Demolition may have started on historic Convention Hall, but that has not stopped the Committee to Save Convention Hall from trying to thwart Penn's plans for the site.
A preliminary injunction hearing took place at City Hall yesterday in the Court of Common Pleas.
A ruling has not been issued -- a major setback for the grass-roots organization, as the judge did not order a temporary restraining order that would have halted the demolition.
Jay Farrell, chairman of the Committee to Save Convention Hall, gave the first testimony.
Farrell claimed that he had no knowledge of the demolition plans prior to Nov. 11, 2004, when he read an article in The Philadelphia Inquirer. His actions on behalf of Convention Hall included a flyer campaign for a rally and soliciting 58 letters for local elected officials. However, Farrell said that his movement had garnered little attention up until this point.
"We received a minimal amount of press coverage," Farrell said. "We didn't receive much in the way of feedback from Penn."
However, Susan Phillips, a spokeswoman for the Penn Health System, disagreed that the demolition had started suddenly.
"It was three years' worth of work to get to this point," Phillips said. "There was just no effort to hide this."
According to Committee to Save Convention Hall co-Chairman Mario Cimino, the goal of the committee was to show that Penn went about executing its plans for the site in an "inadequate manner."
An action against Penn "was always something under consideration until Penn started taking drastic actions," Cimino said. "The general theme of it was that Penn may have followed what they felt was the letter of the law, but we feel they didn't follow a course befitting an institution of their stature."
Phillips said that Penn had exhausted all avenues for saving Convention Hall and that even saving the facade was impossible because complying with the Americans with Disabilities Act would require major external changes.
"I respect their opinion ... We tried very hard to find another use for these buildings," Phillips said. "I think that we will all benefit from a new cancer center."
Wendy White, Penn's general counsel, added that she believed the hearings demonstrated the extent of the effort Penn had put into saving Convention Hall.
"What you could see from the hearing was how much Penn did ... to try to save these buildings," White said. "Penn did not just what was necessary, but as much as possible."
The committee received a reply from Penn President Amy Gutmann, dated Feb. 17, to its letter requesting a meeting with her and a hold on demolition preparations.
Gutmann wrote, "I am indeed well aware of the history of [Convention Hall], both globally and locally, and can assure you that we are carefully exploring avenues for its future."
The court is expected to release its ruling soon, as demolition on the site continues.
"We remain optimistic," Cimino said. "We think the judge gave us a fair hearing."
