Daily News Coverage of Neighborhood Networks

Philadelphia Daily News | 06/10/2005 | Gar Joseph | Casey could hear pitter-patter of Sandals: "Shadow party

Imagine a Democratic City Committee that was more about issues than self-preservation.

Imagine a party whose ward leaders backed candidates based on qualifications, not payoffs.

Imagine judicial candidates not having to make payoffs of up to $100,000 to pols and 'consultants,' instead relying on an army of volunteers willing to work for the best candidates for free.

You may say we're a dreamer, but we're not the only one. More than 200 people showed up at the first Neighborhood Network conference on Saturday.

The conference was the brainchild of Marc Stier, a Temple University prof and West Mount Airy neighborhood activist, and Stan Shapiro, a former City Council staffer.

The two wanted to keep the activism of last year's presidential race going. They also were unhappy with the local Democratic Party's inertia on issues.

'We thought about how useful it would be if we had 600 or 700 people throughout the city committed to progressive causes and willing to reach out to their neighbors,' Stier explained.

'We had the idea of creating a parallel ward and division organization,' he said.

Saturday was the beginning and those in attendance included party committeemen and women.

Stier said more than half the city's 66 wards were represented.

He insists that it's not his intention to seize control of the current party structure.

'The first thing we're doing is sending out our folks to talk up the minimum wage issue,' Stier said.

He wants to build grassroots support for a bill in Harrisburg that would raise the state's minimum wage from $5.15 to $7.15 an hour.

The next thing the group wants to do is 'continue to expand from 200 division leaders to 400 or 500,' Stier said.

'If we had 400 division leaders and each could bring 100 people to the polls, you're talking 40,000 votes,' he said. 'That could win five judgeships.'"