This story broke a few weeks ago in the City Paper, and it was really interesting to see what it was all about. I am personally very familiar with the CCD (Center City District) and know that Paul is its President & CEO. What I didn’t know was the kind of pull this guy really has in Philadelphia, until I read this story.
The most important thing I learned after reading it is that there are extremely large differences between public and private services; even if there are both publicly funded. To me, “Public” refers to city employees, and “Private” refers to improvement districts such as the Center City District, University City District, etc. This is the same way you would differentiate between public schools and charter schools in Philadelphia. Although they are structured very differently, and both of them offer different educational options, they are both supported by taxpayer dollars.
My suggestion is to read the entire article; trust me, it’s worth it.
