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Read the news of the day in less than 10 minutes — not that we’re counting.
Eagles Xmas album raises $1.25 million 🎄
Water bills in Philadelphia might go up ~$15 per month
Philly has one of the oldest water systems in the country. The median age of a main pipe is 76 years old — and they break almost 800 times a year.
- The cost to maintain this is rising, per the Philadelphia Water Department. The utility filed to boost rates about 20% over two years, WHYY News reports, so it can address “critical infrastructure.”
The increase would see monthly bills go up by an average of $15 by the end of 2024. It wouldn’t affect people on assistance programs, the utility says.
Bills are a consistently troubling issue for PWD. Last summer residents started getting thousand-dollar charges after snafus with “smart meters,” and the clunky online payment system still charges a high “convenience fee.”
→ Read PWD’s justification for the hike
An Eagles bar in the heart of Niners territory
The owner of San Francisco’s Kezar Pub is expecting to turn away 49ers fans ahead of Sunday’s NFC Championship game.
- Instead, Eagles fans will fill the Bay Area sports bar as their team faces the Niners. The Irish pub, in operation since the 1930s, was adopted by Philly expats 15 years ago, and they never looked back.
“They’re probably the loudest, most raucous fans of anyone I know,” the bar owner tells BP contributor Sasha Rogelberg.
→ Rain or shine, Birds fans show up
RECAP: What else happened?
$ = paywalled
- Under compromise “independent” Speaker Rozzi, the Pa. House adjourned this week without getting anything done. It’ll likely return after the Feb. 7 special elections expected to return Dems to a 1-vote majority. [Spotlight PA]
- Hundreds packed last night’s info session about changes to FDR Park, spilling onto the sidewalk with protests. The main debate is over the plan to replace the former golf course-turned-wild area with wetlands and athletic fields. [Inquirer$/BP 2022/WHYY]
- A new pilot program offers Strawberry Mansion High School students the chance to complete a training course and be guaranteed a job in the local building trades. It’s an effort from union leader Ryan Boyer, who took over for Johnny Doc last year. [Tribune$/WHYY/Billy Penn]
- The work and legacy of The Roots — founded by Questlove and Black Thought when they were high school classmates — is the focus of a PBS special premiering tonight at 9 p.m. [PhillyVoice/PBS]
- Chef Marc Vetri is teasing the launch of Salvy’s Pizzeria, named after his South Philly Italian father. Location has yet to be announced. [Linktree]
- The “Philly Special Christmas” album starring three Eagles players has now raised $1.25 million for Philly schools. [BP 2020/Inquirer$]
- “Flyyyyyyyyyy Eagles, Flyyyyyyyyyy” — check out Opera Philadelphia performing the fight song in advance of this weekend’s game. [YouTube]
MAYOR WATCH
Mayor Kenney attends a ceremony at the Temple Performing Arts Center recognizing a group of Police Department members who recently got promotions (10 a.m.).
ON THE CALENDAR
đź’‹ With a Syrian-born director, the Wilma presents “Kiss,” a play about American actors stumbling over cultural misunderstandings while performing a Syrian soap opera. Tickets start at $19. (Jan. 31 to Feb. 19)
🧊 Missing the snow? Manayunk’s Main Street gets lined with ice sculptures during the Founders Philly Freeze-Out, a winter street fair with carving demos, drink deals, and a chowder crawl. (11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 4)