Thousands greet new archbishop; Why is the Pa. primary so late? | Morning Newsletter
Plus, my colleagues analyzed the city’s $1 land sales.
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The Morning Newsletter
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The Tuesday Mass and ceremony that included the installation of Nelson J. Pérez as the Philadelphia Archdiocese’s new archbishop was the big story out of the city yesterday, with thousands gathered at the Cathedral Basilica of SS. Peter and Paul. In other news, my colleagues analyzed properties that Philadelphia sold for $1, only to have them be resold for millions. And, there’s a bunch of political stories highlighted in today’s newsletter, including pieces on Mike Bloomberg’s support of a Republican candidate in Pennsylvania in 2016, new anti-President Donald Trump TV ads, and why Pennsylvania’s April 28 primary is so late on the election calendar.
— Josh Rosenblat (@joshrosenblat, morningnewsletter@inquirer.com)
The thousands of people who gathered in the Cathedral Basilica of SS. Peter and Paul erupted in cheers and applause for the new leader of the Philadelphia Archdiocese. Nelson J. Pérez was installed yesterday as the 10th archbishop of Philadelphia. Pérez is the first Latino to lead the five-county archdiocese and at 58 is the youngest serving archbishop in the United States. His appointment marks his return to Philly after he served for nearly three decades in local parishes in West Chester and in the Olney and Lawncrest sections of the city.
Less than a half-hour into the Mass, a group of Philadelphia police surrounded the man known as Philly Jesus as he stood to the side in a white robe. After repeatedly asking him to leave, the police took him by the arms and escorted him from the building, handcuffed him, and gave him a ticket for trespassing.
In terms of a measuring stick for a presidential campaign, Pennsylvania has a lot to offer: two diverse big cities, populous suburbs, and vast rural areas. It combines the Acela corridor with the Rust Belt. Plus, it’s politically balanced, as Republicans and Democrats both regularly win statewide offices.
But Pennsylvanians won’t weigh in on the presidential primary until April 28, after 37 other states have already voted (plus Democrats living abroad). And for a variety of reasons, the state appears unlikely to move its primary date from the fourth Tuesday in April. So for now, those in Pennsylvania will just have to watch and wait.
Philadelphia’s $1 land parcels are meant to revitalize blighted neighborhoods, create affordable housing, and bring properties back onto tax rolls. In the 1990s and early 2000s, giving away properties for $1 made sense in order to revitalize a hollowed-out city. As Philadelphia’s population fell, tens of thousands of homes were abandoned, giving the city 40,000 vacant properties.
But they’ve actually enriched people and organizations over the years, with little oversight or accountability. Of the 2,314 properties that the city has sold for a buck since 2000, about 800 have been since resold for a total of $54 million, according to my colleagues’ analysis of property transfer data. Their reporting reveals the multifaceted issues facing the city’s vacant properties, from councilmember prerogative to how the city can protect itself when a $1 property is flipped for a profit.
What you need to know today
Mike Bloomberg, now a rising Democratic candidate for president, spent millions of dollars on the 2016 senate race in Pennsylvania to help Republican Sen. Pat Toomey.
The Boy Scouts of America filed for bankruptcy protection yesterday in Delaware as former Scouts sue over past sexual abuse.
Why is the most powerful Teamster in Pennsylvania taking on Teamsters general president James P. Hoffa?
While the Democratic presidential candidates are distracted by each other, outside groups have been ramping up negative advertising against President Trump in Pennsylvania.
Mounting evidence suggests that the coronavirus infection may be spread by people without symptoms. A finding that was published yesterday in the New England Journal of Medicine could make the job of containing the virus significantly more difficult.
An ex-Temple frat president was found guilty of attempted sexual assault in one case and was cleared in another. His sentencing hearing is set for May.
Through your eyes | #OurPhilly
Speaking of Chinatown, here are our restaurant critic’s picks for the spots you need to check out in the neighborhood. Thanks for the pic, @theliamgordon.
Tag your Instagram posts or tweets with #OurPhilly and we’ll pick our favorite each day to feature in this newsletter and give you a shout out!
That’s interesting
🚘It’s time to start memorizing your license plate number. The Philadelphia Parking Authority is moving forward with another phase of the “pay-by-plate” parking kiosk expansion. It’s expected to become the norm in Center City and University City by the end of the summer, the PPA’s executive director announced.
👖A South Jersey school district is trying to keep students in school by washing and folding their laundry.
💼My colleague asked five of Philadelphia’s black leaders to reflect on the beginnings of their careers. Here are their stories.
🏘️Homeowners in Delco have been hearing for three years that changes were likely coming to their tax bills. Now, they’ll be getting the new property assessments that will be used to calculate future taxes.
⚾A Phillies pitcher with a 100 mph fastball kept his career alive with a YouTube video.
🏗️The “Boner 4Ever” building on North Broad Street is going to become a hotel. But the developers for the project want to pay tribute to the famous graffiti.
Opinions
“Thus began my 55-year journey through cancerland. I lived there as a patient, a survivor, a person living with cancer. Now I face death from another cancer caused by the treatment that saved me all those years ago. Am I still a survivor?” — writes Gene Bishop, a retired physician, about how radiation cured her cancer 55 years ago, only to give her another cancer.
Car-free streets are a nice idea, writes the Inquirer Editorial Board, but they won’t solve all of Philly’s traffic and pedestrian problems.
The elimination of library fines in Philadelphia might also mean the end of personal responsibility, writes Linda A. Kerns, an attorney, in a piece adapted from Broad and Liberty.
What we’re reading
Four Pennsylvania companies were named to Fortune’s 100 Best Companies to Work For list.
Bookmarking this: Philadelphia Magazine has a list of where you can get free WiFi in Philly.
SpaceX is taking over a tiny Texas neighborhood, with Elon Musk’s rocket company buying homes from retiree-age homeowners. It’ll be the place where SpaceX hopes to develop its next-generation technology that could get rockets to Mars, Business Insider reports.
Your Daily Dose of | Fishadelphia🐟
Fishadelphia is a community-supported fishery founded by Talia Young, a former South Philly teacher and Princeton post-doc fellow who has devoted much of her academic career to studying fish, fisheries, and food supply chains. The goal is to connect New Jersey fisheries with Philly customers. Now, Fishadelphia is run by students at Mastery Charter School Thomas Campus and its North Philadelphia counterpart, Simon Gratz High School. With help, the students package the fish, balance the books, seek new customers, and manage the program’s social media and community outreach.