WHEREAS, The Central Philadelphia Development Corporation and the Center City District have listed some disturbing facts about the lack of job growth in the City of Philadelphia; and
WHEREAS, According to the report, despite the vitality of the Center City District, Philadelphia's citywide economy continues to lose regional market share; and
WHEREAS, The report finds further that since 1970, every county in the region has added jobs to its 1970 base except for Philadelphia and for that reason Philadelphia has 25 percent fewer jobs than it did in 1970. More than 188,000, or 36 percent, of working Philadelphians leave the City each day to find work and this number has been increasing by a half percent annually since 2002 ; and
WHEREAS, The report also states that Philadelphia also has 25.2 percent fewer public-and-private-sector jobs than it did in 1970 and has since then lost 90 percent of its manufacturing jobs; and
WHEREAS, Noted in the report, Boston, New York and Washington D.C. have experienced similar losses, but have simultaneously added sufficient city jobs since the late 1990s by creating post-industrial replacement jobs that offer more urban employment opportunities; and
WHEREAS, The Philadelphia unemployment rate is above the national average at 8.4 percent as of August, 2014; and
WHEREAS, The Philadelphia deep-poverty rate is almost twice the national average at 12.2 percent as of September, 2014; and
WHEREAS, The Pathways to Job Growth Report recommends a number of policy reforms to address the job growth rate in Philadelphia. A few notable reforms include that Philadelphia ought to tax land and buildings at an increased rate and should tax jobs and businesses at a decreased rate in order to discourage businesses from relocating outside of the City. Also, the report finds that trends have changed and are now reflecting that diverse, pedestrian-friendly and transit-oriented cities are in a strong position to increase business development and job growth; and
WHEREAS, The Council of the City of Philadelphia has an important role in ensuring healthy business development and sustainable job growth in the City of Philadelphia by instituting policy measures that maximize business development and job growth; now therefore,
RESOLVED, THAT THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA, Hereby authorizes the Philadelphia City Council Committee on Commerce and Economic Development to hold hearings regarding the Pathways to Job Growth Report by the Central Philadelphia Development Corporation and the Center City District.
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