Philadelphia Rec Dept. Head Warns Of Cutbacks If State Budget Scrimps
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) - Pennsylvania governor Tom Corbett's new budget has some fine print that could be bad news for the City of Philadelphia's recreation department.
The Nutter administration has told Philadelphia City Council that cuts in Gov. Corbett's proposed budget could mean the end of teen access centers and some after-school programs in the city.
Mike DiBerardinis, commissioner for the Department of Parks and Recreation, said if that happens, they'll try to keep as much of that going as possible using city dollars.
"If we take the worst possible scenario, both the after-school and the teen access get eliminated, we'll be able to backfill some. But there''ll be significant loss in programs for us," he told a City Council budget hearing.
DiBerardinis said they city may seek private donations to help out, as they've done in recent years to keep the pools open.
By the way, all 70 city pools are scheduled to be open this summer.
Corbett's budget is now in the hands of the Pennsylvania state legislature.
Reported by KYW City Hall Bureau Chief Mike Dunn.
