The materials are printed. The action is planned. On Saturday, June 6, Casino-Free Philadelphia will conduct a series of peaceful actions at Harrah's Chester to call attention to the predatory practices of the casino industry. Anti-casino allies from Pittsburgh, Massachusetts and Chicago will be on their way shortly. And last night, we had more than 30 anti-casino activists from around Philadelphia trained for "Beat the House", happening this Saturday at Harrah's casino in Chester.
In order to participate in the action inside the casino, you will need to be able to attend the training Saturday morning in downtown Philadelphia (transportation will be available to the casino after the training). The training is at 718 Market St. from 11AM- 1PM.
If your friends and family can't make the training on Saturday morning, or won't join you inside the casino, they can still participate by joining in the action outside.
Casino-Free Philadelphia sent a letter to Chester residents telling them about this planned action. In it, the organization called attention to the fact that "Casino-Free Philadelphia is a grassroots organization funded by member donations. Our actions during Beat the House will be conducted in an orderly fashion and will pose no harm to casino personnel, patrons or property."
This is a request to all of NABR's supporters to help us advocate for good waterfront development.
Neighbors Allied for the Best Riverfront (NABR) has been working through the Central Delaware Advocacy Group (CDAG) to add essential amendments to Councilman DiCicco's interim zoning overlay legislation for the Central Delaware. This is the legislation that will regulate development and public access along the river until the Master Plan is in place. We are particularly advocating for:
* A 100' setback from the edge of the river.
* Many points of public access to the river and a riverfront trail that's open 24/7.
* The draft legislation contains a list of prohibited uses. We want gaming facilities, payday lenders and gun shops added to the list.
* Requiring archeological and historical surveys to be completed for all parcels to protect the history of the waterfront.
We encourage concerned NABR members to let Councilman DiCicco as well as Deputy Mayor Altman and Planning Commission director Alan Greenberger hear from you. Please click here today to tell them you support these amendments to the overlay.
Finally, City Council will consider amendments to this legislation on June 3rd in a public Rules Committee hearing (Wednesday, June 3rd, at 10AM in Room 400, City Hall). Please make every effort to come out and show your support for these amendments!
Thank you,
Neighbors Allied for the Best Riverfront (full disclosure: Caryn Hunt is the NABR delegate to CDAG)
Four years after Vice President Dick Cheney spearheaded a massive energy bill that exempted natural gas drilling from federal clean water laws, Congress is having second thoughts about the environmental dangers posed by the burgeoning industry.
With growing evidence that the drilling can damage water supplies, Democratic leaders in Congress are circulating legislation that would repeal the extraordinary exemption and for the first time require companies to disclose all chemicals used in the key drilling process, called hydraulic fracturing [1].
The proposed legislation has already stirred sharp debate.
The energy industry has launched a broad effort in Washington to fend off this proposed tightening of federal oversight, lobbying members of Congress and publishing studies that highlight what it says are the dangers of regulation. In mid-May, the industry released a detailed report asserting that the changes in current law would cost jobs and slash tax revenues. A key advocate of past efforts to regulate gas drilling, Rep. John Salazar [2] (D-CO), has declined to support the legislation, expressing concern about how it would affect the energy companies.
However, with a strengthened Democratic majority in Congress and the party's capture of the White House in last year's election, the fracturing legislation is viewed as having its best chance at passage in years. Its House sponsor, Rep. Diana DeGette (D-CO) [3], aims to attach a bill to a larger piece of legislation with broad support -- possibly a bill on climate change or a new energy policy measure – where it would be shielded from industry resistance. On the Senate side, according to congressional staff close to the effort, Sen. Bob Casey (D-PA) [4] has a companion bill ready to follow.
