U., Phila. negotiate price for Civic Center

In October 1991, University Planning Director Robert Zemsky announced that the University "needed" to purchase the Civic Center at 34th Street and Civic Center Boulevard so that the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania and the Medical Center could expand. City officials insisted that while some pieces of municipal property were being put up for sale, the Civic Center was definitely not one of them. Zemsky said he was still optimistic about the University's eventual ability to acquire the Center. Last March, Philadelphia Mayor Ed Rendell conceded that selling the Center "is an idea whose time has come." Now it seems likely that the University will acquire the Civic Center in the near future. Rendell, in a question-and-answer session in Community House prior to Thanksgiving break, said the city and the University were negotiating the sale of the entire block on which the Civic Center is located. "With the new Convention Center [scheduled to open in Center City in 1993], we have little need for the buildings on the property," he said. Also, he added, "we need the money." Zemsky estimated the cost of purchasing the property at $60 million. When it opens, the Convention Center is expected to take away much of the Civic Center's current business. This has led city officials to wonder how much Philadelphia needs to hang on to the Civic Center, especially when the Center has been losing money without the competition. According to an audit conducted by the municipal Office of the Controller, the Civic Center lost $6 million during fiscal year 1991. The report asks for a "timely decision" on the Civic Center's fate soon because the city "cannot afford to subsidize continued losses." The report then recommends that the city either begin immediate capital improvements to prevent the facilities from deteriorating, or sell the Center "before the site becomes idle and deteriorates to the point of becoming an eyesore." The city has been spending less and less on the Center. Capital expenditures have decreased sharply in recent years, from over $1.3 million in fiscal year 1990 to less than $450,000 in 1991 to less than $100,000 for the first half of fiscal year 1992, the controller's report said. Acting Executive Vice President John Gould said there had been some discussion on the subject of the Civic Center, but he declined to mention specifics. "We have had general discussions," Gould said, "[And] the city and the mayor are aware of our interests." City Controller Jonathan Saidel said yesterday that he had heard that the University was interested in purchasing the Civic Center, and that it might be a good idea. "I've heard rumors that the University of Pennsylvania would like to buy the land and the property," he said. "I wouldn't have a problem with that." Saidel said the University would probably be a good buyer for the property. "The University of Pennsylvania has a history of taking care of its physical plant and has been a good landlord in the city of Philadelphia," he said. "One of the problems [in Philadelphia] is that the city acquires land but it never sells it, even if it doesn't need it," he said. "If you don't need it, get rid of it." "We can't afford to waste taxpayers' money anymore," he said.