Free Library struggles to meet demand

The Free Library of Philadelphia has survived many challenges in its 121-year history. Our new report on the institution compares it to 14 other big-city libraries and examines its latest challenges at a time of shrinking funds and rising demand. Our report was released the day before the Nutter administration proposed (PDF) new cuts to library operations but more money for branch capital improvements. We held a panel discussion about the report this week and attendees posted comments on Twitter at #PewPanel. (You'll need a Twitter account to read it.)

Some of our findings: 

• Philadelphians use their libraries less than their counterparts in most of the other urban communities studied.
•  On a per capita basis, the Free Library is below average in circulation and visits, even though it ranks relatively high in terms of branches per capita.
•  Between 2008 and 2010, when municipal budgets were hit hard by the recession, the Free Library experienced larger cutbacks than many of its counterparts.
•  In our survey of Philadelphia residents, 51 percent said they visited a library at least once in the past 12 months. 

For more findings, click here to see our interactive chart:

Poll Part 2: More call taxes a problem

Continuing our release of January 2012 poll results, we found a big jump in the percentage of Philadelphia adults who consider local taxes to be a problem—70 percent, up from 55 percent in 2010. Even so, Philadelphia adults were still slightly more likely than not—49 percent to 42 percent—to opt for higher taxes if it means getting better city services. We also found that city residents, by 56 percent to 34 percent, favor Council President Darrell Clarke's idea of allowing advertising on city-owned property, including City Hall. Clarke responded to our poll by promoting his idea again. Read all the poll results here.

Rich, poor and the gap between

The Census Bureau is out with a study looking at income inequality as measured by a statistical measurement known as the Gini index. According to the study (PDF), the sharpest differences between rich and poor households within a single community are found in the South and in some large urban jurisdictions. For instance, the borough of Manhattan in New York City has the third highest inequality score of any county in the country. Among the nation’s 10 largest cities, Philadelphia is in the middle of the pack. It has less income inequality than New York, Dallas, Los Angeles, Houston and Chicago but more than Phoenix, San Antonio, San Diego and San Jose.

Philly drops in exporter rankings

The Brookings Institution's ranking of top exporting regions, Export Nation, puts the Philadelphia region at 10th place among 100 metropolitan regions in the number of regional jobs supported by exports. The Philly region was 9th in the previous 2008 ranking. One commentator noted that Philadelphia was the only one of the nation's five most populous cities not to be a top-five exporter. In his February speech to the Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce, Mayor Michael Nutter promised to get "personally" involved in growing the city's exports. His office says he is planning some foreign trade missions himself.

Where are the charters?

Click to view

As the Philadelphia School District undergoes more changes and plans to close buildings, Temple University's Metropolitan Philadelphia Indicators Project has mapped (PDF) the locations of school buildings, including the charters that now serve about 19 percent of the city's schoolchildren. MPIP found that many charters have set up their facilities outside of residential areas, along major commercial corridors and in Center City. MPIP says such locations give charters closer proximity to working parents, lower costs in renting or modifying commercial structures, and fewer hurdles with residential neighbors. MPIP concludes: "If the shift of enrollments toward charter schools continues or even intensifies, we can expect to see significant changes in the spatial distribution of schools." For context, see our October report on school closings.

Philly middle of pack on corruption

File this in the "Philadelphia is not as bad as Philadelphians think" department. A new study (PDF) by the University of Illinois has ranked this region 8th out of 15 in the number of federal corruption convictions of public officials in the past three decades. The report, initiated by former Chicago alderman Dick Simpson, found that the regions covering Chicago, Los Angeles and New York City had the most convictions.