RECAP: Looking back on the week that was
• Police change story on fatal shooting
On Monday, a Philly police officer shot and killed 27-year-old Eddie Irizarry during a traffic stop in Kensington. After initially telling press Irizarry had been “lunging” with a knife, the PPD changed its explanation — garnering national notice. Body worn cameras showed he was sitting in his car with windows rolled up when shot multiple times. A criminal investigation is underway, per Commissioner Outlaw, so it’s up to the DA’s office whether the footage gets released to the public, but Irizarry’s family is calling for more answers.
[6ABC/NYT$/WHYY/CBS3]
• SEPTA starts safety training amid FTA investigation
SEPTA last week began putting 9k employees through safety training refresher courses, despite the potential side effect of travel delays. It was deemed necessary after a spate of bus and trolley crashes spurred a rare formal FTA investigation into the transit agency’s safety procedures. Also under the microscope in the federal review: PennDOT, which is supposed to oversee safety at SEPTA (but only for trains, not buses, state transit leaders say).
[6ABC/Billy Penn]
• Philly School Board votes to revoke charter
In a meeting that went late into Thursday night, the Philly School Board made the rare move to start the process of closing Franklin Towne Charter High School. Nationally acclaimed for academics, the school faces accusations of a “blatant racist practice” in enrollment that heavily favored white applicants. Franklin Towne leaders say new leadership was already working to investigate and fix this issue; the previous CEO resigned in February after the lottery tampering came to light.
[Billy Penn/Chalkbeat/Inquirer$]
• Luxury sports bar Bankroll’s fire sale
It’s unclear if anyone actually bought the metal racks that used to serve “billionaire bacon” dish at Bankroll, the Paul Martino-backed luxury sports bar that collapsed spectacularly this summer after three months in Rittenhouse. The auction house isn’t publishing results from the fire sale, which included everything from flat-screen TVs to toilet paper. It’s also unclear what will happen to the location, the former Boyd Theater, which was gutted before a $25 million renovation for the failed restaurant.
[Billy Penn/BidSpotter/Billy Penn/Hidden Philly]
VISION: Looking forward to the week ahead
• Evictions to resume after LTO pause
After multiple shootings during evictions led to a temporary pause, the city’s Landlord-Tenant Office plans to resume lockouts this week, saying it’s implementing new “protocols and procedures.” These include the office — a for-profit outfit that’s an unusual way to handle big city evictions — pledging to hire people certified as Pa. constables, and saying it’ll provide an eviction schedule for the week if requested. Councilmembers Brooks and Gauthier released a statement decrying the move.
[PhillyVoice/NBC10/Billy Penn]
• PHDC launches Rental Improvement Fund
Related: A new program to help small landlords keep rents stable and avoid the need for evictions launches this week. An announcement is planned for Wednesday for the new PHDC Rental Improvement Fund, which uses Neighborhood Preservation Initiative and Whole Home Repair money to offer $50k no-interest or $25k forgivable loans for house fixes — ideally removing the need to raise rents to cover those costs.
[PHDC/WHYY’s PlanPhilly]
• Giant bounce house at the Navy Yard
A giant bounce house is now docked at the Philadelphia Navy Yard, offering tickets for age-separated sessions for the next three weekends. Touted as “world’s largest” by Big Bounce America, the inflatable castle is the size of a hockey rink and holds 300 people at once. We rounded up other interesting stats about the giant blow-up campus (it gets deflated every night!) and WHYY’s Peter Crimmins took a spin through the attraction.
[Billy Penn/Instagram]
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