Does Philly Really Want to Host the 2016 Democratic Convention?

Over at Newsworks, Dave Davies isn’t finding that much support for Philly to host the 2016 Democratic National Convention. Much of the money must be raised from private sources, and it doesn’t seem to be readily forthcoming.

The problem? Raising $40 million or so when you’re starting late, and there’s another huge event coming up that’s sucking up fundraising and civic energy — the Catholic World Meeting of Families in September 2015, which may draw a visit from the pope.

Zach Stalberg, president of the watchdog group Committee of Seventy, told me what I was hearing privately from others.

“There’s not a lot of enthusiasm in the business community [for contributing to the convention bid] as far as I can tell,” Stalberg said. Part of it, he said, is donor fatigue associated with the World Meeting of Families. Part of it is a general skepticism about whether the benefits of a national convention justify the effort.

Davies suggests conventions are better left to up-and-coming cities seeking to prove themselves on the national stage. Philadelphia might not need that as much as some other cities.