Thursday's Council agenda: Love Park's Saucer, a $1 lease and bills that have waited almost a year

City Council's stated meeting this Thursday, Oct. 29, at 10 a.m. in Room 400 of City Hall now has a posted agenda. Our records list 16 items for a final vote (meeting page). Most are routine. A few, like the deal for the Saucer building in Love Park, change how city property is used for years. And three bills have been eligible for a vote for months without one.

Being on the agenda doesn't guarantee a vote. Bills can sit on the second-reading calendar until they're called up. The Inquirer reported in September that Gauthier never called up her incineration bill, which is still listed.

Resolutions up for adoption

• School meals. Resolution 260872, from Anthony Phillips and seven co-sponsors, asks the School District to rethink its meal program. Our story.
• Hotel workers. Resolution 260907, from Council President Kenyatta Johnson with 14 sponsors, backs Unite Here Local 274 in its contract dispute at the Hilton Garden Inn. Our story.
• Land Bank sales. Five resolutions would let the Land Bank sell lots: three from Jamie Gauthier in the 3rd District (260903, 260904, 260905), one from Curtis Jones Jr. covering dozens of parcels in the 4th (260906), and one from Jeffery Young Jr. in the 5th (260908). Our story on Land Bank sales.

Bills that cleared committee last week

The Committee on Public Property and Public Works approved these Oct. 21, and each got a first reading Oct. 22:

• Bill 260799, Young: a five-year concession deal for the Saucer building in Love Park. Our story.
• Bill 260763, Johnson and Quetcy Lozada: a $1-a-year lease of former landfill land near the airport for a union training center. Our story.
• Bill 260798, Young: renames Penrose Recreation Center, 1101 W. Susquehanna Ave., for former state Sen. Shirley M. Kitchen, who died in July.
• Bill 260638, Phillips with seven co-sponsors: names the playground building at Dorothy Emanuel Recreation Center, 8501 Pickering Ave., the "Marlene Trice Neighborhood Center." It had waited in committee since June 11.
• Bill 260567, Mark Squilla: renames Girard Fountain Park on the 300 block of Arch Street as "Janet Kalter Park." It had been in committee since May 28.

Also listed is Young's Bill 260462, a zoning remap of the area bounded by Thompson Street, 17th Street, Girard Avenue, Ridge Avenue, 19th Street, Cabot Street and 18th Street, with changes to the Fifth District Overlay. The Rules Committee amended and approved it Sept. 29, and it got a first reading Oct. 1. It has been eligible for a final vote for about three weeks.

Bills that have been waiting

• Incineration ban, since Nov. 20, 2025. Gauthier's Bill 250768 would bar city waste contractors from sending trash to incinerators. It got a first reading Nov. 20, 2025, 343 days before Thursday. The Inquirer reported in September that she never called it up after the administration opposed it. The city's new disposal contracts, including one with incinerator operator Reworld, are now pending in a separate bill in the Environment Committee. Our story on that bill.
• Park land between Vine and Fairmount, since Dec. 11, 2025. Squilla's Bill 250807 would let the city acquire land between Vine Street, Fairmount Avenue, 8th Street and 12th Street for public parks, by purchase, condemnation or other means. It cleared committee and got a first reading Dec. 11, 2025, 322 days before Thursday.
• Child Welfare Commission, since Sept. 17. At-large Councilmember Nina Ahmad's Bill 260076 would put a charter question to voters. Council passed it June 4 and reconsidered it Sept. 17. Our story.

How to follow it

Council sessions are open to the public. Votes will appear on each item's matter page after the meeting. Bills the Rules Committee approves at today's zoning hearing would still need a first reading before a final vote.