Sorry, the name of the developer at 43rd and Baltimore is James, not Joe,
Campenella. He pled guilty in Federal court for his bribery of a BRT tax
assessor named James Lynch. In return for a $20,000 bribe, Mr. Lynch lowered
the tax assessment on four properties Campenella was involved with. One of the
buildings he re-assessed was the Western Union Building at 11th and Locust. He
lowered its assessment from $4.6 to $1.6 million. Campenella's defense? He
just wanted to spare himself the lawyer's fees necessary to challenge the
city's assessment! I can't say for sure, but I assume that since he was
appearing before a Federal judge, he said this with a straight face.
Don't get me started on the property taxes on 43rd and Baltimore. When I
checked the BRT site around the time of the demolition of the building there, I
noticed that the new owner had not paid any property taxes for over a year. I
contacted the BRT in February of last year (before the Inquirer series) and
asked how come a $3 million property that had been owned by a for-profit
developer for over a year was assessed at $0. He replied that it took time for
the BRT to recognize such a change and to collect the taxes. He told me that
"my" tax assessment, when they got around to it, would be about $80,000
annually. I quickly informed him that I was not the owner, merely a tax-paying
neighbor. To my amazement, not too long after, the property's BRT record showed
an assessment of around $80,000! The owners obviously got to work on that and
had it reduced to around $8,000, as I recall. (Since, Mr. Lynch had been fired
from the BRT, I wonder who they called.) I haven't looked at the BRT site since
then. I am astonished however, that this multi-million dollar property is
assessed at less than double the amount of my Pine Street twin. (How does this
compare with what you pay in property tax?)
I would guess that this is one of the reasons for the city's foot-dragging over
the overhauling of the assessments of real estate in Philadelphia - how to
limit the damage to all the well-connected who have benefitted for years from
unjustifiably low assessments. This is a classic example of what I call "the
Philadelphia Dilemma": how can a politician respond to the taxpayer's demands
for action, while protecting the special interests that he/she believe sustain
him/her. Is this situation common outside our city, our era? Of course. But
I believe that the long history and profoundly harmful effects of this conflict
in Philadelphia have earned it naming rights.
The Inquirer reports only confirmed probably the worst-kept secret in
Philadelphia - that the BRT was run by a bunch of corrupt and incompetent
patronage hacks.
Mary
P.S. So, all you lawyers, journalists, real estate agents, politicians and
just plain neighbors who are more plugged in than I am: Do any of you know
what is planned for 43rd and Baltimore? Does anyone have a suggestion for a
good use for this large and nicely-situated property?
