As Mayor John Street's eight-year term comes to a close, it's clear he has accomplished much locally, but how much has the city's reputation really improved?
John Street had some ambitious plans for improving Philadelphia when he became mayor. He would accomplish them
"By supporting businesses both big and small, whether they were already here or had yet to set up shop. By scrubbing the city's decaying neighborhoods clean of the blight and hopelessness that stained them, without ignoring the progress being made in Center City. By deeming 2000 the 'Year of the Child' to improve the quality of education and decrepit conditions of Philadelphia's public schools. By pushing for more diversity in both the political and business worlds because it gives the city a 'cultural and economic advantage.' And by bolstering the city's Police Department because, as he put it, 'we cannot stop our fight against crime and violence until we are the safest city in America.'"
"His overarching goal for Philadelphia? 'To fulfill its destiny as a world-class city, a place of hope and opportunity for all our people.'"
Six years later, how much of a difference has he made?
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