Civic activist is frustrated
and fighting back . . .

By Diane Prokop
Times Staff Writer

There’s no doubt that Camille Capobianco loves Tacony. There’s also no doubt that she doesn’t like what’s happening there when it comes to area eyesores, nuisance tenants and absentee landlords, and she’s working hard to keep her beloved neighborhood intact.
Capobianco, 35, heads the Tacony Civic Association’s Quality of Life Committee, taking complaints about nuisance properties from neighborhood residents. A Republican committeewoman, an extraordinary minister of Holy Communion at St. Leo’s, member of the 15th Police District Advisory Council and a volunteer at the 15th district curfew center, she also an entrepreneur— Capobianco owns Players Sports Bar and Grille at 4731 Levick St.
"I got active because I started to see signs of decline and said I’m not moving, so I have to fight it," Capobianco said.
The activist is taking that fight to City Hall, gaining support from local civic organizations as she circulates a petition to "enact policies to protect communities from absentee landlords."
It sought to require all out-of-county landlords to have and disclose a local agent that can serve for due process. That is a moot point, however, since the law already exists.
City Council passed Bill 050743 in November. It requires owners of one- or two-family rental properties to have a local agent when the owner lives outside of city limits.
That’s not going to stop Capobianco, though.
After she found out about the bill, she said she planned to change the word "require" to "enforce."
Another measure of the petition already covered by city ordinance is Capobianco’s proposal to require anyone applying for a rental license to show a government ID.
According to Michael Axelrod, president of the Homeowners Association of Philadelphia (HAPCO), landlords are already required to obtain a business-privilege license at a cost of $250 and are then required to use the license’s accompanying tax identification number on each rental property license.
Capobianco’s third proposal calls for a "three strikes and you’re out" policy to revoke license privileges if properties are involved in illegal activities or are documented as a nuisance.
Although two-thirds of the petition’s proposals already exist, they aren’t enforced very well, according to Tacony Civic Association president Lou Iatarola.
"The civic association is all for bringing more attention to competent enforcement by the city, not to mention advocating for less tolerance in renewing rental licenses if problems persist," Iatarola said.
The petition has been well-received in Tacony, where complaints about problem tenants and absentee landlords are rampant.
In fact, the neighborhood’s 19135 ZIP code had 2,163 quality-of-life violations last year, according to Tom Conway, the deputy city managing director who oversees the CLIP program.
Civic groups in Mayfair, Holmesburg, Upper Holmesburg, Burholme, Morrell Park, Northwood and Brewerytown are also lining up behind Capobianco, who has spoken at several of their civic association meetings and collected more than 3,500 signatures on the petition.
Mayfair Civic Association president Scott Cummings supports the petition but believes Capobianco is facing an uphill battle.
"We are willing to wage the battle with her but need the support of Philadelphia City Council along with the mayor. I know Councilwoman (Joan) Krajewski has proposed a series of bills, but I think we need to push back a little harder against the absentee landlords where the quality-of-life crimes breed," Cummings said.
For months now, Capobianco and two members of the civic group’s quality-of-life committee have been compiling lists of nuisance properties for a database.
"We have all of Walker Street, Marsden, and Edmund. We’re doing it street by street," Capobianco said.
Capobianco said she has nothing against legitimate landlords. She was one herself. "I wouldn’t mind it if they took care of it," she said.
According to Krajewski’s office, landlords are taking care of things when in violation, citing statistics from February 2007 through April 2008.
"We turned in a total of 407 cases — 337 of them complied, written up and investigated, meaning they fixed their violations, got licenses," said Patty-Pat Kozlowski, an aide to Krajewski.
Though Capobianco denies current plans to run for office, she hasn’t ruled out a run for Krajewski’s seat in 2011. Krajewski aide Chris Creelman said he believes Capobianco is motivated by her own agenda and political aspirations. Cummings is also said to be interested in running for the seat.
"It’s hard to stand up and speak out. They’re going to do their darnedest to discredit you," Capobianco said.
She’s also gaining the ire of landlord organizations like HAPCO, whose president called Capobianco and the Tacony Civic Association "know-nothings" in the organization’s May newsletter.
HAPCO president Michael Axelrod likens Capobianco’s rally against the out-of-town, absentee landlords to the know-nothings.
"There’s an element of demagoguery. You can always get a headline screaming about landlords," Axelrod said of what he called Capobianco’s blanket indictment. "We’re always cast as villains."
There’s enough frustration on both sides to go around, and much of it stems from the city’s systems and recordkeeping.
Iatarola, the Tacony Civic president, who happens to be a landlord and HAPCO member, responded to the newsletter article with a letter to Axelrod.
"What we do know is that too many hard-working families have left ours and nearby neighborhoods due to the ignorance and/or irresponsibility of a landlord or tenant. The pattern that has emerged is that many such instances involve landlords who rarely, if ever, visit the property and typically live far from their investment," he wrote.
Iatarola and Axelrod have been playing phone tag but hope to open a line of communication between the two organizations.
Capobianco also is willing to take anybody on a tour of the neighborhood to see firsthand the problems Tacony is facing.
"They need to see what I’m talking about," she said. ••
Reporter Diane Prokop can be reached at 215-354-3036 or dprokop@phillynews.com

Originally Posted by Malloy Wow, they are back. Sheesh.

Originally Posted by GOP65 Krajewski aide Chris Creelman said he believes Capobianco is motivated by her own agenda and political aspirations. Cummings is also said to be interested in running for the seat. "It’s hard to stand up and speak out. They’re going to do their darnedest to discredit you," Capobianco said. She’s also gaining the ire of landlord organizations like HAPCO, whose president called Capobianco and the Tacony Civic Association "know-nothings" in the organization’s May newsletter. HAPCO president Michael Axelrod likens Capobianco’s rally against the out-of-town, absentee landlords to the know-nothings. Iatarola, the Tacony Civic president, who happens to be a landlord and HAPCO member, responded to the newsletter article with a letter to Axelrod. "The pattern that has emerged is that many such instances involve landlords who rarely, if ever, visit the property and typically live far from their investment," he wrote. Iatarola and Axelrod have been playing phone tag but hope to open a line of communication between the two organizations.