Here's what we're reading this week about the projects, people and policies driving local development:
Plan Philly: Labor beats real estate industry in fire damper fight
Jake Blumgart, January 24, 2019
Sheet metal workers turned out in force in City Council chambers as Councilwoman Blackwell moved her fire damper bill, without previously agreed upon amendments, creating millions of dollars of unnecessary, but now legally required, work annually for a union supporting her reelection bid.
Plan Philly: Helen Gym floats 10-year tax abatement fixes
Jake Blumgart, January 24, 2019
Helen Gym, entering a crowded season of candidates running for At-Large Council seats, puts out a laundry list of possible real estate tax abatement proposals to see which one might give her the best talking points in her reelection bid.
Plan Philly: New York developer wins Budd site at auction
Ryan Briggs, January 25, 2019
The 26 acre former Budd manufacturing plant site in Nicetown was sold at auction to a developer new to Philadelphia, but with a history of mid-market site reuse.
Kristen A. Graham, January 24, 2019
With the help of a local “Friends” group, the public elementary school in Fairmount was able to reopen its shuttered library.
Inquirer: City officials resolve case of ‘missing’ $33 million
Claudia Vargas, January 26, 2019
With $500,000 so far spent on an outside audit, the “missing” $33 million in City accounts has been reduced to $528,000 still to be fully accounted.
Next City: Mayors Believe Tax Incentives Are Overused — By Other Mayors
Rachel Kauffman, January 22, 2019
A survey of 110 US Mayors showed that all complained about the use of tax incentives to attract new businesses…by other cities