SEPTA Pleads Case for $4.2 Billion in Repairs
SEPTA Makes Bid for $4.2 Billion in Repairs. Senator Bob Casey, Representative Chaka Fattah and Head of the Federal Transportation Administration Peter Rogoff were briefed on the $4.2 billion needed to repair SEPTA’s aging facilities. SEPTA officials must have been busy giving the deluxe tour when the Scoop was stuck on a train above the river between 30th Street Station and Suburban yesterday. [Daily News]
Pennsylvania to Review Possible Cheating on 2009 State Exams. After a data analysis of test results flagged about 60 schools in Pennsylvania, state education officials have decided to look at the issue more closely. Nearly half of the 60 schools flagged are in Philly—22 district schools and seven charters. If you ain’t cheatin’ you ain’t tryin’ to immorally garner additional state funding to help offset school budget cuts. [Inquirer]
Privatization of Liquor Stores to be Considered in Harrisburg. It’s expected that a legislative proposal detailing the privatization of liquor sales will be revealed this week. The issue is one of many controversial topics expected to be in front of the state legislature when its summer break is over. Here’s to hoping buying a bottle of wine becomes more convenient than going to the DMV. [CBS 3]
Man Fails to Rob Bank, Tries Again and Succeeds. A 5’9″ middle-aged white guy went 1-for-2 in his bank robbery appearances yesterday. The man used a threatening note to try and swipe cash from the Bank of America branch on East Allegheny Avenue in the Northeast. After striking out there, he changed his shirt, put on a Phillies hat and tried his luck with the same tactic at the PNC Bank branch at Wills Eye Hospital. He made off with some dough in the second robbery. If at first you don’t succeed, dust yourself off, change your clothes and rob a second bank. Talk about determination—and they say kids these days don’t have any quality role models. [Metro]
JPMorgan, Chase & Co. to Pay Philly at Least $9 Million. The New York-based financial behemoth reached a settlement with Philadelphia after a dispute over a “bid-rigging”scandal that took profits from taxpayers that raised hundreds of millions of dollars through bond sales in the ’90s and early 2000s. No horses were harmed during the city’s settlement proposal. [Inquirer]
Feltonville Woman Shot Over Parking Space. A dispute over street parking in Feltonville prompted someone to pull a shotgun and fire off four rounds at a man and a woman on their porch. The woman is in critical condition at Temple University Hospital and police say they know—and are searching for—who pulled the trigger. This takes “parking wars” to a whole new level. [CBS 3]
