Work-study students may intern with city

University work-study students may soon be able to earn money for their educations while interning for various branches of city government. A bill introduced at yesterday's City Council meeting by Council members Jannie Blackwell and David Cohen would allow the city to contract with area colleges and universities to permit students to earn work-study dollars while working for city government. Blackwell said yesterday that while she does not know of any other city governments currently using work-study students as interns, the federal government and the Philadelphia Mayor's Office often employ college students. The bill is part of a program -- favored by Cohen and Blackwell -- to open up City Hall to the community. "I thought this would be great for students and for [City] Council," Blackwell said. "It's a chance to help students pay for their educations and learn about city government at the same time." The specific arrangements have yet to be worked out with area schools, she said. John Rudolph, who directs the University work-study program through the Student Employment Office, said yesterday he has not heard of Blackwell's proposal. But Rudolph said the University currently allows students to earn work-study money while employed in off-campus jobs. City Council will vote on the work-study bill Sept. 22. Blackwell says the bill is well-supported and will probably pass. In another bill that would affect the University, Council member Joan Specter wants to establish a $100 fine for urinating in public. The proposed fine -- which could be imposed against anyone from derelicts to beer-bloated University students wandering home from fraternity parties -- grew out of South Street residents' concerns about the number of drunken weekend revelers urinating on the street. "There is a tremendous amount of public urination -- it has gotten really, really bad," Specter said yesterday, adding that all areas of the city are affected by this yellow peril. "It's happening everywhere," she said. "It's a general break down about how people feel about what they do." Philadelphia, unlike many other cities such as New York and San Francisco, has never had an ordinance banning public urination. Philadelphia Police can currently summarily arrest people caught urinating in public for disorderly conduct, but the procedure is cumbersome and rarely used. Specter said police and community groups asked her to propose the public urination bill. "It is really a major quality of life issue," she said. "Not just for those people whose property is defecated or urinated on, but for all those people who have to walk by it and smell the stuff." The new ordinance would allow police to issue $100 tickets on the spot. The fine would be reduced to $25 if paid within the 10 days. Blackwell said yesterday she is not supportive of the bill because she fears it might discriminate against the handicapped or the homeless. Specter said such fears were "absolutely groundless." "No police officer is going to give a homeless person a ticket," Specter said, adding the bill is designed to go after "adult juvenile delinquents," not those who cannot help themselves. "Some handicapped people have bladder control problems, but do they urinate in the street? No." Blackwell also said she is concerned that Council will impose the new fines before resolving the long-standing issue of installing public toilets in the city. Specter agreed it is time for the city to build public toilet facilities around the city, and said she would like to see the public urination fine phased in to areas as public toilets become available. "It's just a matter of will," she said, adding that the city has the money to cover the cost of plumbing and the rest of the costs that will be undertaken by the private contractor that installs the toilets. Specter said the first step will be a public hearing on the issue on September 27. Although Council adjourned last night before Specter could introduce her bill, she said she will bring the issue back up at next week's Council meeting on September 22. She said she thinks there is broad support for her bill and that it should pass. The bill is co-sponsored by council members Thacher Longstreth, James Kenney, Anna Verna.

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