PHILADELPHIA | Highrise Development Thread IX - Page 307

1487 · #**6121** Posted **Jan 12, 2015, 7:51 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by PhillySteaks

In other news....there is a god.

Darrell Clarke will not be running for City Mayor.

sounds good to me.

MetaldDeth81 · #**6122** Posted **Jan 12, 2015, 8:14 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by PhillySteaks

In other news....there is a god.

Darrell Clarke will not be running for City Mayor.

In other news Darrell Clarke remains president of a mostly ass-backwards City Council.

jsbrook · #**6123** Posted **Jan 12, 2015, 8:16 PM**

Great news! The only better news re him would be if he resigned from Council. Now who do we have to run against him in the 5th district?

Quote:

Originally Posted by PhillySteaks

In other news....there is a god.

Darrell Clarke will not be running for City Mayor.

McBane · #**6124** Posted **Jan 12, 2015, 8:32 PM**

I don't think it's great news at all. It's more of a pick your poison. As mayor, he's in charge, but only for eight years, then it's sionara. As a city councilman, he'll be with us until he's dead or retired. Philadelphia voters are too uneducated and ignorant (sorry to say!) to vote out even the biggest and most crooked imbeciles.

Exhibit A - These two idiots admitted taking bribes and they still won their races! http://www.philly.com/philly/news/politi..._legislators_to_take_oath_of_office.html

Sorry Jsbrook, but the chances are slim anyone will even run against Clarke, let alone actually beat him. Developers and corporations are lining up to write him checks as the status quo is preferable to getting on council's bad side.

EDIT: Brown received 95% of the votes while Waters ran unopposed. And this is after they admitted taking bribes!

PhillySteaks · #**6125** Posted **Jan 12, 2015, 9:01 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by McBane

I don't think it's great news at all. It's more of a pick your poison. As mayor, he's in charge, but only for eight years, then it's sionara. As a city councilman, he'll be with us until he's dead or retired. Philadelphia voters are too uneducated and ignorant (sorry to say!) to vote out even the biggest and most crooked imbeciles.

Exhibit A - These two idiots admitted taking bribes and they still won their races! http://www.philly.com/philly/news/politi..._legislators_to_take_oath_of_office.html

Sorry Jsbrook, but the chances are slim anyone will even run against Clarke, let alone actually beat him. Developers and corporations are lining up to write him checks as the status quo is preferable to getting on council's bad side.

EDIT: Brown received 95% of the votes while Waters ran unopposed. And this is after they admitted taking bribes!

True..City Council seats are quite powerful unfortunately. I don't really know who is electing this guy in the 5th district. Where most of his votes come from. I wouldn't expect it to be Logan/Art museum. Who knows, keep praying that some of the business leaders in the city, and young people, get fed up with it. But to be honest with ya, a deadlocked council and mayor is probably the best outcome for this race than a pro-union mayor and council.

josef · #**6126** Posted **Jan 12, 2015, 9:19 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by PhillySteaks

True..City Council seats are quite powerful unfortunately. I don't really know who is electing this guy in the 5th district. Where most of his votes come from. I wouldn't expect it to be Logan/Art museum. Who knows, keep praying that some of the business leaders in the city, and young people, get fed up with it. But to be honest with ya, a deadlocked council and mayor is probably the best outcome for this race than a pro-union mayor and council.

I was just looking up who ran against him in the 2011 primary, and it was someone Suzanne Carn. Never heard of her. But, the commissioners' site is really nice now for past election info. Check it out - http://www.philadelphiavotes.com/en/resources-a-data/prior-year-election-results/2011-primary

1487 · #**6127** Posted **Jan 13, 2015, 1:11 PM**

Rarely are long time incumbents even challenged. Its not just about voters being dumb, its about lack of options. You actually need a challenger in a race to defeat a long time office holder. In most of these districts there is little interest in knocking off the incumbent.

jsbrook · #**6128** Posted **Jan 13, 2015, 1:29 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by 1487

Rarely are long time incumbents even challenged. Its not just about voters being dumb, its about lack of options. You actually need a challenger in a race to defeat a long time office holder. In most of these districts there is little interest in knocking off the incumbent.

I want to enlist someone from the 5th District to challenge Clarke. There is a new PAC in town (another poster on these forums is instrumental in getting it off the ground)

https://www.facebook.com/#!/5thSq?notif_t=fbpage_fan_invite

I want to work to try and make finding challengers as a goal of this PAC. And donate to their campaigns. We need to find members who live in the 5th district who are willing to make a run against Darrel Clarke. And similar people of that ilk in other districts. I don't really even care if it's a viable candidacy (which at this time it wouldn't be). For now, it's enough to shake things up, get attention, and raise awareness as to the problems with Council and certain Council members. Make some noise and wake people up to the problems and problem people.

McBane · #**6129** Posted **Jan 13, 2015, 1:35 PM**

^ I don't want to be negative, because I really despise Clarke. But do you honestly think that the corporations and developers will take a chance on backing an unknown to challenge Clarke and then have to deal with the consequences (this is still very much a pay to play town) when Clarke crushes this opponent?

It's not that the business community likes the current members of council, it's that they don't want to get on their bad side, so they do the next best thing, which is suck up and write checks.

Plus, while the business community has money, they don't have the same get out the vote machine that the unions have or the sway that groups such as the "black clergy" have over voters.

The political culture and voting patterns in this city is a very depressing topic. Can we please get back to development?

Larry King · #**6130** Posted **Jan 13, 2015, 1:38 PM**

Clarke really isn't even that bad. We have worse members of council

jsbrook · #**6131** Posted **Jan 13, 2015, 2:37 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by McBane

^ I don't want to be negative, because I really despise Clarke. But do you honestly think that the corporations and developers will take a chance on backing an unknown to challenge Clarke and then have to deal with the consequences (this is still very much a pay to play town) when Clarke crushes this opponent?

It's not that the business community likes the current members of council, it's that they don't want to get on their bad side, so they do the next best thing, which is suck up and write checks.

Plus, while the business community has money, they don't have the same get out the vote machine that the unions have or the sway that groups such as the "black clergy" have over voters.

The political culture and voting patterns in this city is a very depressing topic. Can we please get back to development?

No, I would not really expect business or any other constituency to back a Clarke challenger (it is questionable how much backing Ori Feibush will get against Kenyatta and he is far less of an unknown, would be a boon for business, and more viable than most outside candidates would be). Certainly not meaningful backing of a Clarke challenger on this go-around. That's not what it would be about. But, yes, less get's back to core development and move off politics.

Larry King · #**6132** Posted **Jan 13, 2015, 2:49 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by jsbrook

No, I would not really expect business or any other constituency to back a Clarke challenger (it is questionable how much backing Ori Feibush will get against Kenyatta and he is far less of an unknown, would be a boon for business, and more viable than most outside candidates would be). Certainly not meaningful backing of a Clarke challenger on this go-around. That's not what it would be about. But, yes, less get's back to core development and move off politics.

Feibush doesn't have a snowball's chance in hell

el don · #**6133** Posted **Jan 13, 2015, 3:57 PM**

http://drexel.edu/now/archive/2015/January/Announcing-30th-Street-website-open-house/

Article also has the link to the website that just launched for this mutl-collabo effort to keep tabs on new project info.

josef · #**6134** Posted **Jan 13, 2015, 3:58 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by el don

http://drexel.edu/now/archive/2015/January/Announcing-30th-Street-website-open-house/

Article also has the link to the website that just launched for this mutl-collabo effort to keep tabs on new project info.

Nice. I didn't know there was an official website, http://www.phillydistrict30.com/.

Outta here · #**6135** Posted **Jan 13, 2015, 4:12 PM**

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e9/CityHallLondon2007.JPG

London's City Hall .
I don't know if this picture will be visible . I think it is a great design and
would love to see a duplicate in center city ...... somewhere ...... Maybe
at the " Disney hole " .
Certainly can't be any worse than what is there now .

Londonee · #**6136** Posted **Jan 13, 2015, 5:05 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Outta here

London's City Hall .
I don't know if this picture will be visible . I think it is a great design and
would love to see a duplicate in center city ...... somewhere ...... Maybe
at the " Disney hole " .
Certainly can't be any worse than what is there now .

It's a lovely Norman Foster design. It works so well because it's on the Thames and sweeps away from the water's edge. It's a great show piece. I wouldn't necessarily look to put that on a normal street grid, it would feel very odd.

Now if PMC were building that on the river I'd be out there with a sledgehammer myself.

josef · #**6137** Posted **Jan 13, 2015, 6:05 PM**

So I just saw this while getting lunch. This was not here last night. Is something finally happening to the Hale building? This is the latest I could find on its dormant conversion into a hotel, from 2013. http://philly.curbed.com/archives/2013/0...-becoming-tacky-andor-fabulous-hotel.php

Aaamazarite · #**6138** Posted **Jan 13, 2015, 10:29 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by josef

So I just saw this while getting lunch. This was not here last night. Is something finally happening to the Hale building? This is the latest I could find on its dormant conversion into a hotel, from 2013. http://philly.curbed.com/archives/2013/0...-becoming-tacky-andor-fabulous-hotel.php

The building received a violation from L + I for loose/falling facade materials. Right now there is only a permit for the scaffolding itself. Hopefully if they are fixing the facade they won't patch it up with cheap stuff. Knowing the general reputation of the owners, however...

1487 · #**6139** Posted **Jan 14, 2015, 1:59 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by josef

So I just saw this while getting lunch. This was not here last night. Is something finally happening to the Hale building? This is the latest I could find on its dormant conversion into a hotel, from 2013. http://philly.curbed.com/archives/2013/0...-becoming-tacky-andor-fabulous-hotel.php

I saw that too yesterday and was hoping something positive was happening. A lot of work is going on in the former Univ. of Arts dorm building at Broad and Chestnut. Anyone who wants a luxury apt is going to have plenty of choices in a few months.

jsbrook · #**6140** Posted **Jan 14, 2015, 4:08 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by 1487

I saw that too yesterday and was hoping something positive was happening. A lot of work is going on in the former Univ. of Arts dorm building at Broad and Chestnut. Anyone who wants a luxury apt is going to have plenty of choices in a few months.

Are they going to do anything to that facade or just the inside? Broad Street is having huge problems drawing retail tenants. Hopefully that changes with all these luxury apartments and residences coming nearby (this, Post Bros project at the Atlantic, SLS, W). I can't imagine it doesn't. But it's taking a long time (as are completion or even commencement of some of the residential projects themselves).