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PHILADELPHIA, March 27 -- With the threat of a veto on Philadelphia's local gaming referendum looming, state Rep. Babette Josephs, D-Phila., is urging Philadelphians to take action.
"City council decided to place the decision of where city casinos should be located squarely in the hands of city residents when it authorized a May 15 ballot question that asks voters whether they want to ban slots from within 1,500 feet of any home, church, playground or school," Josephs said. "But the mayor has said he would veto it, thereby denying us the chance to make our voices heard on the subject.
"Use your voices now. Call and e-mail the mayor to ask him to let the question stand so that voters will have a choice. I have done so, and I urge you to do the same," she said.
The mayor has until Thursday morning to veto the ballot question.
Josephs has advocated for allowing the city government and its residents to have a say in where the casinos will be located and how they will impact neighborhoods, and she has thwarted attempts in Harrisburg to remove that power from the city. Most recently, she has publicly stated her support for the local referendum and has written Mayor Street asking him not to veto it.
"You are the Mayor of the Neighborhoods. You accepted a challenge of the highest magnitude possible to renew communities, and you addressed it through the Neighborhood Transformation Initiative in a manner unparallel in modern Philadelphia history. Allowing the referendum to go forward simply empowers residents and is a part of this mission," Josephs wrote.
"What they are asking is not unreasonable; after all, they simply do not want to live, worship, or learn close to one of these developments. This referendum is at most a modest measure, and it protects every neighborhood."
To contact the mayor, email or call 215-686-2181, 215-686-2187 or 215-686-7508.
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