Philadelphia report card

The Philadelphia Weekly gives an overview of the results of a report on the state of downtown Philadelphia, put together by the Center City District.

A recent report on Center City notes that the housing market continues to boom and that residents feel safer here. But a glut of empty office space signals job loss, and "self-inflicted wounds" are causing the Convention Center to bleed revenue, according to the "State of Center City 2005," released last week by the Center City District.

Philadelphia needs to become more competitive with the suburbs by lowering taxes, improving the quality of schools and providing more efficient public transportation, says Paul Levy, president of the Center City District.

A number of other issues are discussed, including transit, education, and development of public parks. The whole report is also available online (line at the bottom of that article).