The breaking news is that Judge Idee C. Fox has issued an order stating that Mayor Michael Nutter can NOT go ahead with his planned library closures on or after January 1st without City Council approval.
The Inky has some details but it appears that the Nutter administration will appeal the verdict.
WHYY’s Tom MacDonald reports even if [...]

By Tom MacDonald
Click below to listen to this story.
[Audio clip: view full post to listen]
Mayor Michael Nutter has announced a plan to replace some of the services offered city libraries set to close Thursday and some activists aren’t satisfied.
The mayor says an after school program offered at the 11 libraries scheduled to be closed this [...]

The city’s budget crunch has book lovers looking for ways to keep 11 library branches open, reaching out to foundations, individuals and corporations. Mayor Michael Nutter says an announcement about a partnership is imminent.  But options may be limited for Philadelphia residents hoping to save their neighborhood libraries.  WHYY’s Susan Phillips reports.
Click here to [...]

By Ben Bradlow
Amid the hum of skateboard wheels against the concrete of Love Park, about 30 gay activists gathered in the frigid cold on Saturday evening. As one opposite-sex couple tentatively made their way through “We Shall Overcome” and “If I Had a Hammer,” others joined in, quickly becoming confident in the spirit of the [...]

In doing the reporting for her story below, WHYY’s Elizabeth Fiedler paid a visit to the Gallery at Market East and talked to patrons of the mall and folks who work nearby.  She wanted to find out whether people who frequent the Gallery or are regularly in close proximity would find themselves tempted to spend [...]

President-elect Barack Obama is already under the spotlight as he tries to cope with the biggest financial crisis since the Great Depression. But walk by any curbside clothing stand in Philadelphia and you are likely to see one positive economic from an Obama presidency that hasn’t even begun yet. The Obama image is [...]

by Shannon Curley
There tends to be a stigma about young people that they don’t get involved, that they don’t care or can’t be bothered. If it doesn’t involve the newest version of the i-Phone or Britney’s latest scandal they aren’t interested.
With this in mind, Philadelphia’s budget cuts would seem like the least likely thing for [...]

Guest Commentary by K. Sayford-Wilson
The Northeast Times just had a cartoon depicting Mayor Nutter with a helmet on his head, preparing for another Town Hall meeting. It made me laugh, but it also made me sad. Mayor Nutter has taken quite a beating lately, and I’m not so sure that he deserves it.
A century ago, [...]

By Shannon Curley
Hundreds of people are expected to turn out at noon tomorrow at Philadelphia’s Central Library in the first city-wide Save the Library rally. Organizers of the event say they expect anywhere from 500 to 1000 people to attend in an effort to prevent the 11 library closures that have been announced by Mayor Michael [...]

Guest Commentary by K.Sayford-Wilson
In today’s economy, volunteering at schools and charitable organizations
is more important than ever, and can add up to “federal dollars earned”
but ironically has become increasingly impossible for many families for
the same reasons that it’s most needed.
Take Head Start for example. This federally funded school readiness program, which is designed to benefit low-income [...]