Yo, Philly in the News

• A little Philly celebrity news: 50 Cent was in town earlier this week. Click through for details and pictures.
• Earlier this spring, when the whole thing came out about the Philadelphia School District's budget problems, their chief financial officer and budget overseer resigned. But it's just now coming out that, despite the fact that she only worked for the district for two years, she left with a ridiculously good deal: she was paid for unused vacation time, will keep her benefits for a full year, and will be paid at full salary for an extra nine months. Sounds like the deal was put together by departing School Reform Commission Chairman James Nevels and was not approved by the full commission.
• The latest in the Britt Reid saga: If you'll remember, he was arrested last week leaving a parking lot, suspected of driving under the influence. The results of the blood test should be released today. Meanwhile, it's come out that he not only had 33 pills in his pockets when taken into custody, but also over 200 other pills in his pickup truck, all of them apparently prescription medication (although they were not in their bottles).
• In a system said to be the first of its kind in the nation, Pennsylvania crime victims and their families can now apply for compensation assistance through an automated online service. More info can be found here.
• Yesterday was the 44th anniversary of the day Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his "I Have a Dream" speech in Washington. Philadelphia community activists marked the occasion by speaking out against gun violence in the city at a gathering of about 200 people at 10th and Spring Garden Streets.
• Next month, Temple University is going to begin a demolition and construction project which will eventually transform the neglected Grace Baptist Church at Berks and Broad Streets (the "Temple" that gave the university its name) into a conference and performance center.
• U.S. Census Bureau figures released yesterday reveal that while the national poverty rate fell slightly last year (its first decline in a decade), Philadelphia and Camden still have some of the nation's highest poverty rates. In fact, Philly has the highest poverty rate of the nation's 10 largest cities. Meanwhile, in a pretty stark and revealing contrast, neighboring suburban counties of both cities have some of the nation's lowest poverty rates.

Image Credit: Flickr user Daniel Morris