More Chances to Have Your Say

March 18, 2007
Chris Satullo
Inquirer Editorial Page Editor

I feel like the guy who drove the coal train into Newcastle. Or who ventured forth from Nome to sell iceboxes to Eskimos. Anyway, into the hectic Philadelphia election season I come bearing more forums.

The groan you hear is from the five Democratic mayoral candidates, who have been submitting themselves for joint inspection by voters at an exhausting pace. If it's Tuesday, this must be Kensington . . .

Relax, fellas, not every event on this calendar of events for the Great Expectations project requires your presence - though you're certainly welcome.

This project of civic dialogue, a joint effort of the Editorial Board and the University of Pennsylvania, with grants from the Lenfest and Knight Foundations, is buoyed by a quaint notion: An election should not be just about what candidates think, do and say. It should also be about what citizens think. It should enlist citizens, their hopes, fears and ideas, in building a strong
agenda for the future.

We've been inviting citizens of the city (and region) to do just that since November. More than a thousand people have come to more than 40 forums. We've heard a lot about the top-of-mind issues: violence, schools, corruption, jobs and taxes.

We've also heard a lot about subtler, close-to-the-ground issues: planning and zoning; gentrification fears; the parks, and - don't underestimate this one - trash and litter. All this dialogue is a prelude to an effort to write a thorough, citizen-oriented Agenda for the Next Great City to be ratified by citizens this fall and presented to the new mayor and City Council as they take office next January.

Until primary day, we're seeking to bolster the campaign conversation, which has seen an awesome effort by civic groups to raise the profile of issues they care about.

Here's what we've planned:

Thursday, April 5: The Philadelphia Schools: Progress and Problems, A Citizen-Expert Dialogue. 6:30 to 9:30 p.m., The Inquirer building, 400 N. Broad St. Registration begins at 5:45 p.m. This program is being co-sponsored by the Philadelphia Cross City Campaign for School Reform. It will prepare citizens for a mayoral candidates forum on school issues the next Thursday, April 12, at
Congregation Rodeph Shalom, 615 N. Broad St., at 7 p.m.

The April 5 program will have three parts. An expert panel will review what's gone on with test scores, school choice, curriculum and finances since the state takeover of the Philadelphia schools. Then citizens will discuss what they've heard. Finally, Chairman James Nevels and School Reform Commission members will respond. Space is limited. To register, go to: www.fels.upenn.edu/greatexpectations.htm
and click on "Sign up for a forum." Or call the project hotline at 215-854-5956.

Monday, April 9: A mayoral candidates forum on development and planning issues co-sponsored with the Design Advocacy Group. It will be held from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at the Free Library main branch on Logan Circle. I'll moderate, posing questions penned by citizens.

Tuesday, April 10: A expert/citizen dialogue on issues of urban poverty and prosperity, 3 to 6 p.m., at the Enterprise Center, 4548 Market St. The afternoon will include a presentation on New York City's anti-poverty efforts, a panel discussion on how that approach applies to Philadelphia, and dialogue to sketch an anti-poverty agenda for our region. Registration is required through the Penn Urban Studies program (http://urban.ssc.upenn.edu or 215-898-7799).

Finally, we're planning a blitz of events, called Deliberation Days, in the first week of May. It will culminate in a televised mayoral forum we're co-sponsoring with WHYY and the Next Mayor project on Sunday, May 6.

A key goal of Deliberation Days is to bring a focus on the vital Council elections. In each Council district with a contested primary, we'll hold a candidates forum that week at a site in the district. Forums for the cavalry charge of at-large Council candidates also are planned. Watch this space for sites, dates and times.

Who said politics is always depressing? So far, Philadelphia is putting on quite a display of citizen energy and candidate effort.