Land bank and tax-delinquent property bills, award for L&I’s blight court, ads on school buses, Philadelphia Media Network seeks buyers, LeBron @ Sabrina’s

City Council turned its attention to vacant and tax-delinquent properties with two bills introduced yesterday, reports PlanPhilly’s Jared Brey. Councilwoman Maria Quiñones-Sánchez and Councilman Bill Green sponsored a bill to create a municipal Land Bank, which would serve as the clearinghouse for management and disposition of city-owned vacant property. Green introduced a bill to amend the real estate tax code to improve the city’s collections process for tax-delinquent properties.

In related news, the Department of Licenses and Inspections won an award from American City and Country for its initiatives to address the blighting effect of vacant property. L&I was given the nod for increased enforcement, requiring buildings to have doors and windows (not plywood), and issuing owners fines and court time if they don’t comply. Here’s hoping blight court really works.

Should school buses have ads so that the city’s schools can raise revenue? Councilwoman Blondell Reynolds Brown thinks that’s one way to help the public school system’s budget woes. Should kids be subjected to a barrage of messaging for the sake of their schools? SCRUB says no way. Before the city can move forward with Reynolds Brown’s bill, the he state will get its say on the idea first.

The New York Post reports that Philadelphia Media Network owners hired Evercore Partneres to find a buyer for the Inquirer, Daily News and philly.com. Evercore has met with a handful of potential buyers, and expects offers within weeks. The current owners, specifically shareholders Angelo Gordon and Alden Global, are “seeking to sell the papers again for roughly $100 million.”

Apparently LeBron James and members of the Miami Heat like to eat at Sabrina’s when they’re in town. I hope his stuffed-French-toast-food-coma lasts well into tonight’s game. Go Sixers!

 

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