from now that allows people to register and schedule an appointment at a Philly Special vaccination site, scheduling to be based upon CDC prioritization and zip code algorithm ensuring equity. Mayor Kenney, if you have a better strategy than Operation Philly Special vaccinating Philadelphians in a faster and more equitable way, then we need to see it. Today what we've seen is the use of prepandemic vaccination distribution channels to which you've added sporadic vaccination programs at the Liacouras Center, the Convention Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 Center, an adult community center, a Charter School gym and a building on the campus of a University. If that's all we've got after one year of planning, then it's time to let Councilmember Bass and Council representatives on the Philly Special Coalition sit down with Commissioner Farley and OEM to pull together a new plan, one that is big enough and bold enough to meet the health crisis of our generation. Mr. President and members of City Council, it wasn't the Xs and the Os of the Philly special play that led us to the Super Bowl LII and the Lombardi Trophy. What's the imagination? Imagination, teamwork and leadership to fight and win against all odds. We are in the battle for so much more today. This is our lives at stake. We can beat this pandemic if we work together. I ask for your support on this resolution and I beg Mayor Kenney to start a positive dialogue with this Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 body. There are 17 willing leaders on this Teams meeting. We all want to help. Let us show the nation that we as a City have not forgotten what it takes to make Philly special. Thank you, Mr. President. I move for the adoption of this resolution.
Before we call for a second for the adoption of the resolution, Council President Darrell Clarke has virtually left. The rostrum is now at his seat on the floor and I am presiding. And the Chair recognizes Councilmember Clarke for comments.
Thank you, Councilwoman Madam Chair. So let me start by saying that my primary focus as a Council President is to support the Members. That is what I have always done and that's what I will always continue to do, above and beyond sometimes being criticized. I don't care, right. I'm going to always Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 do that. So last week since the Councilman brought it up, I had asked Councilman to hold off on the resolution so we can start the process of us working together, talk to some Members to make sure that their perspective is on all of this and captured in that conversation, started a conversation with the Administration, forwarded a document that reflected some of the issues that were brought up. And trust me, I have had many, many disputes with this Administration more than anybody ever knows, right, on a number of issues where we didn't see eye to eye and that's just the nature of the business. But last week what I did say is one thing we can't do, because this is about the people of the City of Philadelphia, not about me, Councilman Domb, Jim Kenney or anything, the personalization of this issue I don't think is productive. That's just my perspective as a person, that's not Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 presiding as a Council President. So I'm allowed to say what I can't say up there. Tomorrow in the hearing on the procurement legislation, there will be a number of issues I anticipate that will be addressed that was raised as a result of concerns of Councilmembers, and I won't get into any of that today. And I say that to say that we need to make sure that things are codified. We need to make sure that when we do mass vaccinations sites, I hope that nobody believes that we shouldn't be doing that at some point because we do need to accelerate the pace, although we've had some hiccups in Washington in terms of being able to give us a timeline that reflects our ability to do that in an expeditious manner, but we have to work together. I'm going to say it again. We have to work together, because this is too important for us to get into this back and forth. I don't like some of Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 the things that come out of the Administration's spokesperson's mouth or whomever, right, because I'm a member of Council and I make that very clear. But I don't think us going down this path that is back and forth, because we have to figure this out and we have to figure this out together. I have been told that there's a willingness to work together. We will see. Because I've been told a lot of things in the past and it didn't materialize. I'm not that naive to think that just because somebody said something, that it will actually happen. But moving ahead, starting tomorrow we need to be able to talk through this. There are issues with respect to mass vaccination sites, smaller sites, mid-level sites. And the one thing that we need to do as the representatives of the City is to make sure that the access to those sites is maximized based on our knowledge. And as Councilmembers -with all due respect to Mayors -- Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 Councilmembers have the basic knowledge of neighborhoods that Mayors just don't, right. That's just the simple reality. So I say all that to say that I want us to stay focused. We need to stay focused on the end of that tunnel, which is ultimately getting herd immunity. The only way we're going to achieve that is for us to pull this together. If everybody has the appropriate input, has proper representation on whatever Committees and other types of Advisory Groups that are currently in place, have the appropriate checks and balances in terms of transparency, all those things that you have indicated that need to happen, and I'm just going to be optimistic and suggest that they will, in fact, happen. So I just wanted to say that. I was not prepared to give a speech.
But my good colleague and friends mentioned my name on a couple of occasions, so I felt the need to have to say something. So I just wanted to put that Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 out there for the Members. This has to work, and I can't emphasize this enough. You can't get into the personalization of this issue. That is so counterproductive. We're going to have a whole lot of time to do that when the budget season comes up, trust me, and other initiatives. But just like the issue that we talked about before with the gun violence in the City, we talked about working together, we're going to have to do that on this one. So, Councilwoman Madam Chair, thank you for allowing me to step down virtually from the podium for a moment, and I'll step back up and I'll stop talking.
Thank you, Mr. President. Mr. President, do you want us to have the second now?
I actually think that Councilwoman Gym, it's my understanding, wanted to make a comment.
Thank you, Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 Council President. Thank you very much. I just had a very brief comment and I very much appreciate your remarks. First of all, I want to acknowledge the passion, the investment, the undoubted frustration that all of us on Council share and are reflected by the remarks made by the resolution's sponsor. Again, I think that as mentioned, one of the things that we're trying to figure out is how to move forward and to have some clarity about the issue. I think if the resolution -part of my concern about the resolution is both procedural. I would like to give it a little bit of time. An introduction and a vote on the same day doesn't allow us -- maybe some of us have been updated on the conversations with the Mayor's team, but it would be good for more of us to be part of that. So I personally haven't had a chance to kind of sit down and figure out where this is going actually, and I do think Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 that that's an important aspect of it. So I'm not comfortable voting for a resolution on the same day that it's introduced, especially when it has to do with some serious issues around public confidence and trust. And then the last thing I'll say is that, one, I appreciate the Council sponsor noting the other sites that are extremely important, but the resolution does primarily focus in on the stadium. And while I understand that we do need multiple different types of sites once vaccines come into play, you know -
Point of order, Mr. President. Is this resolution before us without a second?
I don't believe it's before us if it hasn't had a second.
So, Mr. President, second. The motion was made. I have now seconded. Councilwoman Gym's comments are allowed.
Thank you very much, Madam Chair. So I just wanted to clarify that the Dodger's Stadium, for example, has had to close in part because stadiums while being important places or could be important places, mass vaccinations can only be working if we have mass vaccines. And so, we want to just make a match. And I think part of the appeal is to just think this through. I'm your partner on all of this. I want to underscore that. Nothing about my position on this has Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 anything to do with the lack of support, partnership and unity around our City needing to do better, our people needing to be vaccinated and for equity to be the number one issue around the public health. But public health as we heard, and I'll comment later on last night, around schools and the return to schools relies as much as a sense of direction and unity and engagement as it does on what may seem right on paper for all of us. So I just want to say that I want to just acknowledge all my Council colleagues who are deeply invested, deeply passionate about this issue, we share that if we don't necessarily share the outcome on the vote.
Thank you, Councilwoman. Chair again recognizes Councilman Domb.
Thank you, Council President. First of all, I appreciate your leadership. I really Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 do. I just want everyone to be aware that I want to do this in a positive way. I want to do this the right way and I look forward to that happening. So whatever you can do to help us make that happen, I really would appreciate it. Thank you.
Yes, I mean that's what I'm supposed to do. I clearly understand my function and my role. And fortunately, being able to be a part of this body and working with these awesome Members has given me an opportunity to work with this group and move things forward. I think that everybody has the ultimate goal in mind. The question is the participation and everybody being able to have an input, everybody being in a position to move the needle forward, and no pun intended, as it relates to getting this done. I'm just optimistic. As I said, I'm a glass half full kind of guy. Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 And I think it's just too important to not be successful. But again, we need to keep the focus on the citizens. All the back and forth, we can do that at another time. Keep it focused on getting these people vaccinated in these neighborhoods. And then whatever way makes sense, then that's what needs to happen. I know as a District Councilperson, and I know I'm breaking the rules, I'm not supposed to be talking up here but I am responding to the Councilman, I know in my District a site that could accommodate a mass and outdoor mass vaccination site. I'm sure a lot of other Councilmembers, both District and At-large, that should and will be a part of the conversation. So we got to stay focused. We can't get into this back and forth, because there are people who would rather see us have a food fight on the floor of Council than see us achieve our main goal, which is taking care of the citizens. So Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 thank you. So it's been a call for a vote. It's been a second. We will proceed with those in favor of the motion on the resolution Philly Special. All those in favor indicate by saying aye. (Aye.)
The ayes have it and the resolution is approved.
Thank you. Councilwoman Gauthier, are you okay over there? I saw something flash in front of you.
All right. I couldn't tell what it was. All right. Thank you. Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 Mr. Decker.
The resolution authorizing the Committee on Public Health and Human Services to hold hearings examining current and best practices to ensure youth have a successful transition from foster care to thriving adulthood.
Thank you, Mr. President. I move for adoption of the resolution. (Duly seconded.)
It's been moved and properly seconded. All those in favor indicate by saying aye. (Aye.)
Those opposed? Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 (No response.)
They ayes have it, and that resolution is adopted.
There are no other resolutions on the Final Passage Calendar, Mr. President.
Thank you very much, Mr. Decker. That concludes our Calendar for today. Prior to recognizing Members regarding speeches, I will note for the record at this time we will use the chat feature available in Microsoft Teams to allow Members to signify that they wish to be recognized. In order to comply with the Sunshine Act, the chat feature must only be used for this purpose. With that said, are there any speeches on behalf of the Minority? Chair recognizes Councilman Oh.
Thank you very much, Council President. I want to talk today about minimum force training. As we have Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 talked here in Council, there's a homicide rate, there's violence on our streets, people want to be safe and they want police. We have in Councilwoman Sanchez's District a new mini police station integrated with other services. At the same time, there is a need to ensure that we are investing in our police officers in a way that assures the public that they are safe in every manner. There is maximum force training and it has to be balanced with minimum force training. I'd like to just refer to a book that has been very insightful for me. I read it when I was in the military. The title of the book is On Combat: The Psychology and Physiology of Deadly Conflict in War and Peace. And what that deals with is what happens to the mind and body when engaged in deadly conflict. There's a story about a police officer who trained in case a gun was pulled on him and he would have his son surprise him in the house wherever and Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 he would snatch the gun from his son and give it back to his son. And then one day in a mall when he was off duty, a robber came out, pulled the gun on him, he snatched it away and gave it back to the robber. That's muscle memory. That's reaction under stress. Minimum force training is simply training in a more consistent manner; law enforcement to have options under stress, to not use force when it's not necessary, to use the least amount of force needed when it is required under stress. And I just have to emphasize just like people sound great in the shower or they play tremendous sports when nobody is guarding them, when stress comes, it's a whole other thing. And when your life is in danger, there's a whole other thing going on. I want to recognize Bucks County District Attorney Matt Weintraub for being the first in our region to examine instituting minimum force training to train law enforcement on how Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 to have the confidence and knowledge to perceive things in a manner under stress where they may decide they do not need to use any force or if force is necessary, how to use force that will do the least amount of harm, the least amount of unintentional harm possible when it is required. It does take courage. It does take (inaudible). And I appreciate that's what he's doing. On Monday February (inaudible). I'm a little frozen here.
So I want to say on Monday, February 22nd there will be a demonstration discussion in Langhorne, because that's in Bucks County. I would hope that here in Philadelphia we would undertake this type of training to invest in our Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 officers to make sure that's something they can do. I will also say that there is a group that will be representing and that is our African-American martial arts community, and that is a separate community that arose during the Civil Rights Movement. That's why they are their own unique group, and I'm glad that they're attending and looking at this. The inclusion of the community is critical to ensuring that this is a success, so I appreciate what DA Weintraub's doing. And I've certainly been an advocate of that here in Philadelphia and I hope we will undertake the same. Thank you very much, Council President.
Thank you, Councilman. On behalf of the Majority, Chair recognizes Councilwoman Parker.
Thank you, Mr. President. And, Mr. President, Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 I just wanted to note for the record I had to connect with my phone because my Wi-Fi was a little choppy, sir. So that's why I had to discontinue my camera. Yesterday, Mr. m. in broad daylight there was a mass shooting at Broad and Olney, which is represented here in the City by both Councilmember Bass and myself. Eight people were shot near the Olney Transportation Center. The victims were two females, ages 36 and 17 as well as five men, ages 21, 22, 48, 53, 70 and 71. They were shot in their backs, ankles, legs and arms. The oldest victim, a 71 year-old-man, is currently in critical condition with gunshot wounds to his back and both legs. Two people were taken into custody. And I do want to thank for the record both the Police Department and the SEPTA police for working together in order to make that happen. While, Mr. President, I am being very Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 intentional about attempting to control my pitch right now, but I like all Members of this body in the conversation that we had before, we all went live today, very angry and frustrated about seeing this continue to happen in our City. In the midst of this, Mr. President, I know it sounds pretty perverse, but thank God we were and are in the midst of this pandemic at this time and schools are currently closed. Because those of us, again like we talked about early on, again not because we were read white papers, but because those of us who are even Members of this body, we know we travel through that corridor to get to school, to get home, to get to work. If schools had been open, Mr. President, things could have been so much worse. I want people to know that the eight people that were shot, the youngest one was 17. And as I said, the oldest one is in critical condition. I Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 know Councilwoman Bass, my office and many others, have been working for years to improve the area around the Broad and Olney commercial corridor. We also know that there's an open air drug market there. And we also know that there are many people who don't live in that community, but that is the location that they have chosen to buy and sell drugs at that transportation center. We also know that there are people in this area who need mental health services, drug rehabilitation services and permanent housing. And while we know that we can't arrest our way out of this problem, let's be really clear, that my telephone was ringing and I'm sure Councilwoman Bass' was at the same time with people saying we deserve to be safe in our neighborhood and right now, we don't feel safe even coming near that commercial corridor. Unfortunately this area, again it's been a drug and an economic crime hub in recent years. And while we know Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 people need help, we do need public safety and we don't just want to focus on criminal records. But let's be clear, our people need the support of the police department in that area doing their first job, which is to protect and serve our community. I also want to state for the record that we know that there are folks who need wraparound services, the mental health services, the substance abuse resources, education and workforce training. In essence, Mr. President, we need a resource hub located directly at Broad and Olney, a one-stop shop where people can get help and get access to assistance that they need. And for the record, for the benefit of the people who are listening, and particularly those who live in that community, I want you to know that before this mass shooting occurred yesterday, my office just met with DBHIDS, and they are planning to deploying their street team to the area, working with the Office of Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 Homeless Services at the same time. We know we need those street teams.
We need people working with the folks who live and work in that community to find solutions that work for that neighborhood. We all know we're in a public health crisis with this pandemic. And as Councilmember Jones and Johnson, yourself, Mr. President, Councilwoman Gauthier have noted, this gun violence is a public health crisis as well. So far 270 people have been shot so far here in 2021. And that's an average, Mr. 5 people a day. That's a 66 percent increase in gun violence over last year's pace, with a 48 percent increase in homicide. And it's no surprise that these shootings are happening in predominantly Black and Brown communities. Just like these same said communities have been the most negatively impacted by COVID-19, they've also been the most negatively impacted Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 by this level of gun violence. I know we need a proven evidence-based on-the-ground set of programs to be implemented in our hard neighborhoods. We need to measure these programs' effectiveness. I know there's been an increase in gun violence around the country. Councilwoman Jones talked about that earlier in our conversation. And we need to be paying attention to what other cities are doing right now that may be better than us. And so, Councilwoman Gauthier, I'm looking forward to your role in leadership on that National League of Cities Task Force and Committee to Reimagine Public Safety. I know we don't have to reinvent the wheel. We can learn from other cities' and other countries' best practices and implement the most effective solutions now. There is no silver bullet of solving the surge of gun violence, but I know that what we are currently doing is not enough. In addition to that, Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 Mr. President, I've got to open up a text message here and state this. We have a commercial corridor and neighborhood plan that has been developed for the Broad and Olney corridor. And, Mr. President, I want to note that this plan was put into action not from the top down, but it came from the bottom up, with partners like Einstein, the Logan Civic Association, the A Concerned Civic Association, the North 5th Community Development Corporation that will soon become the Olney Community Collaborative. In addition to that, we just secured a new Commercial Corridor Manager through our Commerce Department that is actually starting next week in the PACDC corridor training program. In addition to that, we funded initiatives from Ruscomb to Godfrey on Broad and installed over 10 security cameras in that area. We've employed our PHL-TCB in that program to give people access to resources so that they can clean up the Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 corridor. But, Mr. President, all of that has not been enough. We have work to do in the short-term, focusing on people. In the medium term, we have to focus on the corridor, our neighborhood, our assets and the anchor institutions. But we must walk and chew gun at the same time. You talked about, Mr. President, Council working together to address this issue. But I know in this area here at Broad and Olney, Councilmember Cindy Bass, State Senator Art Haywood, who's been extremely helpful in funding many of the programs that I just announced to you, all that we have already ensured that they were active in that area and all of the elected officials, we will work collaboratively to do what we can do to improve the quality of life at that Broad and Olney commercial corridor. Thank you, Mr. President. And thank you, colleagues.
Thank you, Councilwoman. Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 Chair recognizes Councilwoman Gym.
Thank you very much, Council President. Last night I just want to thank the Committees on Children and Youth and Education for a marathon public session on the potential reopening of school. As we know yesterday, the School District of Philadelphia announced that it would be delaying the reopening of school basically for another week until around March 1st. But last night we had a chance to hear significantly from the public, but many of us have gotten the emails, we've certainly gotten the phone calls talking about concerns that have been raised. I want to go through a little bit about why it mattered. Last night there were more than 50 testifiers. We had over 300 respondents to a survey. There were three hours of questions from Councilmembers to top policy labs Dr. David Rubin, who's been advising Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 school districts all around the country as well as here in Philadelphia, and more than two hours of it was devoted to Superintendent Hite. And additionally, there was almost five hours, six hours total of public testimony. This cannot have happened without the significant partnership of many of the individuals who worked towards this and especially with the partnership of the Education Committee and the Children and Youth Committee. And our goal was very clear, we wanted to have a place where our constituents could feel heard, respected and responded to. And what we understood from last night is that our public schools are just more than about opening closing doors, having schedules, putting timetables on the map. They're rooted in public trust. They're rooted in engagement and the intrinsic relationship between our schools, our children and families, our homes and our Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 neighbors. It was fundamentally about -what we heard last night more than anything else, the importance of communication and trust and the need to really build for a full reopening of schools. No matter what would have happened either on February 22nd or March 1st, more than 90 percent of Philadelphia students will still remain at home in remote learning and less than 7 percent of students would be in a hybrid environment going two days a week. So we really need to focus in on the broader school reopening, what it takes to build back the confidence and trust of more than 130,000 families at 200 public school buildings all across the City, with more than 12,000 staff members, which include building maintenance workers, our cafeteria workers, paraprofessionals and many others that make up the life of the school community. First and foremost, I just Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 really want to express gratitude for all the parents, educators, school staff, principals and community members, some of whom had waited hours to testify. There was incredibly passionate testimony from individuals, from comments, from principals who are deeply confused about basic protocols that the District was promoting. I'm deeply moved by a Building Engineer Raymond Jackson, who had just a set of recommendations that he thought were really basic, from the importance of having functioning boilers in school, which many schools do not have, to just clearing out overcrowded classrooms that are filled with junk basically, to make his work easier. There were so many teachers who testified. I'm thinking about Kiara Coleman, a single mother, who's a food service worker who contracted COVID, but continued afterwards and beforehand to keep working because she must, and making sure that she really loved her Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 job and taking care of young people. I'm also thinking about parents like September Fisher and many others who's reached their wit's end. There's no question that virtual learning has been frustrating for many us. On Council who are parents as well with children learning in the household, we understand that.
And other folks like Anna Perng and Mira Macononi reminding us that there's so much to do with special attention to children with special needs, immigrant youth and virtual learning at home. What we heard was the immense amount of stress and burden that everyone has been under, students and families, teachers, school staff, administrators and how incredibly grateful again that we are to everybody for their service because they have been educating and taking care of our young people during this last 360-something days or 340-something days. And I think on behalf of our Council, we wanted to Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 convey to them once again how grateful we are for their service through a very, very difficult time. But I also think it's really important to understand that one of the central through lines that we heard across individuals, not just from one group of people, was that there's a profound lack of trust with the School District. We heard from individuals who wanted to both be heard but also more importantly wanted to be responded to about legitimate and longstanding concerns that have been raised by communities across the City, especially by Black and Brown communities and immigrant communities which have been hit hard by the COVID pandemic, by the epidemic bottoming out of our City as well as a legacy of racism and of educational disparities that have been long neglected by the District, our City and our state. We need to understand that our goal has to be about finding these Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 public forums and to push the District to answer the questions of their constituents. Our ultimate goal has to be about bringing our young people, our school staff and our communities back to schools that are safer, that are healthier and that are better equipped to support our young people more than they ever were before. No public health protection is delivered through a website, a mandate or a press conference. It's actually co-created on the ground. It's got to be lived with the people who have to enact them and who also suffer the consequences. And I'm just very grateful for my Co-Committees for being partners in that and trying to see a path forward as we work through this time. Thank you very much.
Thank you, Councilwoman. Chair recognizes Councilman Johnson.
Thank you, Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 Council President. I was up last evening just reflecting about the work that I do, and it's no different than in past years as we address the surge of gun violence that has an impact not only on us as elected officials, but me as an AfricanAmerican young man who grew up in this City and who are raising two African-American young men who are also living inside this City. And I know during this upcoming budget session, there was a report early on this week that there's a $450 million budget deficit. But there will be hearings asking for input as it relates to what do the public think our priorities should be when it comes to this upcoming budget process. And I just want to state for the record that there is no other pressing issue right now that we are facing beyond the pandemic than gun violence. We are on the path of seeing more than 650 murders if we go on the Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 same trajectory that we're doing right now. And so, I wanted to put that out there as it relates to the work that we are doing. I look forward to all of us wrapping our heads around how do we address this issue comprehensively from a policing standpoint and how our Philadelphia Police Department are engaging and building the bridges of trust with our residents, looking at it on a deeper level of how we are providing social services to our most vulnerable populations so young men won't pick up guns in the first place and most importantly, the management structure as it relates to how we are coordinating and collaborating and strategizing in making sure that all of our City agencies are working and rowing in the same direction when it comes to addressing this issue of senseless gun violence. And this is a social justice issue. Because at the end of the day, Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 there's Black and Brown children dying on a day-to-day basis, and we still don't see the level of outrage across the City of Philadelphia when it comes to addressing this issue of the sense of urgency when nevertheless, that's the role that we have taken on as Councilmembers, but most importantly in the community. The community is demanding that this issue be addressed aggressively, and I'm looking forward to working with my colleagues in making sure that we find ways to not hit a target of 500 to 600 murders during the end of this year. So I just felt the need to just state that for the record. That's how I have been feeling, not only just because of the shootings yesterday, I had a 16-year-old shot in my District in Southwest last night outside 7-Eleven, but I also had a 15-year-old murdered last week in Grays Ferry. And so, it only makes my resolve stronger, but we have to aggressively get to the bottom Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 of making sure that our young people aren't picking up guns, but most importantly that people feel safe. And right now, it doesn't feel safe as residents here in the City of Philadelphia. When we go in and out of our houses, people do not know that depending on where we're going, we are Councilpeople we are civilians as well with family members who we are raising. So those are my statements, Council President, for the record as it relates to the state of gun violence here in the City of Philadelphia. On another note, a happy note, I want to acknowledge our Majority Leader in her new position as the first African-American woman serving as Chair of the Delaware River Port Authority, so I want to acknowledge her. That's a great position as we look at the economic development progress of moving the City of Philadelphia in this region. So I just want to state that for the record and congratulate our Majority Stated Meeting February 18, 2021 Leader. Thank you very much, Council President. And thank you for your leadership as well.
Thank you, Councilman. I made a call to congratulate the Councilwoman. The first thing I asked her to do is please do not raise the bridge toll as high as New York. It is $15 to go across the bridge in New York. It is crazy. Thank you, Councilman. Chair recognizes Councilman Thomas.