Fourth of July Festivities

Even though we are a few days from July 4th, it seems like the week has already slowed down.

If you are staying in Philly this weekend, check out the Sunoco Welcome America calendar of events for movie screenings, live music, all-you-can-eat ice cream, and more!  Have a safe and happy holiday!

Enjoying Summer Weekends in the City

The warm and humid weather is finally arriving.  Soon, maybe in a week or two, we may actually be able to put away our jackets until late September.  

For the region, the standard respite from the hot weather during the summer is a trip down the shore (or to the New Jersey beaches, for those less familiar with the term).  I enjoy going to the shore as much as the next person and was down there for part of Memorial Day Weekend.  And a good number of my friends also regularly go down during summer weekends.  As Philadelphia Magazine described it, Avalon is essentially Center City transported.  

That said, Philadelphia, during summer weekends, is still great.  For one, there are still a lot of folks in town, so it’s not as if the city is empty.  You can actually get drinks during happy hour a lot quicker.  Restaurant seatings are easier to obtain.  People are out at bars at night, but you’re not getting bumped or jostled as much.  During the days, you can relax at the parks, such as Rittenhouse Square.  There’s also a bunch of summer concerts at Penn’s Landing, the Square and elsewhere.  

So, contrary, to popular belief, the city is not a ghost town during the summer.  The shore is a good time, but there’s more than enough to do in the city.  

Philadelphia Is The Best City For New Grads

Apartments.com and Careerbuilder.com have named Philadelphia the most affordable city for young college graduates (I’ll add young law school graduates!).

Young graduates appreciate Philadelphia’s livability, comparing it to a smaller New York.  Of course, the cost of living in Philadelphia is a lot less than in New York.  The survey found that the average cost of a 1 bedroom apartment in Philadelphia is $962.00 per month compared to $1,520.00 in New York.  You can read more about the survey results here.

Still, some graduates head to larger cities like New York or Washington, D.C. following graduation.  What is it that makes them leave?

A New Yorker in Philly

It’s a little lonely for me these days.  Not because I don’t have any friends, but rather because I don’t share their elation.

This past Sunday, the Philadelphia Phillies were able to overcome their poor start, mediocre starting pitching, injuries and everything else to improbably win the National League East Division for the first time since 1993.  And this city erupted with celebration like no other time in the past 20 years, save for perhaps the Philadelphia Eagles’ victory in the NFC Championship in 2005 that propelled the team to the Super Bowl.  The unbridled joy by all would be great except for one thing: I’m not a Phillies fan.  In fact, I’m a New York Mets fan.  Living in Philadelphia.

You see, I’m a transplant to Philadelphia from the New York area, where baseball is and always will be king.  In other cities like New York, Chicago or Washington, D.C., it’s perfectly common for lawyers to come from all over the country (with many different baseball rooting interests) to work there.  Philadelphia, though, is a little more insular, and the vast majority of lawyers grew up in and are from the region.  And come this past Sunday and all this week, the enthusiasm for the Phillies by most of my friends, including lawyer friends, was and has been overwhelming.

And so last Sunday transpired with my Mets hardly putting up a fight in the biggest game of the year while the Phils poured it on and won their game.  My friends up in New York say the mood was pretty bad up there, although I would say it’s worse for a Mets fan down here.  But I’ve almost gotten over the Mets’ collapse, well at least until a friend sent me this article.

Oh well, at least I have my New York Giants’ victory over the Eagles.  So I’ve got that going for me.  Which is nice.

-Submitted by John Encarnacion 

Lawyers on the Fast Track

Congratulations to two of our very own young lawyers!!!!

May Mon Post and Chuck Eppolito have been recognized as ”Lawyers on the Fast Track” by the Philadelphia Legal Intelligencer.

Thank you, Chuck and May Mon, for setting such a great example to the rest of us. 

Nerdy PBA Stuff

I just had the honor to attend the Pennsylvania Bar Association Annual House of Delegates meeting as the Philadelphia Zone 1 YLD chair.

The PBA House of Delegates meeting is really a sight to behold. Delegates from every zone in Pennsylvania congregate to decide not only issues pertinent to the association, such as bylaw amendments, etc., but also the determine which bills in the Pennsylvania House and Senate the PBA will support or oppose. The PBA even has its own Political Action Committee. I had no idea it was so political.

Philadelphia was very well represented. Some of the more interesting issues that were debated on the floor included:

whether the PBA should oppose county and state legislation that attempts to regulate immigration;

whether the PBA should support legislative efforts to add sexual orientation and gender identity or expression as a protected class;

whether the PBA should support efforts to restore Habeas Corpus for the detainees of Guantanamo Bay;

and whether hospitals that provide emergency care to women who have been raped must advise those patients regarding the option of emergency contraceptives, as well as to then provide those patients the option to be treated with such emergency contraceptives.

I felt like I was witnessing democracy in action. Amazingly, to me, at least, the votes were fairly contentious. Philadelphia was a veritable liberal island.

If anyone wants to know more information about getting involved in the PBA, I would be happy to do everything I can to help. At the very least, I hope to see more of you at PBA yld events.

It felt really good to have a voice on some issues that are very near and dear to many of our hearts.

Vote

One more week until the primary.  Don’t forget to vote on May 15. 

BTW

The Fairmount Park Commission has 16 members; 10 citizens appointed by the Board of Judges of the Court of Common Pleas and 6 ex-officio members.  Fairmount Park Commissioners serve 5 year terms, with all terms running concurrently.  There are no term limits for Commissioners.

Check out the Next Great City website to see a pro-mayoral appointment argument.

Fairmount Park Elections

 

 

On May 17, two days after the primary, the Board of Judges will be electing the Fairmount Park Commissioners.  The Friends of Fairmount Park and other park reformers concerned about our heritage think the Fairmount Park Commissioners should be appointed by the Mayor rather than elected by the Board of Judges.  In the event the City Charter is not amended between now and May 17, why don’t the Friends of Fairmount Park ask the mayoral candidates to declare which applicants they support for election to the Commission?

 

If the mayoral candidates declare who they support for the Fairmount Park Commission, the candidates will be able to have an impact on who is ultimately elected by the Board of Judges (without changing the City Charter) AND the candidates can demonstrate how much they care about our parks. 

Casino Referendum

The Casino referendum just passed in City Council by a unanimous vote of 17 to 3.  The voters of Philadelphia will be able to decide whether to amend the City Charter to prohibit City Council from issuing a permit to license gaming within 1500 feet of a residential area.

 This is a huge victory for the anti casino movement on the heels of last week’s disappointing ruling that struck the anti casino petition for alleged technical deficiencies.