Pot, Kettle Call Each Other Black

There was some sparring at City Hall yesterday between World’s Greatest Leader Paul Vallas and Mayor John Street.

Vallas and Street’s back and forth was not really all that unexpected. The school district, you see, recently realized that (whoops!) it had a $70 million dollar deficit. It’s easy to realize how that could be misplaced. Street was not only angered at the deficit — he called it “a financial failure of the greatest magnitude” — he was angered that they just found out about the deficit now:

”I can’t think of a set of circumstances where somebody in the finance department wouldn’t know. I just can’t imagine that you just wouldn’t know that. Its just too much money. It’s 70 million dollars!… I have never seen anything like that in all of my 27 years in local government. I have never seen anything like that.”

Think about that for a second: John Street says he’s never seen anything this stupid. John. Street. Let that sink in. Yes, that’s how bad, uh, misplacing $70 million is. I guess.

Vallas, though, had some responses of his own, warning Street that “people in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones.” He’s using the nice old strategy of saying “Oh, you suck too, so it’s okay if I suck.” Excellent.

But Vallas’ real zinger came later:

“If I want schools to be adequately funded, I’d be better off petitioning Bloomberg in New York to make Philadelphia the sixth borough.”

Jesus. That was, like, what, a year ago? Last summer, even! People aren’t still quoting, say, Anchorman or making Napoleon Dynamite references, are they? (Uhh, don’t answer that.)

Mayor Street, Schools CEO Vallas Bicker Over Budget Shortfall [KYW 1060]
Monday: Enron, Adelphia Also Win Awards

Market East To Be Outfitted With Giant Neon Ramen Ad

Looks like Philadelphia’s going to be getting a giant ad for soup sometime soon. (Sorry, I already used a Geno’s joke today and didn’t want to make another one.)

The Trinity Capitol Advisors has signed a 150-year lease with the estate of Stephen Girard for the lot between Market and Chestnut streets and 11th and 12th — for a cool $90 million — and is planning on making it the hippest hoppin place in town:

“Our idea is really be patient with it and make sure it’s right,” [TCA prez Ken] Kearns said of the four-building complex on Market Street across from The Gallery. “It has the potential to be a Times Square [or] Rockefeller Center for Philadelphia.”

Yes, that’s all well and good, but what will happen to the Funk-O-Mart? You make the Funk-O-Mart close — or force them to go to a different City Blue — and the people will riot.

Philadelphia’s Times Square? [Metro]

Philly’s a laughingstock

You might think that a circulation scandal at New York newspaper Newsday (and its Spanish-language sister publication) wouldn’t affect Philadelphia much. Of course, you’d be wrong, since anytime there’s a possibility of losing money, Philadelphia will be there.

Here’s the story: Back in the summer of 2004, Newsday stated that it had overstated daily circulation to advertisers and investors for periods of several years. Then there was a fake hawker scheme later that year, &c. &c.

Now, a group of investors is suing the paper’s parent company, the Tribune Co., after the stock went from $47 to $40 during the scandal, alleging delays in divulging the problem. And the lead plaintiff in the case? If you guessed “The City of Philadelphia,” you would be absolutely correct!

The city’s Board of Pensions and Retirement (always a good place to lose money from) says it lost $310,600 on Tribune stock, according to (who else) Newsday. The Tribune Co. has reportedly put aside $95 million to settle investors’ claims.

So, basically: A circulation scandal at a paper in New York allegedly cost the city $310,600. One question: Does that put the city closer to or further from Sixth Borough status?

Philly takes lead in Tribune lawsuit [Newsday]

Quickies: No boroughs here

• Congratulations to the Inquirer for doing a story about New Yorkers moving to Philadelphia and not mentioning the sixth borough. But did you have to make the story take up 75% of the front page? [Inky]

• The No. 9 Bucks County moment of 2005, according to the Bucks County Courier Times: Anthony Federov, American Idol contestant from Trevose. Indeed. [BCCT]

• That NBC show, Deal or No Deal? Yeah, it got good ratings. Sometimes you just want to take this country by its neck (Florida?) and give it a good shaking. [Hollywood Reporter via CNN.com]

• The whole Tyree (Cousin of Rasheed) Wallace shooting lets Police Commissioner Sylvester Johnson focus on the important issues: How newspaper headlines offend him. [DN]

Philly: STILL so hot right now!

I guess they figured, “Hey, the sixth borough had a strike. Why not us?”

As a good third grader would say: “Copycats.”

Threatened Strike By Transit Workers Worries New York [Washington Post]