What to Know
- Mayor Kenney and Council President Clarke have engaged in a public argument for months over affordable housing.
- Their debate revolves around a funding stream for the Housing Trust Fund.
- The city's long-running 10-year tax abatement is also now part of the discussion over how to fund affordable housing.
Philadelphia's controversial 10-year tax abatement is here to stay, for now.
After last-minute talks between Mayor Jim Kenney's office and Council President Darrell Clarke's office delayed the opening day of city council’s fall session, lawmakers agreed on a resolution to keep the tax program in place while generating more dollars for affordable housing.
"I am pleased to have reached a resolution with all of our colleagues in ... on a proposal that significantly increases funding for affordable housing without imposing a new tax on construction," Kenney told NBC10. "All of us share the same goal -- ensuring that residents have access to housing options no matter what their financial situation. This new revenue will be a reliable way to achieve that goal."
The resolution includes portions of a voluntary inclusionary zoning bill introduced by Councilwoman Maria Quinones-Sanchez that would give bonuses to developers who build affordable housing units in lieu of paying into the Housing Fund Trust. The bonus is spatial in nature, which means a developer could either build higher or wider if they participate in the program.
Thursday marked the deadline for Mayor Jim Kenney to sign a 1-percent tax on new construction in the city previously approved by Council, but that proposal was taken off the table.
The drama leading up to Thursday's resolution started in the spring when city council moved the 1 percent tax idea forward. It sat over the summer while council was in recess, but fell apart Wednesday after Kenney proposed an alternative plan to raise more than $52 million in revenue over five years to be collected from properties with expiring tax abatements.
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Clarke, a strong supporter of the 1-percent tax bill that passed in the spring, called Kenney’s proposal “inadequate.” In a statement issued Wednesday, he said the city must identify new and sustainable streams of revenue for the Housing Trust Fund.
Councilwoman Cindy Bass who represents the 8th District, also introduced a separate option that would completely eliminate the tax abatement and return property taxes to a more "traditional" structure. Her bill could be revisited later in the year, Clarke indicated.
