Rudnick Tours Germantown Town Hall

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City Council Candidate Rudnick Tours Abandoned Historical Site
Sees Hope for Germantown Town Hall

PHILADELPHIA, PA Last Thursday, Brian Rudnick, Green Party Candidate for Philadelphia's 8th City Council District, assembled a group of community leaders to tour Germantown Town Hall, a nationally registered historical site that has sat vacant for 17 years. The 36,000 square foot building, located in the heart of Germantown, served as a hospital during the civil war and later a municipal services building until 1994 when it was abandoned by the city.

"I was shocked to see the state of disrepair that the city has allowed this property to reach," said Rudnick. "Once an integral part of Germantown, Town Hall has the potential to return to the vibrancy of its past. Leaders in our community have already taken large steps toward making the vision of a repurposed Town Hall a reality. I call on the City to partner with the private sector, restore the building using the best green practices and engage building contractors and workers from the Germantown community. Together we can turn Town Hall into a multi-purpose store, office and education center, in collaboration with Germantown High School across the street. Town Hall can also house the 8th District Council office. Here, residents could conduct business with the City during the day or on convenient weekend or evening hours."

As part of his campaign, Rudnick has highlighted the need to collect the more the than $400 million the city is owed in back taxes and to auction off abandoned properties so they can be restored and begin generating tax revenue. The Philadelphia Industrial Development Corporation (PIDC) is now actively marketing Town Hall, asking $400,000. Rudnick brought together architects, association leaders and business people to assess the building and brainstorm ways it can be kept from declining further. His campaign has released photographs both to demonstrate the extent of the Hall?s decay and its great potential for restoration.

Brian Rudnick is an educator, activist, attorney, and parent running for Philadelphia?s 8th District City Council seat. For the last two decades he has lived in Mt. Airy and Chestnut Hill, raising his family and working to better his community. The father of three children, one who graduated from and two who attend public schools, he is committed to giving schools the resources our children need and deserve. As an attorney, Rudnick represented single mothers in child support cases and helped restore social security disability benefits to people who had lost them. Rudnick graduated from Northeast High, received a B.A and J.D from the University of Pennsylvania, as well as a Masters in Library and Information Systems from Drexel University. He is committed to building a sustainable, green economy and as an adjunct professor of information systems at area colleges; he has been training the next generation of our city?s leadership.