[pnh102]

When Rendell was mayor of Philadelphia (right before John Street), the city was actually quite nice and safe. John Street let the place go to hell, and everyone who voted against him moved out.

[Barb4Bush]

You’re right. I’m not an Ed Rendell fan. I never voted for him when I lived in Philadelphia but the city made a huge improvement when he came in after Wilson Goode. I moved to New Jersey while Rendell was Mayor but still went into the city quite frequently. I rarely go into Philadelphia now. It is a cesspool of crime and dirt and there is nowhere in the city that feels safe anymore. I never see any Police on the streets of Center City, even in cars. The tax base of the city has left for the suburbs and I really think the city’s demise is imminent. I still have a few relatives that are living in Philadelphia but I don’t think they’ll be able to stick the high taxes and high crime rate much longer.

[Albion Wilde]

When Rendell was mayor of Philadelphia (right before John Street), the city was actually quite nice and safe.

Totally disagree. Under Eddie, taxes escalated steadily. Essential services such as snow removal weren't delivered in the clogged streets of the neighborhoods, but they were in Center City, where the lawyer and doctor class just got richer.

[Tired of Taxes]

When Rendell was mayor of Philadelphia (right before John Street), the city was actually quite nice and safe.

I have to disagree. I lived in Philly when Rendell was mayor. My husband grew up there. I was still working in Philly when the much-heralded John Timoney was police chief. There has always been a lot of crime there. I don't believe there's a law, a mayor, or a police chief that can ever stop it.