Category: Transparency

Sunshine Week 2025

March 16-22, 2025 is Sunshine Week, a time to celebrate transparency, and the public’s right to know what government officials are doing and saying behind closed doors. PHL Watchdog is a Sunshine Week partner.

For more than a year, the City of Philadelphia and SEPTA have fought release of communications with the Philadelphia 76ers related to their now abandoned plan to build an arena atop Jefferson Station. While the Save Chinatown Coalition has given up the fight to obtain records from SEPTA, giving up is not in my DNA. The City and SEPTA eventually will have to give it up and produce the records.

On March 17, the Pennsylvania Office of Open Records will host a panel discussion, Getting to Know Pennsylvania’s Transparency Laws, moderated by Paula Knudsen Burke, senior supervising attorney with the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press. Knudsen Burke represents me on the City’s and SEPTA’s appeals. The event is free and open to the public. Go here to register to attend in person or virtually.

A list of Sunshine Week activities is available here.

Don’t Buy Where You Can’t Work

On his second day back in the White House, President Trump signed an executive order that rolled back federal civil rights protections claiming discrimination against white men:

Illegal DEI and DEIA policies not only violate the text and spirit of our longstanding Federal civil-rights laws, they also undermine our national unity, as they deny, discredit, and undermine the traditional American values of hard work, excellence, and individual achievement in favor of an unlawful, corrosive, and pernicious identity-based spoils system. Hardworking Americans who deserve a shot at the American Dream should not be stigmatized, demeaned, or shut out of opportunities because of their race or sex.

The executive order encouraged “the private sector to end illegal DEI discrimination and preferences.”

Before the ink was dry on the executive order, corporations from Amazon to Zoom began to dismantle their Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives.

DeShuna Spencer, creator of kweliTV, launched DEI Watch “to create a space that keeps consumers informed and holds corporations accountable for the promises they’ve made.” DEI Watch will use publicly available data to track companies that have ended or scaled back DEI efforts, as well as companies that continue to actively support and implement DEI initiatives.

In a statement, Spencer said:

DEI isn’t about lowering standards—it’s about leveling the playing field. Qualified Black professionals and other underrepresented groups have long been shut out—not because of a lack of talent, but due to systemic barriers that limit access to opportunities. DEI doesn’t push merit aside for equity; it ensures that talent and hard work—not bias or exclusion—are what truly open doors for all.

Harkening back to the “Don’t Buy Where You Can’t Work” movement during the Great Depression, the NAACP has launched the Black Consumer Advisory. NAACP President & CEO Derrick Johnson said:

We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again – diversity is better for the bottom line. The NAACP stands firm in our belief that, in a global economy, those who reject the multicultural nature of consumerism and business will be left in the past they are living in. That’s why we’re proud to launch the Black Consumer Advisory, reminding our community that in addition to voting on our principles, we have the power to choose where we spend our money. I am confident that this framework will support our community as we make difficult decisions on where to spend our hard-earned money. If corporations want our dollars, they better be ready to do the right thing.

To sign the Black Consumer Pledge, go here.

Black History Month: Ida B. Wells

Educator and investigative journalist Ida B. Wells gave no quarter to white supremacists. Born into slavery in Mississippi during the Civil War, Wells led an anti-lynching campaign and became a prominent voice against racial violence and discrimination.

Beginning in 2022, the U.S. Mint American Women Quarters Program has commemorated phenomenal women.

The 2025 honorees are Althea Gibson, Juliette Gordon Low, Stacey Park Milbern, Dr. Vera Rubin and Ida B. Wells.

The quarters give new meaning to making some coin. To secure a bag of Ida B. Wells quarters, go here.

Common Sense and 76ers Arena Nonsense

The City of Philadelphia and SEPTA are fighting release of records related to the Sixers’ proposal to build an arena atop Jefferson Station as ordered by the Pennsylvania Office of Open Records in 2023. The city and SEPTA appealed the OOR’s final determination. Their lawyers have asked whether I want to continue to pursue my records requests. If they want to end litigation, the city and SEPTA can simply stop litigating and turn over the records.

For more than two years, Philadelphia’s misleaders gaslighted the public into believing that all that was needed for the Sixers’ half-baked proposal to become “a done deal” was the approval of enabling legislation by City Council.

It is said that common sense is not so common. Neither Mayor Cherelle L. Parker nor City Council can grant the right to build on SEPTA property. Someone on Mayor Parker’s bloated staff should have had enough common sense to ask whether SEPTA was on board with the transit-oriented development.

We now know SEPTA was not on board. Then-interim General Manager Scott Sauer’s testimony before City Council’s November 19, 2024 public hearing should have ended the nonsensical notion that 76 Place would keep the transit agency from falling off the fiscal cliff:

The reality is that SEPTA simply cannot assume these new costs within the framework of its operating budget… SEPTA cannot shoulder the burden of expanded transit costs at 76 Place which would be in addition to the existing fiscal challenges.

Mayor Parker and 12 City Council members ignored the red flags. As I wrote in an opinion piece for the Philadelphia Inquirer, the Sixers’ billionaire owners knew the Federal Transit Administration was the shot caller in the 76ers arena saga:

SEPTA received federal funding to make improvements to Jefferson Station. In order to protect the “federal interest,” changes to the use of the station must be approved by the Federal Transit Administration. In other words, federal officials call the shots.

Sixers co-owner David Adelman tacitly acknowledged the crucial role played by Washington in a social media post following City Council’s 12-5 vote: “We look forward to pursuing the remaining approvals to make 76Place a reality.”

Read more.

76 Place Game Is Over

The Philadelphia 76ers billionaire owners gamed Philadelphia’s “corrupt and contented” ecosystem. When building an arena atop SEPTA’s Jefferson Station no longer served their interest, it was game over. The 76ers are staying in South Philly with their landlord-turned-partner, Comcast Spectacor.

The Philadelphia Inquirer reported:

The team has struck a deal with Comcast Spectacor to remain in the South Philadelphia sports complex, after more than two years of heated debate over moving to a potential new arena on East Market Street.

[…]

The reversal is a stunning end to a saga that has dominated city politics for more than a year and a setback for Mayor Cherelle L. Parker and others who championed the $1.3 billion Center City proposal.

At a press conference, Mayor Parker said, “This is a curveball that none of us saw coming.” Well, I saw it coming. It was only a matter of time before the Sixers abandoned their public transit-oriented project.

The ballyhooed legislation City Council passed was little more than a zoning permit. Neither Mayor Parker nor City Council can give the billionaires the right to enter Jefferson Station. They need SEPTA’s and the Federal Transit Administration’s approval of the development project. The review process could take years.

So, the billionaires were negotiating a deal with Comcast Spectacor while Mayor Parker and City Council were carrying their water. Philly’s misleaders were not just played. In the immortal words of Malcolm X, they were had, took, hoodwinked and bamboozled.

My New Year’s Resolution

This year marks the 10th anniversary of PHL Watchdog. In the words of legendary gospel singer James Cleveland, “I don’t feel no ways tired.”

As a longtime advocate for transparency and accountability, every year I resolve to “comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable.” That includes submitting as many open records requests as necessary to shed light on what is being said and done behind closed doors.

Some agencies may want to falsely label me a “vexatious” or “repetitive” requester. As vexing as the Right-To-Know Law is for corrupt public officials, I have no “vexatious intent.” The public has the right to know whether officials are acting in the public interest or doing the bidding of special interests.

In 2025, I resolve to keep on pushing.

Bad Things Happen in Philadelphia

Philadelphia has ranked as the poorest big city in the country for decades. The high poverty rate is not a bug; it’s a feature. Philadelphia’s misleaders are not interested in reducing poverty because there’s a lot of money to be made by insiders and cronies managing poor people.

There is also a lot of money to be made by insiders and cronies with the Sixers’ proposal to build an arena atop SEPTA’s Jefferson Station. For more than two years, the billionaire owners of the Philadelphia 76ers have spent millions of dollars lobbying and spreading misinformation about the economic benefits of 76 Place.

By a vote of 12-4 on December 12, 2024, City Council gave preliminary approval to legislation enabling 76 Place to move pass the first round. Councilmembers Jamie Gauthier, Rue Landau, Nicolas O’Rourke, and Jeffery Young Jr. voted against the enabling legislation. Councilmember Kendra Brooks, a staunch opponent of the arena, was absent.

The Sixers made it pass the first round with an assist from Philadelphia’s misleaders. The enabling legislation does not give the billionaires the right to construct an arena on SEPTA’s property. They will need more than the building trades unions to get the approval of SEPTA, which is teetering on the brink of a “death spiral,” and President Donald Trump’s Federal Transit Administration.

It ain’t over.

Philadelphia 76ers Billionaire Owners Send G Team to City Council Hearing

For more than two years, Philadelphia 76ers co-owner and 76 Place hype man David Adelman crowed that the Sixers’ proposal to build an arena atop SEPTA’s Jefferson Station is a win for the city. Adelman regaled sycophants on X/Twitter and sports podcasters. But the billionaire was a no-show at City Council’s hearing on their proposal. City Councilmember Cindy Bass rightly asked:

Who thought this would be a good idea? I’m suspecting that it’s the owners of the Philadelphia 76ers, none of whom felt the need to come and discuss their vision or concept with us today which is quite inappropriate and disrespectful and just really callous.

The billionaires prefer to discuss their “vision” behind closed doors. So, Adelman sent their G Team – Alex Kafenbaum, senior vice president and head of development for Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment (HBSE owns the Sixers), and David Gould, HSBE’s chief diversity and impact officer.

Kafenbaum and Gould should have been benched. Denise Clay-Murray of The Philadelphia Sunday SUN wrote:

To understand just how badly the first two days of hearings on the proposed arena for your 76ers went for the Parker administration and the Sixers themselves, you’d have to return to your school days.

We all have had that moment where we’re staring at a test and asking ourselves, “How am I going to pass this?” It’s a feeling that usually comes when you don’t study as much as you could have and aren’t quite as prepared as you could have been.

You knew the test was coming. It was clearly marked on the syllabus. You had plenty of time to study for it because the teacher had told you several times that it was coming. You even got a study guide with everything you needed for the test.

[…]

But the only response that Council heard more than “I don’t know” is “No,” which was uttered by Gould and Kafenbaum a lot when it came to the Community Benefits Agreement, the upgrades of SEPTA’s Jefferson Station that would be needed for this project due to the increase in traffic, and just about everything else.

Read more