Philadelphia News Briefs 12/10/15
1.) The low-cost airline Spirit has been adding new destinations departing from Philadelphia International Airport. The carrier, which has been consistently expanding at PHL, announced that in late April it would start flying to Detroit Metropolitan Airport (DTW) and Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport (FLL). The addition of the two new cities brings Spirit’s total list of PHL destinations up to eight. Philadelphia International Airport CEO Mark Gale said he was “very pleased” that Spirit was adding new destinations, noting that passengers enjoy more convenience and better savings with the expanded services. Flights to the new destinations were available for less than $100 for a one-way ticket just hours after the new services were announced.
Spirit announced low-fare flights between Philadelphia and two new hub cities.
2.) The Philadelphia Land Bank, long a pet project of Mayor Michael Nutter, finally has its first batch of properties. It was announced yesterday that the city has taken 150 blighted or vacant properties and transferred them into the Land Bank, where they will eventually be used in “productive developments,” as WTRF put it. Nutter transferred the properties into the Land Bank from the Philadelphia Housing Development Corp. yesterday, and he expects to transfer another 500 over by the end of the year. Nutter signed the ordinance creating the Land Bank two years ago. Over the next four years it is expected that as many as 6,500 vacant properties, making it easier to manage, sell, and redevelop these properties.
3.) Yesterday Philadelphia Police’s 2nd and 15th Districts threw their annual Holiday Party for the city’s underprivileged children. The police distributed gifts to 125 children in surrounding neighborhoods – children who might otherwise not get any Christmas presents of their own. The event was held at the Philadelphia Protestant Home. Money to purchase the gifts was donated by local businesses. Third and fourth graders from more than 30 schools were invited to the event, where there was music, dancing, lunch, and pictures taken with Santa.
