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City Council race gets expensive - and muddy

The Second District City Council race, already highly contentious, could also be expensive. Ori Feibush, a real estate developer challenging first-term Councilman Kenyatta Johnson, has contributed more than $250,000 in personal finances to his campaign, meaning contribution limits will now double.

The Second District City Council race, already highly contentious, could also be expensive.

Ori Feibush, a real estate developer challenging first-term Councilman Kenyatta Johnson, has contributed more than $250,000 in personal finances to his campaign, meaning contribution limits will now double.

Under the "millionaire's provision" in the city's campaign finance law, if a candidate contributes that much or more, contribution limits for all candidates for that office double to $5,800 for individuals and $23,000 for political committees and unincorporated business organizations.

"The Second District is a very big area, geographically, with 170,000 individuals, and it's important to me to do whatever I can to reach those 170,000," Feibush, 30, said. "I've never asked anyone to invest in something I'm not willing to invest in myself."

Johnson, who has accused Feibush's market-rate developments in the district of pushing low-income residents out, went on the offensive.

"Now he's putting that money into his own campaign coffers, where he'll use it to launch more of the same false, negative attacks against Kenyatta Johnson he's been pushing for months," campaign manager Mark Nevins said in a statement. "Unlike Kenyatta, who grew up in the Second District and has spent his entire career fighting for all of its residents, Ori has no interest in fighting for Second District families who need a hand. Judging from the size of his contribution, it's clear that Ori's biggest supporter is Ori."

Hours after the city's Board of Ethics put out an advisory about the new limits, Johnson's campaign sent out an e-mail under the headline "Urgent News" seeking donations

Feibush said he had invested in the campaign "the same way I've invested in the businesses I've helped get off the ground and the communities I've helped turn around. It's easy for the councilman to spend other people's money. I'm committed to the district and to getting an honest, straight message out there."

Feibush and Johnson have been at odds for several years over Point Breeze, with Johnson promoting affordable housing as a way to keep gentrification from overwhelming the area and Feibush accusing him of holding back development that could restore blighted areas.

In June, Feibush sued Johnson, alleging that the councilman had prevented him from buying vacant land as political retaliation.

The campaign limits also doubled in the 2011 Eighth District race, the 2009 district attorney's race, and the 2007 mayoral campaign, said Michael Cooke, director of enforcement for the Board of Ethics.

The 2016 mayoral race remains at the normal contribution levels: $2,900 for individuals and $11,500 for political action committees and unincorporated business organizations.

The Second District includes parts of Center City, South and Southwest Philadelphia and the stadium area, Philadelphia International Airport, the Navy Yard, and the Eastwick, Grays Ferry, Hawthorne, and Point Breeze neighborhoods.

215-854-5506

@juliaterruso