Yo, Mike: City services, agencies, budgets and the bureaucracy

I am a former city employee, who got sick and tired of people who have a big salary and don't do a dam thing. They have more drones in the water departments management that would sink a ship. These people are issued city vehicles, and they never leave their office. I worked as field inspector, and we need city vehicles because the water department has spread the all over and we have to take our personal vehicle around dust, dirt and vandalism. I would like for a reallocation of vehicles to those who need them as oppose to those who use theirs to travel from the office, and back home.

 

Divonne M. Hargett
Philadelphia

Yo, Mike, the one thing I really need you to do is,

To please go through City Hall and rid it of all the wasteful, good for nothing, unhelpful, rude and non-working city staff /employees, including some Council Members that have never earned and do not deserve a paycheck. I voted for you knowing and trusting that you would fight for what's right for our City and for those that believe that hard work never hurt anyone. I know your and our hard work will restore the present good for nothing Administration back to pure integrity and common decency, where our City rightfully belongs, before the likes of John Street and his cronies took over and did nothing but create nepotism and discontent all while lining their own pockets and turning their heads the other way. I know you will lift us back up to greatness and I appreciate and thank you in advance!

 

Get the city agencies to work - through direct public accountability.

Every City agency has smart, committed, capable staff. Every agency also has rude, disengaged staff. When confronted with the latter, citizens have no credible recourse and often throw up their hands in frustration. There is a pervasive lack of professionalism and public accountability by City employees. People rely on constituent services from City Council because they see no other viable method for fixing problems. This is poor public policy and drives City Council to act as retail vendors for city services. The Mayor and City Council should be focusing on creative, systemic solutions to the challenges that face Philadelphia and citizens should be able to depend on the city agencies to do their jobs.

Appoint an ombudsman for each City agency, who reports to the Director of that agency, whose job is to field complaints. The ombudsmen understand the services and operations of their departments and they are empowered to take action on behalf of citizens – to resolve problems and to set the highest standard of customer service.

 

Mike, if you win the mayor's office please get rid of anyone Mayor Street has appointed to office. Please get his brother and son out of public office and out of this government. That family has had their time on our dime. Now it is time they get a real job, and we stop supporting them.

 

Mike, the most important thing you can do is something that will allow you to do all the other things that everyone is asking you to do. You need to work really hard to stop this city's bureacracy from wasting money. Every agency needs to do a variety of simple things to work smarter and more efficiently.

Whether its the police using data to identify where and when crimes occur and who commits them on a realtime basis so they can staff those places and prevent the crimes, or...

Simply knowing the tools necessary to analyze the data collected by the behavioral health organizations or DHS, so that case workers can respond more effectively, quickly, and intelligently to head off the worst problems, or...

Re-evaluating the functions and purposes of licenses and inspections, reorganizing the place, using triage techniques and empowering and training the staff to provide excellent customer service, or...

Allows schools more autonomy to specialize in serving particular types of students with specific learning styles, so that teaching methods are matched to learning style, rather than the current, one-size-fits-all because people move too much, or...

I could go on and on. The main point is that if the city uses the best techniques, constantly collects data about how they are doing, and empowers staff to constantly make improvements based on a knowledge of what their customers want, I bet you could free up enough money to do just about everything on everyone else's lists, and cut taxes, too!

Mike, you're smart. I hope you can make the city government work smart, too! If you do, you and our city will have a grand future!

 

jcharles 

please have the water department give us honest answers on the flooded basements. the flat roofs of our row homes gather tons of rain water. Instead of going down into the sewer main why can't this roof water be diverted into the alley and down the street to the storm drains on the corners?

until these outdated and poorly maintained sewers can be reconstructed wouldn't it be better to divert all this extra water?

 

City Hall needs to be cleaned up and driftwood CLEANED OUT!
Have you tried calling L&I, I did just last week, to report all the pre-voting signs
placed every 2' in the Far Northeast. I got one message after another and no
live person every picked up the phone after 15 mins. I gave up.
Another occasion, I went to City Hall to renew my notary license. I was the only
person in the office and was told to take a number (like at the deli counter), I was
made to wait, while the male clerk ate potato chips and read a romance novel.
I gave up, changed my address to my business in Bucks Cty., went to Doylestown,
waited less than 5 mins., and it only cost a fraction. The City of Phila. lost the
revenue.
THE ONLY THING THAT WORKS IN CITY HALL........IS THE ANSWERING MACHINES. IT'S AN ABSOLUTE JOKE AMONG US CITIZENS.

It was a pleasure getting to speak to you on a few different occasions over the last several months. Congratulations on securing the Democratic nomination for Mayor. As one of your former City Council constituents, I have a tremendous amount of faith in you.

That said, I think a top priority of this city (after figuring out why we’re killing each other at an alarming rate) would be to ensure the voices of the citizen voters are heard and not stifled by politicians with dollar-signs for eyeballs. That the "official" casino referendum was removed from voting machines and ballots without explanation is horrifying. That the 95% of voters who want casinos 1500 feet from our schools, houses, places of worship and the like are being ignored is unthinkable and wholly un-American.

Make voting matter again. Make city government work for its people, not against them.

And, while you're at it... please do something about the BPT? As someone who didn't want to sit on the dole after being laid off, and instead starting my own freelancing company, it was disheartening to realize I could have made the same amount collecting unemployment as I did being an entrepreneur after paying the BPT.

 

You need to get these streets plowed when it snows. Ever since that bum Street came in office, only broad street gets plowed. You have to change that.

 

Yo, Mike, I really need you to direct all City departments to put all public-record databases up on the web for free, anonymous, easy download by citizens.

This is a transparency issue. A good model is the FEC website, where federal campaign finance information can be downloaded en masse. Personally, I'm interested in getting precinct-level election results for the whole City in one fell swoop. More generally, the public will benefit if all sorts of City data is available easily on line so that, say, one can compare City contracts with campaign donors.

I would gladly discuss the technicalities with you, your staff, or any other person who might be involved in implementation.

 

Congratulations! As the new Mayor of the City of Philedelphia your task is huge! Basically start over, clean the corruption out of City Hall, improve the image, and respect of city officials. Listen to the tax payers. Take back the water department, PECO and SEPTA. All three are completely missed managed. Anyone with superior management skills can easily bring all three back within budget limits. The departments within the city. Shake them up! The streets department is an absolute disgrace. Trash and litter all over. Get the supervisors out on the street. Tax reform? What and where is that? Only the select. Rid the city of bad publicity, corruptive courts, unlicensed sidewalk vendors , city hall rumors, and department supervisors and anyone who does not comply with the system. Licenses and Inspection department, what a disgrace, no value, no anything. Many, many people on the payroll and what do they do? Not much by my estimation.
Police and fire department. Who controls them? What is the latest on closing fire stations? Yes closing fire stations. Is there anyone who works for the city that is accountable for their job? The Convention center-why is there no conventions in the city? Yet, the taxpayer paid the center. And oh yesm there is talk of expanding the convention center. Why? Keep the taxpayer informed.

 

...lower the City Wage Tax, provide more programs in the city for the disabled (particularly for Autistic people.), fix the huge pot holes! When I think of more, I will gladly let you know.

 

I'm delighted that you won. Well done.

The most important thing you can do for Philadelphia, is to make sure that every dollar that is taken in as revenue is wisely and honestly spent: Your efforts on City Council to lower business and wage taxes were commendable--I am sure that as mayor, you will accelerate them. And perhaps even more importantly, no-bid contracts must be eliminated for all but the most minor projects. Grants must be transparent (published and on-line), and there must be publicly accessable accountability for each dollar spent by or through the city government.

Good luck, and please have some fun as mayor.

 

Work on getting rid of some of the drones working for the city. Make people responsive to those they work for. Get rid of the attitude of 'entitlement' that lives in City Hall. When someone is at the service desk - get up off the chair and help them. Enforce it, and cut some of the dead wood. Professionalize hiring and get rid of the "ward leader's brother-in-law" connections.

 

The one thing that I need you to do is wake the sleeping giant, PHILADELPHIA. You can do this by first identifying the complacency, corruption, ignorance and incompetency that has plagued the giant.

Take time and listen to the good and dedicated workers that keep this City going despite having to leap hurdles to do so. Many great ideas and programs start at the bottom and are compromised by poor leadership in various disciplines.

I many cases, we already have the players and tools needed to begin the rebuilding process. Crime can be addressed correctly, efficiency in services can be restored, businesses can grow and citizen cooperation can be achieved by thinking out of the box. All that is needed is a competent leader that puts politics aside and does the right thing for the good of the people.

Let's sit and talk and I'll prove that there is validity and a plan in what I said in just a few words.
I'll even pay for lunch.

Take care and I look forward to hearing back from you.

 

Bryan Van Lenten
Madison Square
Philadelphia

My suggestion is fairly simple to state.

Eliminate the barriers to entry for political outsiders/upstarts.

Because no one person can save this city, it will take a collective of energetic people with good ideas. We cannot afford to shut out talented minds any longer.

That's it! Sounds easy enough!

 

 

Yo, Mike, we got a big problem here in Philadelphia. There is a deep, structural disconnect between the citizenry and the powerful few who are running the show. That powerful elite is making decisions on our behalf but in their own interests, behind closed doors, and without any consideration of the peoples' needs and concerns.

Witness what happened this week at the Philadelphia Planning Commission when a board of non-experts in urban planning and architecture approved a voluminous development proposal by the SugarHouse casino without even adequately reviewing it, and in the face of severe city-wide opposition. Many residents, like myself, have expressed our values for development on the riverfront and our neighborhoods via lame-duck Mayor Street's Central Delaware Waterfront planning initiative. In approving the casino proposal, the Planning Commission has completely disregarded the values and guidelines that are being created in that vision -- and Janice Woodcock, executive director of PPC, even sits at the head of the table!

We citizens have power, and we have given you an opportunity to work with us in restoring good governance in the city we love.

 

Yo, Mike! The one thing I really need you to do is plan a budget that is not at the expense of the City employees. Currently, City employees earn way below the average private sector employee doing similar work. Providing quality city service will attract citizens and business to the area, which will increase city revenue. In order to provide quality city services, you need quality people. In order to attract and retain quality people, you need to compensate them properly. In addition to negotiating a fair living wage to City employees, there should be an objective process established to give cash performance awards to reward outstanding City employees. This would entail a change from the current annual pass- fail performance evaluation system to an evaluation differentiating between fair, good and excellent performance.

 

Tom White
Rahnhurst
Thanks for stopping by. Having lived in Phila., most of my adult life, I have seen lots of changes over the years. Some of them good and some not so good. There are quite a few areas that need some improvement, the cost of public transportation, trash collection, and just plain trying to deal with local government on the phone, which is quite often impossible...
My main problem however is the Philadelphia Gas Works and the HIGH COST of this service.I am of the firm belief PGW is out of control. The PGW needs to be privatized and run as a business, with applied cost cutting measures. My gas bills are almost as high as my real estate taxes, and I have done everything possible to cut costs on my end. Well good luck Mike, and God bless you in this your present under taking...

Please extend more city services such as snow removal to the south philadelphia area. it seems that the city forgets we exist when it snows.

Also, revise the regulations regarding impounding vehicles that have no registration / insurance. My young son let his insurance lapse ( his responsibility I know and agree ) but his car was impounded and he was unable to get it back because the state would not issue a registration for 6 months. the long and short of it is that he lost the car, it was sold by the city and on top of it all he never received payment for the excess over the fines. this seems like a law to persecute low income people for having low income (redundant on purpose). Certainly there is a better way to drum up revenue.

You should also look at the traffic courts...............have you ever been there???

 

I IMPLORE YOU to fix PGW. How does it happen that a single person who has their thermostat set at SIXTY TWO degrees from September to May; who does two loads of laundry weekly in COLD water; who hangs the laundry in the basement to dry (no dryer); who is out of the home from 7 am to 7 pm (working and commuting) have a TWO HUNDRED DOLLAR gas bill?? How does that happen, sir? I wanna know.

 

Yo, Mike make sure your Commissioners are qualified and can do the job. Take a good look a the Fire Dept. and clean house.

 

Congratulations on your stupendous victory! Your nomination brings a sense of hopefulness to tens of thousands of citizens who had grown weary thinking that competent, principled leadership would not be possible in the mayorship.

After having worked in Philadelphia City government for almost 30 years, I suggest that you hire the most qualified men and women to serve as Finance Director, Managing Director, and commissioners of the operating departments. Hire them regardless of party affiliation. Search nationwide for the best. Resist promoting from within: new blood is needed. And if I can sneak in a second suggestion, it would be to gather some of the country's experts on municipal government, giving them the related goals of (1) proposing charter-related changes in the existing civil service system that would result in higher quality employees and better delivery of services and (2) changes that could be made immediately within the current system to improve the quality, service, and cost of government.

 

I must say that I am delighted to have an opportunity to voice my concerns. Clearly this is an indication that change is really on it's way.
PGW is a significant concern for all citizens at this time. It is dismaying that people die in the winter attempting to keep warm. If you are a person who pays every month but not the entire bill - because you cannot aford too. You are penalized, harrassed, reported to the credit bureau and constantly under the threat of your gas being shut-off. With the yearly large increases it just is not possible for people to pay. I cannot pretend to know the answer to this problem. I do know that it is an outrage that PGW gets away with operating this way. I would ask that you please consider addressing this situation. I know the people that live in the counties do not experience the same thing as we here in Philadelphia do.
Thank you for your consideration.

 

Congrats. Here is my one thing...

The Philadelphia Department of Revenue is costing the city millions of dollars per year. Trying to pay a bill owed to the City of Philadelphia is very frustrating.

For example, this year, I contacted a City Councilperson. Paying a tax timely, I was assessed a fine because the City never cashed my check!

They advised me to “always pay city bills in person”. ? I pay hundreds of bills each year. Why should the Philadelphia Department of Revenue be the only organization that requires me to take time off from work or incur extra expense so that I have proof of timely payment?

Suburbanites tell me “the Department of Revenue is so poorly organized that I know they will never catch me. Why should I bother paying my wage tax?” Also, former tax paying residents of Philadelphia tell me: “One major advantage of moving is we no longer have to deal with the Philadelphia Department of Revenue.”

My personal experiences together with the experiences of friends convince me that the Philadelphia Department of Revenue costs the city millions of dollars in lost revenue and drives middle class, law abiding, citizens out of Philadelphia.

 

When you became mayor I think that one of the most important things you can do will be to instill a realization among city employees that they are working for the citizens of Philadelphia. Then, when one calls an office for help or information, they respond politely and offer appropriate advice and actually respond to the need and don't just listen and then not follow through.

Good luck.

 

I want to see the city really focus on the core services local government is supposed to offer. This is the most important thing you can do. It wont be easy to cut back on areas that are outside the core services... someone will be hurt. But you need to provide for Philadelphians the same services provided elswhere.

As example, I am tired of seeing garabage men generate more litter as they are supposedly picking up garbage... I am tired of streets thqat destroy my car... I am tired of parks that look as though they have not seen a repair since my Great Grandfather ran the Pennsylvania Railroad.

Good luck.

 

Push forward on implementing performance-based contracting for city service agencies. Make sure the companies and agencies that get paid by the City to perform services actually PERFORM them. E.g. millions of $'s are spent each year for social services contractors that work under contracts that have little or NO PERFORMANCE MEASUREMENTS. The agencies that win these contracts have strong political connections, and there is such weak oversight by the City's unionized middle-managers on the services these agencies provide (See DHS for more details on this). The Philly city government shouldn't be a job factory for no-talent social service workers and their corrupt service agency managers; deliver on your contract or hit the road. Also: train City middle managers to be MANAGERS and hold their direct reports and service agencies ACCOUNTABLE for their work each day. Fight the Social Services unions; they are an obstacle, whose #1 goal is guaranteed, no-show jobs.

 

First, Mike, congratulations on the nomination. We're thrilled; it's made us more optimistic about the city's future.

Most of the other folks contributing have pointed to a disconnect between the Few who govern the city and those of us who want to live here because we believe in the city.

The most recent proof of this disconnect has just come with the new budget's decision to "cut" the City Law Offices. I say "cut" because the current budget of 15 million has been changed to 14 million. But, at the same time, City Council has voted themselves 1 million in extra funds for outside counsel -- i.e., private lawyers who bill at between $300 and $500 an hour.

Net effect: cuts to the City Law Offices, and private attorneys for City Council when they already have good ones paid for by the public.

Second net effect: yet another year without even a cost of living increase, and yet another gutting of morale.

I won't go into the fact that the City's lawyers save the city hundred of millions of dollars each year, or that they're paid 1/4 what private attorneys are paid, or that they're respected attorneys and a bargain at the cost, or that 15 million dollars is a tiny part of Philadelphia's budget. (Most of the city's lawyer's make between $50,000 and $75,000 per year).

I won't even go into the fact that these same lawyers have had one raise in eight years (that raise secured with great effort by the current City Solicitor from a reluctant administration) -- without even cost of living increases -- because they are not unionized.

But what City Council's move shows is that they want their own private lawyers, and that they want us to pay for them -- just as Mayor Street retained private counsel for his financial scandals, at a public cost that rivals the entire operating budget (the 15 million) for the City Law Offices.

More than showing City Council's contempt for their own free legal counsel, the decision shows that they don't care about cost-effective government. Given that federal and state governments are immune from lawsuit, an unfair number of lawsuits fall upon cities. This makes having a good City Law Office essential, since these are the same people who make sure that environmental regulations are observed, taxes paid, polluters prosecuted, predatory lenders exposed, civil liberties maintained, and historical buildings preserved. They're the cheapest and best investment towards keeping the City of Philadelphia financially solvent that I know.

I'm hoping, therefore, that you'll help reform the current situation when you consider your administration's appointments for City Solicitor and the city's treatment of its most underpaid and undervalued employees, its non-unionized attorneys.

 

Mike, the members of the Phila. Fire Fighters' Union have traditionally supported Democratic candidates for many, many years. Yet the Democratic administrations in the last twenty years have failed to support the fire fighters in their quest for fair and equitable arbitration awards (yet alone negotiate a fair and equitable contract!). What will you do to rectify this injustice and what will you do to end racism within the Phila Fire Dept.?

Congratulations on a fabulous, ethically-strong, and efficiently-run campaign!

I've lived here for nearly 20 years, from college on. I've seen now going on three administrations govern Philadelphia. My family is from this august and beautiful city, and I have memories of this place going all the way back to my childhood summers spent in West Philadelphia. I've witnessed many of the changes this city has undergone, both the good and the bad.

There's a lot I'd like to see change. But we're limited to one thing, so here it is: please have good, honest, ethical auditors look at where the MONEY is going in this city from federal, state and local funding sources. I mean from allocation all the way to accounting. If you really, truly want to turn this city around, then fiscally sound policies and practices, transparency of records, and complete accountability to the taxpayer is absolutely CRITICAL to your success as mayor. These principles will ultimately lead to the civic turnaround this city desperately needs and truly deserves.

I really would like to stay in Philadelphia for the next 20 years. But unless this city takes on greater fiscal responsibility for the bottom line, and uses the money it receives not to line the pockets of fundamentally unethical people and their ilk (whoever they may be), but for the purposes for which it was intended, I simply won't be able to stay here because I will be cyclically underemployed. I'm one of those "university students" that the city has been trying to court and get to stay for decades. Most of us really do want to (and do!) stay, and we contribute much to the city's growth. But too often, we have leave to because the place is too completely "sewed up" by special interests, and we learn this very, very quickly. Philadelphia still has yet to figure out how to induce us to stay. Its insularity and factionalism is doing grave damage to the city's viability and reputation.

Cities need diverse populations---that is how they grow economically and culturally. If Philadelphia does not want to be the whipping boy of Harrisburg anymore, its government, businesses, nonprofits and citizens must sit up and take responsibility, not "take the money and run."

I am looking forward to your tenure as the Mayor of Philadelphia. Make us all proud to call ourselves Philadelphians once more, both natives and newcomers alike!

Best of luck to you! My thoughts and prayers go with you and yours.

 

I think you need to pay attention to city services, improving them within city staff with realistic expectations and the help needed to provide outstanding service to Philly's citizens, to better announcements of public meetings from postings in some back page of a little read section, to press conference notices at least in the LOCAL section of the Inquirer, and city-wide Weeklies. Philly's civil servants should bring pride and respect to city government, not pity and frustration.

 

James E.
PHA laid off over 300 taxpayers and then turns around and gives Carl Greene a RAISE, a multi-year contract with a two year Buy-out. As the head of PHA's board, what steps would you take to correct this injustice??

Thanks for your time.

John Hanovsky
Philadelphia

Do something about the high cost of energy from the Philadelphia Gas Works. We pay much more than most other areas. I realize there is a problem "covering" those who cannot pay, but some solution needs to be achieved. I moved to Philadelphia because it is affordable but unfortunately the cost to heat a house here is becoming increasing UNaffordable.

 

Fund the City Health Centers.
Established around the City, they provide health care to the uninsured and under-insured(as well as the insured). These services are essential to those citizens,are cost effective and serviced by dedicated and over extended staff.
As one member of the staff, I say to you sir, ..."give us the tools, and we'll do the job".

 

Hire more competent staff at City Hall and in Philadelphia based services. STOP THE PATRONAGE. Hire based on experience and abilty to comprehend and communicate. For six months I tired in vain to contact the city for help and got nowhere..endless passing the buck, people who barely spoke discernable English on the phone who were down right hostile or could care less. Often I got answeering machines without even the common courtesy of a professional call-back. It is like the city is a non-city in that it does not work at ALL for it's good citizens.

Immediately put in place in-home visits for those too illl to venture outside to obtain city services in whatever area is needed. No one will come to you. Therefore.if you are disabled and without the health or means to get to them..you get no help. (This also includes the small number of non-profits trying to do well.)

 

Pay more attention to your frailest and poorest citizens. We are the ones who need city services (and can not or do not know how to access them the most!)

 

Yo Mike, I would like you talk to me about the future of Philadelphia's water and under ground water pipes situation. Does our water treatment plant need to be modernized? I want to know how long it will take to put new pipes throughout the city and also what parts of the city has gotten new pipes already and what parts of the city is scheduled to receive new pipes in the near future.

 

As a city worker, I see too much money spent on hiring contractors and getting rid of city workers. A lack of communication and planning skills in upper management. It's crisis management. As with any organization, things are implemented before checking with the workers. It must be an ego thing. Then all the public hears is that "you are spending too much on overtime," Why because of bad management, from the top down. How about a website we can snitch on bad managers? I commend you for your detailed questioning at the City Council hearings and show how stupid and ignorant dept commissioners are and how they get paid almost 6 figure incomes and rely on the other folks to do what they should be prepared to present, esp.for one who will read the entire budget breakdown.

 

Can we get rid of the gum-popping, rubbernecking, educational misfits who barely have an understanding of the english language from behind the desks at city offices.

Once upon a time it was an honor to work for the City of Philadelphia but now its more like a dumping ground for GED certificate holders who have no understanding of their job responsibilities, and who hold the public hostage in lines for hours while they talk on the phone to "Pookie 'n Them". The managers are no better with their ebonic flava, often either passing the buck or depositing you into their circle of girlfriends in another department who also treat you like you're a damn alien.

Holding a City job is a joke now. You could restore the honor and prestige.

 

 “Yo, Mike, the one thing I really need you to do is ...”
Get me a job within the recreation department. Specifically, within the neighborhood I grew up in. I have started a non-profit group working with the children during non-school hours. We began as a non-profit in 2003. We have since grown (from 20 children to well over two hundred). I have devoted my time (left a LAN Administrators job) to spend more time with my non-profit and my children. Well, the non-profit is moving along (slower than my finances will allow). But the burden of working and trying to establish my non-profit and a vehicle to support my family while servicing my neighborhood isn't getting it done. A job within the recreation department will allow me to do what I am currently doing while supporting my family. I can’t change all of Philly, but I’ll change my community.

 

Here's one from someone you know:
Make me feel like a customer of City Governement. Ed Rendell tried and had modest success. This means: clean-out the old management of city services (except Loree Jones and a few others), turn the heat up to high to get City employees to at least be as responsive as say a CVS counter clerk and clean-up City facilities.
(And don't forget to work out once in a while--an effective Mayor is a fit Mayor!!)

Wishing you great success saving our City!

I need you to appoint competent leadership in the Health Commissioner's Office. The occupants currently residing there are more interested in playing special interest politics rather than practicing good, solid public health policy. Not only is it bad for the health of the community but, the practice is inefficient and not cost effective. But don't take my word for it. Seek out the advice of Drs. Walter Tsou and Joanne Godley - two former health commissioners who also happened to be the only physicians to hold the position over the past 15 years. Special interest politics has too much impact on public health policy due to the "yes people" currently in office. Thanks for your time, consideration and interest in the welfare of Philadelphia - that's why I voted for you and look forward to your victory in November.

P.S. Please keep my name confidential. The insecure people in the Health Commissioner's Office are quite vindictive and I would like to continue working in the Health Department.

 

The streets & sidewalks covering 16th through 23rd & B F Pkwy all the way south to South Street are undrivable & unwalkable. I have CP. There are many of us in this area who are handicapped, blind & of senior age. This is not acceptable in the 4th largest city in the United States. If we are expected to pay the taxes to keep this city going please fix the streets & sidewalks so I & others can keep from getting hurt.

I voted for you don't prove me wrong.

 

I concur entirely about the incompetence within the Office of Health Commissioner. The current occuppant is perhaps least capable of achieving reasoned and responsible public health policy and conceptualizing and articulating strategies necessary for repositioning the department to manage its current duties. Secondly the current occupant has heavily invested in unethical conduct, personal sleaze, torrid sexual liaisons and racial politics to fuel her rapid ascent through the ranks. She lacks credibility, integrity and substance. Her managment skills are atrocious and her reports have no confidence in her judgement, leadership or integrity. She has undermined and sabotaged many decent minority managers including Dr. Tsou and Dr. Godley and others who languish under her harsh and bizarre rule. Philasdelphia will be royally served by your jettisoning her out of public employment before she destroys anymore careers and further tarnish the image of local government.

This is verifiable by most of the professional and managerial employees of the Health Department.

 

West Philadelphia
The one thing I really need you to do is fix Philadelphia's broken EMS system.
The system of handling medical emergencies for the residents and visitors of Philadelphia is completely inadequate. City ambulances are staffed by overworked and burned-out men and women who are led by a Fire Department administration that does not prioritize EMS.
Did you know that in 2004 PFD responded to 263,946 total calls, of which 79% were for medical emergencies? Why is it that the city has 59 engines and 29 ladder trucks but only 40 ambulances (28 at night) when almost 80% of the calls need an ambulance?? Why are we downgrading ambulances from paramedic to the lower EMT level of care? Is it because the Fire Academy only graduated 9 cadets in 2005? (All info from the Fire Dept website.)
Paramedic morale is in the basement and no one wants to work for the city. 9 medics per year does not keep up with attrition. The city runs out of available ambulances on a regular basis. People are waiting too long for life-saving treatment and transport. We don't need less fire engines, we need more paramedic ambulances!!
For the sake of the safety and health of our community, please fix the EMS system.

Yo, Mike, the one thing I really need you to do is to hire public administrators who look in the mirror every day and say, “today, I must serve the citizens of Philadelphia.” You have run an unabashedly issue-oriented campaign, and your central message of reform has clearly resonated with a formerly weary and disillusioned electorate. Your plans to “blow up” L&I, to “overhaul” the City’s approach to economic development, to “reform” the budget process,” to “modernize” the governance of SEPTA,” to “fight” for public education,” and to “take immediate action” to stop gun violence are essential elements to realizing the overarching goal of a fundamental and lasting improvement in the quality of life of Philadelphia’s citizens. But no program for public “reform” can be effective if the CULTURE of government is not also changed. So for me, your “one thing” mandate is to “blow up” the “citizens-as-enemy” approach to government that is so well practiced within the labyrinth halls of City departments; to penetrate the “can’t-do” phalanx that is the ancient municipal services machine.

Councilman, there is a palpable sense of public euphoria in the aftermath of your nomination, and that bodes well for your mandate to make the bold changes you have envisioned. However, if your successful campaign represents only ‘one thing,’ it is the historic amplification of a hundred thousand small voices who were clamoring be heard above the din of the rusty City machine, and they were saying “Yo Mike! Serve us … please!”

 

Re: 3-1-1 systems and government that's responsive and accountable to all of its citizens

We need to move the city away from a style of government that serves only the "squeaky" or the "connected" and towards a government that serves everyone. The first step is to make it easy for the citizens to reach the correct city office to make their issue known and then giving them an easy way to follow-up. NYC's 3-1-1 system does just that.

 

Continue to think outside the box, but here are a few real action items that will save the city at least $150,000,000 and reduce the work force by 10%:
1. Privitize the water and gas departments
2. Purchase the phone cabeling and own your own phone system
3. Require all vendors who sell services over $50,000 to the City to have an office and pay taxes for one year
4. Buy all procurement for the City through the Federal government's prenegotiated GSA schedule
5. Use "just in time" purchasing, and stop all warehousing of non-emergency supplies
6. Privitize non-uniform vehicles and equipment
7. Remove all commissioners, deputy commissioners and code 3 employees in civilian positions
8. For the pension board, provide oversight and mangement by Philadelphia based financial managers
9. As for public education, look at the operations side, rather than the education side for cost cutting
10. Require fixed firm contratcts and disallow modifications
11. Digitize all records, such as police reports, so that citizens can access them for a fee
12. Have a goal of zero leasing. Set up regional libraries as mini-city halls
13. Have a one-hour open session each week in the beginning of your term to get real feedback....no gatekeepers, no filters

These suggestions are achieveable. I worked for two former Mayors and know it can be done. That's why I voted for you! Good luck.

 

Please help clean our area and we also need more lighting on our streets. Also, I am a disabled person but I have not heard from the Parking Authority to get the reserved parking sign on my street. It has been two years since I applied for it.

 

Please install some sound barriers at the Mann Music Center. The residents in the Wynnefield section every spring & summer have to hear the loud noise and music, which goes on for hours and hours. There should be some regulations to keep the volume to a certain level.

 

Mike here is a list of things that I hope you will correct, REMOVE CARL GREEN from PHA. Put a direct individual in charge of the school board. Reduce crime,increase the police patrol, DONT PAY PAUL VALLAS,

 

I want you to put the Charter Rules that are already on the book into effect.
Loud noise from cars, give them tickets. 10PM curfews. Littering. this is a "dirty city"
Can you do something about the lawyers making soooooo much on poor people losing their property because of the fees from the forclosure lawyers.

 

Yo Mike! I want to congratulate you for reaching the concerned citizens of Philadelphia and winning the primary election to become the next Mayor of the City of Philadelphia. However, if I had my wish, the one thing I need you to focus on is making buildings and services more accessible for persons with disabilities.

It is extremely difficult to conduct business or go out for leisurely pleasure without access to buildings and the facilities inside. After receiving an invitation to attend a forum, if it wasn't for the extremely friendly door-man, those of us who use walkers or wheel-chairs could not open the front door. No automatic door openers! When inside, no automatic door openers to the rest-rooms. Once inside the rest-room, who's going to let us out? This is humilating.

I recently attended a college graduation downtown, again no automatic door openers and those with walkers had to leave them in the rear, while the staff took our arms and helped people down the stairs. And this happened at one of the most famous entertainment theaters in Center City. Please do something about this.

If you contact me, I will give you the names of the buildings I had trouble entering.

The thing to remember is that persons with disabilities, no matter how great, no matter how small, want to be a part of the next great city experience. If at all possible, please make it happen.

Dean Rosencranz

Yo, Mike, the one thing I really need you to do is gradually reduce the City's work force to bring it in line with our declining population. We have as many City employees today as we did when our population was 50% larger. If we address that imbalance, we can balance the budget and bring taxes to a level that will attract new jobs. If we don't, we'll stay on this unfortunate downward path of fewer jobs and declining population.

Rendell stopped the worst bleeding, but jobs and population continue to decline most years. A good year is one when the numbers hold steady. That's not good enough. You can do better, Mike.

 

As a citizen of Philadelphia, a member of the Friends of Clark Park and a regular user of Philadelphia's city parks, I feel that the one concrete thing you can do for the city is improve the services of the Department of Recreation and the Fairmount Park Commission. For example, Barbara McCabe of the Recreation Department is swamped with the processing of permits for events in the park; she has many other duties administrating park affairs for the Recreation Department. Adding a new staff position to evaluate and process permits for park usage could go far to alleviate this problem. The position could be filled with an entry-level employee, and would not be expensive for the city, yet would allow much more timely processing of permits, enabling the volunteer organizations which help maintain and preserve the parks to be informed in advance of events bringing large numbers of people into public spaces such as Clark Park.

 

Thomas Paine Cronin
President
AFSCME District Council 47
Ten years ago, non-uniformed municipal unions collaborated with city managers to spell out ways the city can save money and improve efficiencies in its operations. It’s called the Redesigning Government Initiative (RGI). We went from department to department, analyzing workplace processes, developing flowcharts, recommending changes in procedures. The RGI process resulted in substantial cost savings and improved efficiency, for example:
— In the city’s Criminalistics Lab, which conducts DNA testing and physical evidence analysis, procedural recommendations increased samples processing by several hundred percent,
—In Licenses and Inspections, the city’s complex licensing system was simplified and condensed, reducing processing time for various city licenses, as well as administrative expense for the city,
—RGI developed recommendations for expanding the Recreation Department’s Summer Food and After-School Snack programs for low-income children, 
—And in the Revenue Department, the RGI committee weighed the cost of implementing travel audits vs. the revenue that could be collected from businesses located outside Philadelphia. Result? More than $1 million collected from 12 newly audited businesses.

RGI shows that the city’s unions can be a major partner in helping Philadelphia provide good government to its citizens. Please email me for a draft copy of the 2003 RGI report.

Juanita B. Hatton
Yo Mike the one thing I really need you to do is Take Care of the Children and to save a City we must save the children who are the citizen of tommorow and the key is education
We start with the children in the DHS system What I propose is to develop and implement a IMPERVIOUS GRANNY SQUAD Who would be an advocate advisories to young families in need of DHS services I have the proposal I just need you to implement this project to save our children and schools. Let's talk.

David Fair
The release of the child welfare panel report shows how much we have let bureaucracies, regulations and mandates take the place of our basic responsibility to be there for those who are more vulnerable. We've made an industry of everything, including government and human services, and it's hard to remember what these systems were originally set up to do.
In the end, the reason we have a DHS is because we as a community desire to combine our resources (mostly through taxes) to address a community need that we as individuals can't make much of a dent in. DHS is supposed to be a creation of the community, dedicated to making sure that the children who are at risk and their families are able to overcome their challenges - or at least making a vigorous effort to do so. So long as we think of child welfare as a system of rules and paperwork alone, rather than a basic right and fundamental principle of how we live, we'll continue to go through these periodic crises of conscience but still return to the way things have always been.

One of the major points of the child welfare panel report that should get special notice is this: while the priority for the DHS system is supposed to be child safety, the thousands of people working in that system have instead been forced to become generalists -- they have to be expert in finding housing, drug and mental health treatment, employment, education, etc., etc., since in most cases, neglect and abuse are a symptom of poverty, not a behavior we can fix by just moving the child out of harm's way.

The point the panel is making is that if you put a family's entire struggle on one person, who is supposed to be concentrating on the child's safety, you weaken their effort and it's more likely a child will fall through the cracks.

I agree with that. And I think it's important to recognize that this is not a DHS problem. The fact is that we have so fragmented our various city bureaucracies -- health over here, mental health over there, child welfare somewhere else, housing down the corner and job development out the window -- that we've developed the habit of simply passing needy people around the system rather than coming together to get the best of each system for each family. The city now has the Division of Social Services as a way of helping the various department blend and braid and combine their resources, human and financial, so that individuals and families arre able to get seamless support. It hasn't worked that way in the current Administration for a lot of reasons, but the framework is there to make it possible that ALL city agencies recognize their responsibility to keep children safe and families healthy. With the kind of leadership Mayor Nutter has exhibited so far, I think he's just the guy to make sure it works this time.

 

Lynn
I have several thoughts of action for Department of Human Services:
The Dept. is to large for one person to oversee break the dept into three areas of service:
1. A Direct Response team -comprised by areas or sections for the city manned by (TBD) with an estimated quick response time after receiving a call of possible child endangerment like our police and fire personnel.
2. Accountabilty Dept.- this dept will be responsible for overseeing all documentation in a timely manner and review to ensure case notes are updated and follow thru is or has been recommended and dispatched to
3. Social Services- for consistent interaction with child and family, community meetings, court appearances, etc., and their (jackets, sorry cases) must be reviewed, also by the Accountability Dept.
Each dept will have its own Supervisor, Admin Ast. and case review monitor.
I believe this is the only way DHS will ever be successful in saving the lives of our children. In addition New Jersey is in the process of revamping their system with something similar as above. This is my Great Expectation for child safety!
Thank you.

Ruth Cohn
The last time that there was a raise in pensions for city workers was at least over 20 years ago. This is not fair. Most other pension plans have increases for cost of living. Please address this. Thank you.
Congratulations of your election and lots of good luck on you two terms as Mayor.........\

Austin Dutton
Please let a professional advise the city employees on how to allocate the money they have place in the Deferred Comp plan! Thank you, for your service.

Ruth Cohn
When I retired, I was given medical insurance for three years. Because of that, I did not apply for Medicare during the three years. Because of that, my husband and I have been penalized at a rate of 10% for each year since 1997, and will be penalized each year from now on. This year alone the penalty costs us over $670.00 and over $6000.00 to date. I know this is a federal IRS matter, but we would have made other arrangements had we known of this horrendous penalty. No one at the city told us of the penalty we have to pay for the rest of our lives if we accepted the city medical insurance at retirement. Something has to be done about this. Thank you
Congratulations and good luck

J. P. Jones
Future Mayor Nutter, please consider keeping the Philadelphia Fire Department's Command Staff intact. I believe these individuals are doing a teriffic job. Fire deaths are a concern we all share. I believe Fire Commissione Ayers and his staff are on the right track to reduce the number fire deaths and continue to educate Philadelphians about fire and health related safety.

Philly Firefighter
Please get rid of the dead weight running the Philadelphia fire department into the ground. Number 1 and 2 and Executive chief are incompitent over and over again. Play a double standard in every way. FIRE THEM for the working man.

Another Philly Firefighter
I agree, Get rid of the dead weight in the PFD they have no idea what they are doing, fire deaths are up injuries are up and they do not care about the individual firefighter at all all they care about is there own ajenda to split the department.

Joe McCool
Yo Mike, you'll hear a lot about the problems with the Emergency Medical Services (EMS) system in the city. Since you have some time before you're really the mayor why not spend a day riding with a medic unit and a day riding with a first responder/engine company in the Fire Dept.? You'll learn alot in a very short period. Pick a couple hot days in August!

Philly Firefighter
I'm sure you saw the front page of the Daily News a couple of weeks ago, with the members of Ladder 12 - A Platoon rescuing a whole family. I thought you might find it interesting that not one member of the idiot club at the Fire Administration Building took the time to even lift a phone to send out an atta boy to the members of the company. Makes you wonder what they are doing with their time.

Vera
Philadelphia
I don't know if you remember me but I met you on South Street while you were campaigning.
You advised me to send an email and here it goes.
I am so frustrated with the lack of information that is provided to minority entrepreneurs. No one wants to help or no ones know what's going on. I have tried to obtain clarity on my capitalization requirement for the past 3 years for my homecare agency.
I have writing letters to both Shirley Kitchen, and Arlene Spector and various other individuals.

There are a lot of opportunities for the city of Philadelphia and services that many of our senior and disabled neighbors are not receiving. Services are not available in certain areas. I am referring to urban areas.

Many of our seniors and disable neighbors are not receiving quality homecare, meals on wheel etc. because they can not get people to go into these unsafe neighborhoods. Many of the companies don't always hire individuals within these communities.

Here at Home Internationally, Inc. My vision was to provide just the opposite. My vision is to provide services in these area and other multicultural communities with seniors or disable people.

My vision is to work with the various city officials in ensuring that our seniors and disable residence are not forgotten. They can stay in there homes and not be placed in nursing homes, and feel safe.

This vision has been put on hold for the past 3 years because no one can clarify the regulation on the capitalization.

I have come to a dead end with no answers and agency that is sitting idol pending clarity.

My vision is to coordinate services throughout the city of Philadelphia in urban areas to provide our seniors and disabled neighbors quality services and safe housing.

Many patients have been deprived of services simply because of there locality. No one wants to go into these areas because they are "unsafe".
Why can't we provide a comprehensive program to met the needs of our seniors and disabled

My vision is to role this comprehensive program and out in other cities and countries, thus hiring bi-lingual, diversified individuals to met the needs of our neighbors.

If you can assist me in anyway I would greatly appreciate your assistant. Thank you for listening.