Philly City Council has once again abandoned a resolution calling for a cease-fire in Gaza | Council roundup

The months-long saga over whether Philadelphia City Council will call for a cease-fire in the Israel-Hamas war was supposed to come to a head on Thursday, with Councilmembers Nicolas O’Rourke and Curtis Jones Jr. planning to call for a vote on the issue.

But at the last minute, the lawmakers decided to abandon their cease-fire resolution — and they may be done with the issue for good.

O’Rourke, a member of the progressive Working Families Party, said he pulled the symbolic legislation after “impacted communities,” including Palestinians in Philly and pro-Palestinian activists, demanded that it include a provision related to divestment from the Israeli military. He declined to go into details but said they wanted “stronger language related to investments that the city or the country or anyone makes that could contribute to” the war.

» READ MORE: Tempers flare in City Council after pro-Palestinian speaker cut off | Council roundup

It’s likely that a resolution that merely called for a cease-fire would have been able to get majority approval in Council, several members said Thursday. But O’Rourke said that if he included the language requested by the activists, it would have failed — and he didn’t want to go forward without their support.

“I remain of the conviction that a cessation of the slaughter of Palestinians in Gaza and peace in the region is always a noble call and cause,” he said.

For Council, it’s déjà vu all over again. Earlier this year, Jones drafted a cease-fire resolution, but abandoned it at the request of other members. But Thursday may have been the final word on the subject because Jones and O’Rourke both said they had no plans to pursue a new version of the resolution anytime soon.

Council resolutions are statements of the body’s opinion, and almost all pass without controversy. But the war in Gaza has been a source of tension among Philly lawmakers since shortly after Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel, when Kenyatta Johnson, who has since been elected Council president, authored a resolution condemning Hamas.

» READ MORE: Philly City Council voted to condemn the Hamas attack against Israel | Council roundup

That measure drew scores of protesters to Council for a heated meeting that saw several pro-Palestinian demonstrators removed from the chambers.

Johnson said Thursday that he thinks it’s appropriate for Council to move on at this point. As for whether he personally supports a cease-fire, Johnson said, “I wish we had peace all throughout the world, so hopefully in that part of the country there will be some level of peace and someone will resolve that conflict.”

“I’m focusing right now on making sure we address the issues right here in the city of Philadelphia,” he said.

Kensington development: Debates over zoning issues are often sleepy affairs. But Councilmember Mike Driscoll introduced a package of bills Thursday that may impact the future of Kensington and are likely to provoke mixed reactions among developers and neighbors.

One bill would expand the controversial Mixed Income Neighborhoods law, which requires that new developments of more than 10 housing units make a fifth of them available to lower-income Philadelphians. The bill currently covers parts of University City and Kensington, and Driscoll’s legislation would expand it along the Market-Frankford Line in his district.

The original law provoked fierce pushback from the development industry, which argued that mandating affordable housing with few incentives would prevent almost anything from being built. Driscoll tried to temper those critiques by also proposing two zoning bills that would allow developers to build taller buildings with more units and fewer parking requirements, which can drive up costs.

“We recognize that sometimes you have to give incentives for development, and particularly if you’re going to have affordable housing as a component,” said Driscoll, a moderate Democrat not usually known for pursuing urbanist policies.

The goal, Driscoll said, is to spur development in the long-troubled neighborhood.

“We just think it’s perfect timing because the mayor is going to come up with a plan for Kensington,” Driscoll said. “Simultaneous with that, if we can get this enacted, we got a lot of momentum. I think we’re going to get a lot of developers coming down and thinking this is the new Northern Liberties or the new Fishtown.”

More mural money: In the $6.29 billion budget plan she unveiled last month, Mayor Cherelle L. Parker proposed cutting about $1 million from the popular Mural Arts program, reducing the city’s contribution from $3.7 million to $2.7 million.

Council members indicated this week they’re not down for that. They added $500,000 to the program’s current budget, which expires in June, and some members said they plan to do more to help during negotiations with the Parker administration over the budget for the next fiscal year as well.

» READ MORE: Mural Arts Philadelphia may lose $1 million under Mayor Parker’s new budget

Jane Golden, the charismatic longtime head of the agency, testified at a Council budget hearing Wednesday, and said a reduction could jeopardize important programs, potentially including the closure of a location in Kensington.

Parker spokesperson Joe Grace, however, said that the administration did not intend for the reduction to affect any particular locations. Instead, the proposal to lower the city’s contribution was the result of temporary funding bumps added over the last two budgets that were set to expire this year, he said.

“The Parker administration supports the Mural Arts Program,” Grace said.

Eviction allocation: Progressive Council members including Kendra Brooks and Jamie Gauthier scored a victory this week by securing majority support for their plan to permanently extend Philadelphia’s eviction diversion program, which Council created during the coronavirus pandemic and which has become a national model.

» READ MORE: Philly lawmakers want to expand eviction diversion and rent relief as Mayor Parker proposes cuts

But those members are still fighting to convince their colleagues to support their plan to send $100 million to the rental assistance program, which pays landlords if they participate in the diversion program and which Gauthier said is needed to achieve optimal results.

Inquirer staff writer Anna Orso contributed reporting.