No Kenyatta, you can't take people's land

[JakeL]

For those of you following the Kenyatta land grab debacle, chalk another one up to the anti land grabbers. Swung by the 1700 block of Manton St today, a small side street that has 6 properties slated on the list for the land grab. 1719 Manton St, one of the private properties on the list is now seeing a foundation being poured. I imagine we'll see a building being framed out in the next week or so.



Did Kenyatta remove this one from the list? I can't find the updated legislation that removed properties that were already being developed. Actually, come to think of it, maybe he shouldn't take it off the list. In order to build affordable housing at a quality rate, he should just allow developers to build a house and then take it over via eminent domain.

[ofeibush]

It's off the list. Had his office been willing to work with developers I am sure the owner would have gladly swapped this lot for another so that both the city and the owner would end up with contiguous parcels.

But hey..KJ got what he wanted. Enjoy the 10' wide lots at 1610-12 Titan and 1200 S 17th. Hope you find a family looking for an affordable home that doesn't eat much....

It was sad to see him lie to his constituents. These homes will be sold for far more than they can afford.

[sharkey]

Chamber of Commerce supported KJ over longtime real estate broker Barbara Capozzi. Way to go!

[thesomersteam]

It is simply a disgrace to use eminent domain for this purpose. That is a sacred power - one to build a bridge or a highway. But for a land grab when the City already owns a ton of inventory in Point Breeze ? It just smells rotten. We live in a free society... not a Government State.

[funk]

How does this get investigated by higher authorities? He's a total fraud.

On a side note, do you think he'll pay a fair rate of property taxes or the few hundred dollars it was before construction started? I wonder if he has zoning approval, eg. Inspectors that will report back the fair market value that will drive up the cost of this affordable housing even more?

I doubt it. When you think about it, he probably won't even bother paying up in February, knowing that the city wouldn't go after him in the first place.

[JakeL]

How does this get investigated by higher authorities? He's a total fraud.

On a side note, do you think he'll pay a fair rate of property taxes or the few hundred dollars it was before construction started? I wonder if he has zoning approval, eg. Inspectors that will report back the fair market value that will drive up the cost of this affordable housing even more?

I doubt it. When you think about it, he probably won't even bother paying up in February, knowing that the city wouldn't go after him in the first place.

New construction, 10 year tax abatement on the any new buildings.

[Giavella Water]

How does this get investigated by higher authorities? He's a total fraud.

On a side note, do you think he'll pay a fair rate of property taxes or the few hundred dollars it was before construction started? I wonder if he has zoning approval, eg. Inspectors that will report back the fair market value that will drive up the cost of this affordable housing even more?

I doubt it. When you think about it, he probably won't even bother paying up in February, knowing that the city wouldn't go after him in the first place.

Investigated? Higher authorities? In the Inky editorial section today was a nice item about parking ticket fixing by the 'higher authorities'. Read the names of the people involved including Philly council members, congressmen, and judges.

Do you really think a black politician like Mr. JohnsoBeowulf be judged by the same standards if he were white?

[JakeL]

Investigated? Higher authorities? In the Inky editorial section today was a nice item about parking ticket fixing by the 'higher authorities'. Read the names of the people involved including Philly council members, congressmen, and judges.

Do you really think a black politician like Mr. JohnsoBeowulf be judged by the same standards if he were white?

It's not a matter of race, the white Philadelphia Republican machine of the 19th and 20th centuries developed one of the most corrupt governments of the modern era. Furthermore, the Inky article you mentioned accuses several white politicians of ticket fixing. Government corruption is rampant across every race and people group in this city. I don't believe this thread should divert into some race based politics BS, but rather remain at the issue at hand, that is, that a councilman is acquiring more land via eminent domain in a neighborhood already saturated with city owned vacant lots.

[Giavella Water]

It's not a matter of race, the white Philadelphia Republican machine of the 19th and 20th centuries developed one of the most corrupt governments of the modern era. Furthermore, the Inky article you mentioned accuses several white politicians of ticket fixing. Government corruption is rampant across every race and people group in this city. I don't believe this thread should divert into some race based politics BS, but rather remain at the issue at hand, that is, that a councilman is acquiring more land via eminent domain in a neighborhood already saturated with city owned vacant lots.

Yeah it IS a matter of race. The white politicians as well as ALL whites are held up to impossibly high standards with one tiny slip meaning the end of ones career or even ones freedom. Black politicians are given a WIDE berth with all their multiple sins forgiven, smoothed over or ignored.

[lucidinnature]

HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! I need a good laugh today, thanks!

The only reason they can get away with this is by playing the race card. Period. Sure, they use words like 'diversity', 'affordable housing', 'neighborhood preservation', etc. It is all b.s.

It's not a matter of race, the white Philadelphia Republican machine of the 19th and 20th centuries developed one of the most corrupt governments of the modern era. Furthermore, the Inky article you mentioned accuses several white politicians of ticket fixing. Government corruption is rampant across every race and people group in this city. I don't believe this thread should divert into some race based politics BS, but rather remain at the issue at hand, that is, that a councilman is acquiring more land via eminent domain in a neighborhood already saturated with city owned vacant lots.

[Giavella Water]

HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! I need a good laugh today, thanks!

The only reason they can get away with this is by playing the race card. Period. Sure, they use words like 'diversity', 'affordable housing', 'neighborhood preservation', etc. It is all b.s.

Don't forget the other racial code words to exclude whites like 'Urban', 'at risk', 'inner city', 'disenfranchised'.
Any time you see any programs to help people in need and you hear those words you can guarantee no white faces will be present.

[Gladys]

I didn't think this was a done deal, is it? Can't it be taken to a higher authority. It seems absurd that the owners of some of the property comes to the hearing says that development is at hand but the city laws themselves held it back and he is basically called a liar.

I thought eminent domain was supposed to be used in emergency or dire development need... how does this apply at all?

[JakeL]

Don't forget the other racial code words to exclude whites like 'Urban', 'at risk', 'inner city', 'disenfranchised'.
Any time you see any programs to help people in need and you hear those words you can guarantee no white faces will be present.

Did you watch or attend the hearing? If so, you would have seen Councilman Greenlee (who is white), dismiss the anti-landgrab points brought up by Ori and cater to the 'Concerned Citizens of Point Breeze.' Also, you would have heard several white directors of nonprofit organizations such as Habitat for Humany use the words you mentioned of 'urban', 'at risk', 'inner city' and 'disenfranchised.'

[Gladys]

Really man? It's really not cool to use language like that. # signs don't lighten what you're saying, which is pretty reprehensible if you're a white guy (and still not cool even if you're black, by most decent people's standards).

no it doesn't, as was pointed out before when rizzo was in power it was just as corrupt. corrupt politicians will cater to their base, it doesn't matter if they are plaid of polkadot.

CCPB is racist. no doubt but the politicians in this are simply covering their asses to get re-elected. wouldn't matter what the people looked like, the play would be the same.

stick to the topic at hand.

[thesomersteam]

I was very surprised that there were not more opponents of this bill at the hearing. I should have called ahead in order to get on the testimony list. There was a ton of talk about the benefits of affordable housing, but the bill is really not about affordable housing, it gets down to how the City is acquiring the land - via eminent domain. I think this practice for what they "say they will do" is absurd and an abuse of power. What is also surprising is that all of the other City Council members will probably vote in favor of the bill. It has already passed the committee. So if you live in Germantown or West Philly, brace yourself as this sets the state for Blackwell doing the same thing or any other Council member for that matter. This is a very dangerous precedent of Council power.

[lucidinnature]

The habitat for humanity people have their own agenda. I've had dinner with them, and for personal and professional reasons they very much love keeping ghettos ghetto.

As for 'white people' using these terms? So? I'll certainly admit that stupidity is not specific to one race, and all sides use these clique terms to get what they want to keep control of districts. As soon as something in philly improves? We need diversity!!!! Neighborhood is at risk!!!! This is the only damn city where neighborhoods are always at risk because people are moving in and wishing to improve what the 'locals' destroyed for 30+ years.

Did you watch or attend the hearing? If so, you would have seen Councilman Greenlee (who is white), dismiss the anti-landgrab points brought up by Ori and cater to the 'Concerned Citizens of Point Breeze.' Also, you would have heard several white directors of nonprofit organizations such as Habitat for Humany use the words you mentioned of 'urban', 'at risk', 'inner city' and 'disenfranchised.'

[the mule]

I was very surprised that there were not more opponents of this bill at the hearing. I should have called ahead in order to get on the testimony list. There was a ton of talk about the benefits of affordable housing, but the bill is really not about affordable housing, it gets down to how the City is acquiring the land - via eminent domain. I think this practice for what they "say they will do" is absurd and an abuse of power. What is also surprising is that all of the other City Council members will probably vote in favor of the bill. It has already passed the committee. So if you live in Germantown or West Philly, brace yourself as this sets the state for Blackwell doing the same thing or any other Council member for that matter. This is a very dangerous precedent of Council power.

It's not surprising at all that there weren't more opponents. These hearings are just a formality; they almost never sway the passage of a bill in either direction. I'm sure there are plenty of investors, developers, and builders who are opposed to this action but didn't have much incentive to speak out against it. They know they won't change a thing and if they do speak out they'll be on the councilman's ****list going forward. Most people doing business there want to continue doing business, so unless their own properties were on the list, they don't have anything to gain by raising a stink over it. Ori is already on Johnson's ****list so he has nothing more to lose by going out and being the lightning rod. It's really sad that people trying to earn a living without having their property taken have to tiptoe around Council to avoid retribution, but that's still the state of affairs in Philadelphia.

On a side note regarding Frejo's racist language, he needs to be banned - now. It's bad enough that most of these threads about gentrification and affordable housing have a lot of racist undertones which often devolve into overt blaming of the black population for neighborhood problems, but this talk should be wiped out immediately. That kind of discussion here completely undermines any legitimacy this forum could hope to have.

[Giavella Water]

On a side note regarding Frejo's racist language, he needs to be banned - now. It's bad enough that most of these threads about gentrification and affordable housing have a lot of racist undertones which often devolve into overt blaming of the black population for neighborhood problems, but this talk should be wiped out immediately. That kind of discussion here completely undermines any legitimacy this forum could hope to have.

Whydon't YOU just ban yourself and your McCarthyism now. If you don't want to hear about black racism ,which there is plenty of by the way , then that's tough ain't it? The black population in PB should hang it's head in shame for not countering what the few verbal closed minded bigots in their mist have been conjuring up the past few years.

[MariusPontmercy]

Whydon't YOU just ban yourself and your McCarthyism now. If you don't want to hear about black racism ,which there is plenty of by the way , then that's tough ain't it? The black population in PB should hang it's head in shame for not countering what the few verbal closed minded bigots in their mist have been conjuring up the past few years.

"But they do it too" is the worst excuse for poor behavior ever. Don't start using it.

[Naveen]

This thread, and PS in general, needs better moderation. Because of posters like Frejo and Giavella Water, a thread about an important issue degenerates into garbage. It not only drives good people away from an individual thread, but away from the site in general.