Ideas from elsewhere: City services

311 systems. A centralized number for city services is old news in such cities as Chicago, New York, Baltimore and Houston. But not Philadelphia. The Street administration looked into installing a 311, but felt it would be too expensive and raise expectations too much. In other words, when citizens called, they'd expect action. Councilman Jim Kenney is pushing for a 311 system here, and Democratic nominee Michael Nutter hails the idea.

CitiStat. Nutter already has visited Baltimore to observe its CitiStat system, a computerized map of the work done by city agencies. It's modeled after the CompStat system on crime data used by the Philadelphia police. Proponents say it's a way to help top managers keep an eye on services - and hold them directly responsible for delivery.

Citizen Budget Panels. They do this in Los Angeles and other cities. It's a way to help government prioritize services by (radical idea!) asking citizen for input. Several cities use citizen panels, often drawn from civic and neighborhood groups, to help shape budgets.

ComNET. It started in Worcester, Mass., and spread elsewhere, including the the Center City District here. Citizens and city employers use handheld computers to report possible code violations, potholes, etc. City departments use these data to pinpoint problems and make inspections and repairs.