We are writing with an update on Councilman Mark Squilla's Bill #251030. Despite months of closed door negotiations, the amendments to the bill still contain dangerous language that would substantially weaken the city's historic preservation ordinance, leaving our city's historic resources more vulnerable than ever. With the America 250th anniversary celebrations approaching, this is simply unacceptable.
The bill is scheduled to be presented at the June 3rd Rules Committee hearing, a committee on which Councilman Squilla serves as vice-Chair. If you live in Philadelphia, there are several actions you can take to voice your opposition to this bill.
- Email or call your district councilperson, and all at-large councilmembers to express your concerns with Bill 251030. The councilmembers on the Rules Committee are Cindy Bass, Mark Squilla, Katherine Gilmore Richardson (at large), Curtis Jones, Jr., Brian J. O’Neill, Isaiah Thomas (at large), and Jamie Gauthier. You can find their contact information here.
- Sign up to make a short public comment in person at the Rules Committee meeting, on June 3rd 2026 at 2pm. We have an email template ready to go here that you can quickly send from your phone or computer.
- Continue to share and promote this petition. The more signatures we have, the stronger message we are sending to City Council that this bill was not developed with good intentions and needs serious revision, if not complete withdrawal.
Thank you for your support -- over 1,000 of you have determined, like us, that Bill 251030 is simply too dangerous to pass as written. These numbers show the interest that Philadelphians have in preserving our built environment, and the understanding that we already have a strong preservation ordinance that does its job. Bill 251030 contains too many loopholes and oversights that put existing designations at risk, as well as unnecessary demolition risk to properties nominated to the Philadelphia Register.
We will write again with updates as we have them, and encourage you all to follow through with whichever action items you are most comfortable with.
--Stop Demolishing Philly Coalition