Does Philadelphia Really Need a New $20 Million Monument?
Plus, the Eagles are going to the White House. And the Trump admin targets local colleges but, oddly, not Penn.
A rendering for one of the monument proposals from Ed Rendell for 2026. He couldn’t convince the neighbors to go for this one. (Image via ESI/NBBJ)
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Ed Rendell Wants to Build a Fancy New $20 Million Monument for 2026 in Philadelphia
In case you somehow missed it, 2026 is the sesquisemiquincentennial or, if you prefer, the semiquincentennial. Those hard-to-remember words mark the 250th birthday of the United States, which was, of course, begat in Ye Olde Philadelphia. Because this is Philly, folks have been feuding about the 250th for years now. Lots of big people have lots of big ideas for how to mark the moment. And one of those big people is Ed Rendell.
As chair of Philadelphia250, a nonprofit “formed to create a people-driven movement so that 2026 is a collective, inclusive moment for the City of Philadelphia, the country, and the world,” according to the org’s website, the former mayor and guv wants to build a monument in Philadelphia.
He’s raised millions of dollars to do just that. And he’s planning to raise more. But he’s run into some major roadblocks, such as: Where do you put the thing?
He wanted to erect the monument along the Schuylkill Banks. That version of the monument (there are varying designs depending on the location) would have looked like the above photo from a bird’s eye view and like this from the ground:
But neighbors said nah.
It would have been a fitting location, considering that was the site, as the area’s name might suggest, of the Centennial Exposition in 1876, back when the anniversary of the nation had a much less confusing name. But the Centennial District turned out to be a no-go as well.
Then there was LOVE Park. The monument design for LOVE Park would have looked like so:
As recently as July, Rendell thought that was where his monument was going to live. But then he ran into issues with the city over it. And, well, he currently has no place for this monument. Which makes me wonder: Does Philadelphia need this monument? Do we even want it?
Part of my skepticism here could come from the fact that Rendell was mayor when those godforsaken “Philadelphia Beacons” went up on Broad Street. Ugh. Maybe he needs to stay out of the illuminated monument business.
Anyway, I’m going to turn things over to Mike Newall at the Inquirer, who filed this in-depth report of Rendell’s, er, monumental trials and tribulations. All I know is: Don’t count Ol’ Ed out!
Speaking of 2026…
If you weren’t in Philadelphia in 1976, when we celebrated — or at least attempted to celebrate — the bicentennial, or the 200th birthday of the country, you may not realize that it was an absolute debacle. And it doesn’t sound like the sesquicentennial (“one of the worst birthday parties ever”) was a big success, either. Here’s hoping our 2026 crew can do better. They certainly couldn’t do worse, right? RIGHT?
Trump vs. Local Colleges
The Trump Administration is slashing the workforce in the Department of Education. But there are still apparently enough people working at the DOE to target 60 colleges across the country with an investigation surrounding allegations of antisemitism. The local colleges on that list include Swarthmore, Rutgers, Princeton, Temple, and Drexel. The University of Pennsylvania is not on that list, which is kind of interesting considering all the hubbub over the protests there. Could it be that Trump is just having fond memories of his sketchy time on campus?
Speaking of Trump…
After a lot of confusion and misinformation over whether the Eagles turned down an invitation to the White House or whether the White House had even extended an invitation to the team after the Super Bowl, I can now report that… the White House has extended an invitation and the Eagles have accepted it. We’ll have to see how this shakes out.
By the Numbers
$7,500: Amount of the bond set by a federal judge in the deportation case of South Jersey kabob restaurant owner Emine Emanet. A judge already released her husband, who now wears an ankle monitor. Unfortunately, this doesn’t mean that Emanets can stay in the country. They’re free for now while deportation proceedings continue. And, no, they didn’t cross into this country illegally. They came here legally. But then their visas expired. They were reportedly in the process of trying to get their green cards or permanent residency applications approved when ICE arrested them.
$326,577: Funds raised so far by the GoFundMe set up to support the Emanet family.
$9,673,423: Additional money the GoFundMe will need to raise so that the couple can buy a pair of those $5 million VIP citizenships Trump wants to sell.
Reader Mail
Yesterday, I lamented Southwest Airlines nixing their free-checked-bags policy, saying I was boycotting the company. And a lot of folks lamented with me.
Dan had this to say:
Air travel has become an ongoing nightmare and the airlines are awful. They don’t move passengers so much as they overwhelm them, dominate them, restrict them, fleece them and ultimately imprison them.
This is why I don’t arrive at the airport without Valium.
Steve’s take?
I haven’t flown since 1982 and I do not intend to ever fly again. I had to go to a wedding in Colorado. And I took the train all the way out there. It took forever. But that was fine by me.
And I had a good chuckle at Michelle’s comment:
Listen man, my favorite type of earth is scorched, so I am all for a lifelong boycott. I never once ate at Audrey Claire because once when 3 of my party of 4 had arrived and the fourth was walking to the restaurant, they wouldn’t seat us.
Now that’s a Philly grudge!
Local Talent
Congrats to gangsta rap progenitor Schoolly D and former World Cafe host David Dye, who are among the musical luminaries getting a star on the Philadelphia Music Alliance’s Walk of Fame on Broad Street. The organization is holding a gala on April 30th, with a live performance by the Hooters. And the gala will honor golden-throated Eagles player Jordan Mailata as well as Sir Bob Geldof, given that this year marks the 40th anniversary of this really big show. You can get tickets here.
