? Want this daily digest emailed to you? Sign up for the free Billy Penn newsletter and it’ll land in your inbox every morning.

City halts cryptocurrency talks over transparency issues

What do Ben Simmons and a municipal cryptocurrency have in common? Neither of them could make it in Philadelphia.

  • Lack of transparency was a big strike against adopting CityCoins, officials told Technical.ly — it’s hard to track who owns them. There’s also the question of how to use the money (Miami’s doing rent assistance).

CityCoin proponents pushed back on Philly’s concerns, Beatrice Forman reports, but admit one problem: as designed, it’s subject to sky-high inflation.

New yuzu-togarashi jerky made in Philly is plant based

South Philly’s Ben Doar couldn’t find what he was looking for in meat alternative snacks, so he created Philly Jerk.

  • Spiced with yuzu shichimi togarashi, the soy protein is baked in small batches, packaged, and sold online. Also look for a special Earth Day release with Rival Bros Coffee, flavored with cacao, coffee, and cayenne.

Find out more in the latest edition of CravePhilly on Billy Penn. You can also catch the video segment on Taxi TV powered by Curb, the ride-hailing app.

RECAP: What else happened?

$ = paywalled 

  • The latest U.S. Senate campaign filing has info on the contenders’ personal finances. No surprise: Oz and McCormick are rich. The others? The top Republican candidates all have lots of holdings, while few of the Democrats do. [WHYY]
  • Pennsylvania is modernizing its clemency system. Within the next year, people should be able to apply for pardons online. [City & State]
  • The Philly Zoo hasn’t seen any confirmed cases, but it temporarily closed some exhibits and moved animals indoors as bird flu spreads across the country. [Axios]
  • With an investment from a Main Line private equity firm, Federal Donuts is talking about 150 locations across the U.S. It’s not the first time the Mike Solomonov fried chicken and donuts chain tried expansion — a Miami outpost closed in 2018 after just 6 months. [Inquirer$/Billy Penn]
  • Former teen idol Bobby Rydell died at 79. In the movie “Grease,” the school was named Rydell High because of the Philly native, and he’s also known for the song “Wildwood Days.” [Variety/6ABC]

Weekly brief on gun violence prevention (with PCGVR)

We publish this report each week in partnership with the Philadelphia Center for Gun Violence Reporting at the Community College of Philadelphia. 

By the numbers in Philadelphia

  • 24: Shooting victims recorded last week, vs. 43 the week prior [PPD Google Drive]
  • 164: Shooting victims in March, up from 152 in February but down 7% from March last year. [Open Data Philly]
  • 528: Shooting victims this year, same pace as last year [PCGVR]
  • 126: Year-to-date homicides, up 1% from last year [Philly Police]

MAYOR WATCH

Relatively busy day in the public eye for Philly’s 99th mayor. Kenney starts at the South Philly Community Health & Literacy Center to kick off the Free Library’s “Read by 4th” partnership with SEPTA (10 a.m.). Called Reading Promise, it sees posters and interactive exhibits designed to encourage reading deployed across the public transit system.

Kenney returns to City Hall to launch Philly Votes 2022, a campaign to encourage people to vote in the May 17 primary (12:30 p.m.) Evening brings the mayor to the Philadelphia Union Foundation Legends of Soccer fundraiser, which this year honors South Jersey soccer star Carli Lloyd (6:30 p.m.).

ON THE CALENDAR

?️ Mural Arts hosts a fundraiser art show at the Ukraine League of Philadelphia, featuring drawings, music, and Ukrainian poetry. A poster-making session will start the evening. (6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Friday, April 8)

? Looking for a workout class and bar crawl double whammy? Join RippedPHL and Barre 3 for back-to-back bar and strength training classes followed by snacks from Pure Fare and drinks from Two Robbers. Tickets are $35. (11:30 a.m. Saturday, April 9)

? A Bloody Mary is basically like boozy soup. That’s the inspiration for Musi Philly’s “Hard Soup Night,” a $50 tasting menu filled with liquid deliciousness you can spike with spirits if desired. Reservations required. (8 p.m. Sunday, April 10)