On her first day in office, Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle L. Parker released her 100-Day Action Plan. Mayor Parker promised to tackle “public safety, stubbornly high poverty, quality-of-life concerns, housing availability, burdens on local businesses, and shortcomings in our educational system.” She took aim at the Philadelphia Land Bank:
We will order a top-to-bottom review of the city’s Land Bank to better understand the challenges of developing vacant, city-owned properties—and work to significantly improve that process.
A review of the Land Bank is long overdue. Under the discredited custom of councilmanic prerogative, district Council members view City-owned land in their district as theirs to dispose as they please. So when I searched for 1517 N 33rd Street, I was not surprised the vacant lot was not in the database.
For years, Strawberry Mansion Community Development Corporation (SMCDC) has been making plans for properties that they do not own, including 1517 N 33rd Street, 1515 N 33rd Street, and 1511 N 33rd Street, the John Coltrane House .
During community events, SMCDC said it “has commitments from the City of Philadelphia and the Philadelphia Housing Authority to include two of their properties in the John Coltrane Street improvements!”
Councilmanic prerogative notwithstanding, public property cannot be disposed of with a handshake. The Philadelphia Housing Authority cannot transfer ownership of 1515 N 33rd Street without the approval of the Department of Housing and Urban Development. So I submitted a Right-To-Know Law request to PHA focusing on HUD’s disposition process as detailed in 24 CFR Part 970. PHA’s response:
There was no sale or other transfer or removal of the identified property under Section 18 of the Housing Act of 1937, CFR part 970, and PIH Notice 2021-07.
On November 30, 2023, then-City Councilmember Darrell L. Clarke introduced Resolution No. 230905 “authorizing the Philadelphia Land Bank to execute and deliver to the Philadelphia Housing Authority a deed conveying fee simple title to 1517 N. 33rd Street in the Fifth Councilmanic District of the City of Philadelphia pursuant to Section 16-706 of the Philadelphia Code.” Councilmanic prerogative ensured that no Council member would ask why the City is conveying title to a vacant lot to PHA which owns the adjacent property that has been vacant for decades. Instead, the resolution was fast-tracked for final passage on December 14, 2023.
On the day before the final vote, I submitted a RTKL request to Councilmember Clarke.
The Councilmember invoked his right to a 30-day extension so a response is not due until January 22, 2024. But my RTKL request triggered a response from Clarke: Resolution No. 230905 was among the bills and resolutions that were held from final passage. In other words, the resolution was not approved.
PHL Watchdog 