Officials from the City of Philadelphia’s Department of
Licenses & Inspections (L&I) have expressed their profound disappointment
in statements made by City Controller Alan Butkovitz related to an audit of
L&I, which was released by his office earlier today. L&I’s written
response to the Controller’s audit is included on pages 32-73 of the
Controller’s Report. L&I urges the citizens of Philadelphia to read the
response included in the report, compare the data produced by the department
with data cited by the Controller, and base their conclusions on the actual
findings.
L&I officials contend that the Controller’s audit suggests
that L&I has been deceitful about its processes and procedures, and they
vehemently contest such accusations. As
the department’s written response made clear, since June 5, 2013, L&I has
taken every precaution to tighten oversight of demolition projects in the City
of Philadelphia, including:
· Conducting site safety assessments at
442 demolition sites in the week following the Market Street demolition
accident. These assessments were performed as an extra measure to ensure that
no demolition sites posed any threat to public safety, and the data provided
proves that L&I did so thoroughly.
· Strengthening review of demolition
permit applications. L&I has implemented all of the new standards created
by the Mayor’s Executive Order, which are now part of City Council’s new
demolition legislation. L&I can confidently say that no contractors without
the required experience, insurance, and site safety plans are receiving
demolition permits. This is evidenced in the detailed data attached to the
department’s response.
· Inspecting
all demolition permits in keeping with new requirements. L&I did not miss
or skip inspections as implied in the Controller’s comments. The department
conducts all code-required inspections, plus additional site safety inspections
to ensure public protection.
· A planned new database with increased
reporting capabilities. The Department is the first to acknowledge that its
data system is antiquated and in need of upgrades to improve transparency.
L&I has already begun to change this system with Project eCLIPSE, which
will revolutionize the way it performs inspections. In the meantime, it must be
made clear that the department’s levels of supervisory review offer all
necessary protections.
· Additional training for all
inspectors. L&I makes the education
and training of its inspectors a priority and will further expand demolition
training with additional funding in FY15. All of the department’s inspectors
are fully certified.
L&I officials made it clear to the Controller’s Office
that the present data system is difficult to understand, and because of this,
offered the Controller extensive support in navigating the data. Unfortunately
the Controller’s Office chose to interpret the data without L&I support,
which led them to draw conclusions that created misconceptions in their
audit. L&I participated in an exit
interview with the Controller’s Office on May 14th before the audit was
released, and staff from the Controller’s office appeared pleased with the
progress the department has made thus far.
Again, L&I
strongly encourages all citizens to read the department’s response to the
Controller’s audit to understand the department’s processes and procedures
regarding demolition inspections. The enforcement of L&I codes is a responsibility that is taken
extremely seriously and all L&I employees constantly strive to innovate,
expand, and do better – L&I officials believe they are well on their way to
enhancing safety for those who live, work and play in the City of Philadelphia.
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