What We're Reading: Week of November 30, 2020

Here's what we're reading this week about the projects, people and policies driving local development:

Inquirer: In a rare Council of the Whole meeting that went late into the night, a package of bills was assured passage imposing a tax on residential construction, labeled “Development Impact Tax”, reducing the abatement on commercial and industrial construction, and providing an additional year until the reduction to the tax abatement on residential construction goes into effect

by Sean Collins Walsh, Updated December 1, 2020

Philly.gov: Mayor Kenney has appointed a new Director of the Commerce Department

by Philadelphia Department of Commerce, November 19, 2020

Inquirer: City Council passed a bill introduced by Councilmember Domb regulating real estate wholesalers, in an effort to protect existing homeowners from receiving payment far below current market value for their homes when they sell

by The Inquirer Editorial Board, Updated December 2, 2020

Inquirer: A proposal is afloat to fund housing vouchers nationally in a manner similarly to food stamps, to address the rise of “rent burdened” tenants

by Inga Saffron, November 24, 2020

The Inquirer provides a summary of how the tenant eviction mediation program has been operating v the standard court process

by The Inquirer Editorial Board, December 6 , 2020

StateTech: Philadelphia, and the work of Penn Praxis, is one of eight studies highlighted in a recent article about Smart Cities and the use of technology to address city planning issues during the pandemic and beyond

by Phil Goldstein, November 16, 2020