Mayor John Street met with the City Council for his annual budget address yesterday and officially announced that he was seeking millions of dollars in budget reductions for the upcoming fiscal year while at the same pledging to reduce taxes.
The mayor prefaced his remarks with a statement that this year's budget plan "comes at a time of national and state economic distress."
Street said that there is a $227 million budget deficit for the 2005 fiscal year, and it is projected to grow to $670 million by 2009. Last month, Street began meeting with council members and informed them that certain budget cuts would be made.
"Changes were necessary" in response to the city's burgeoning deficit, Street said in the address.
The number of city employees will be reduced, and many service agencies will lose funding. The Philadelphia Museum of Art and other museums in the city will receive less funding from the city in the coming year.
"This is harsh but effective medicine," Street said. "Everyone must sacrifice."
Service and culture-related cuts came as a disappointment to some members of City Council.
"There was a $4 million dollar budget cut to arts and culture programs, and I'm deeply concerned about that," Councilwoman Blondell Reynolds Brown said.
Among the agencies that Street said will not be affected by the budget cuts were after-school programs, vacant lot cleaning and his anti-drug program Safe Streets.
Street said that he would pledge his attention to job creation, waterfront development and tax reform. "There will be $374.6 million in wage and business tax reduction," he said.
Street added that he hopes this measure will bring an increased presence of young people and businesses to the city.
"With these changes, Philadelphia will represent the new river city in America," he said.
Other council members were less enthusiastic about the plan. "Street started out with a huge surplus, and it's all gone. I think it is important to find out why," Councilman David Cohen said.
Cohen was displeased with the service cuts Street announced in the address.
"I'm disturbed by the emphasis on a huge new addition of funds for economic development, which seems to be financed on the back of residents of the city in the form of service work," Cohen said.
Councilman James Kenney also expressed disappointment with the mayor's newly-released budget plan.
"I'm sad. It's sad that everybody has to absorb pain to bail the city out again, especially due to decisions made unilaterally by the mayor with no influence from City Council," he said.
As Street entered and left the council chambers, he was greeted by chanting supporters and screaming detractors.
Representatives from the Philadelphia Affordable Housing Coalition were campaigning for increased low-income housing in currently impoverished regions of the city.
After his address, members called out to him as he exited the chamber. "Where are we going to live?" one woman shouted.
Approximately 35 representatives began picketing in the lobby of City Hall. "They just forgot to talk about our cause," one picketer said.
