Emily Babay
@emilybabay.bsky.social
Deputy editor on the Philly Inquirer’s Team Now. Runner. Reader. Early-riser. Erie native.
An unwritten city policy means some VIP groups don't have to pay tens of thousands of dollars in fees to host events. Meanwhile, other festivals are shutting down due to the high police OT and other costs. www.inquirer.com/news/philly-...
Philly street festivals are shutting down over rising police overtime costs. But some groups don’t have to pay.
Philly elected officials, police-connected groups, and street festival organizers who cut special deals are exempt from tens of thousands dollars in city event fees inked to street festivals.
www.inquirer.com
November 13, 2025 at 6:22 PM
An unwritten city policy means some VIP groups don't have to pay tens of thousands of dollars in fees to host events. Meanwhile, other festivals are shutting down due to the high police OT and other costs. www.inquirer.com/news/philly-...
We all complain about Philly package thieves. But is our general failure to report it part of the problem? "Any solution to package theft has to start with data showing it’s a problem, and that means that no matter how small, citizens must report it." thephiladelphiacitizen.org/philly-porch...
Philly, Porch Pirate City
Philadelphia has the country’s second-highest rate of package theft. Whose fault is it — and what is the solution?
thephiladelphiacitizen.org
November 11, 2025 at 10:41 PM
We all complain about Philly package thieves. But is our general failure to report it part of the problem? "Any solution to package theft has to start with data showing it’s a problem, and that means that no matter how small, citizens must report it." thephiladelphiacitizen.org/philly-porch...
"But as the investigation wore on, the attempted hit began to look more and more amateurish — and, therefore, more and more local." Some Halloween Philly mob history: www.inquirer.com/history/nico...
Looking back on the Halloween 1989 assassination attempt on Nicodemo Scarfo Jr.
The mafia shooting at Dante & Luigi’s shocked the city, and hinted at the brewing mob war that would follow over the next decade.
www.inquirer.com
October 31, 2025 at 9:15 PM
"But as the investigation wore on, the attempted hit began to look more and more amateurish — and, therefore, more and more local." Some Halloween Philly mob history: www.inquirer.com/history/nico...
Part of the SRT is closed indefinitely due to a sinkhole www.inquirer.com/news/philade...
‘You could park a car down there’: Sinkhole closes part of Schuylkill Trail in Center City
The trail has been closed between Race Street and JFK Boulevard, just north of the SEPTA Bridge.
www.inquirer.com
October 23, 2025 at 5:15 PM
Part of the SRT is closed indefinitely due to a sinkhole www.inquirer.com/news/philade...
"Those social media and other reports that the Earth now has two moons appear to be off the mark by about a moon." www.inquirer.com/news/two-moo...
Those ‘two moons’ reports aside, we still have only one
No, NASA did not confirm that we now have two moons.
www.inquirer.com
October 22, 2025 at 10:47 PM
"Those social media and other reports that the Earth now has two moons appear to be off the mark by about a moon." www.inquirer.com/news/two-moo...
What always stood out to me about Mike, maybe more than anything he did, was how others talked about what he did. And if you’re a leader in any capacity, you want your people to talk about you the way Mike’s former staffers talk about him. www.inquirer.com/obituaries/m...
Michael Days, pioneering journalist who led the Philadelphia Daily News during its 2010 Pulitzer Prize win for investigative reporting, has died at 72
Days was a mentor to countless young journalists and was president of the National Association of Black Journalists-Philadelphia.
www.inquirer.com
October 19, 2025 at 11:12 PM
What always stood out to me about Mike, maybe more than anything he did, was how others talked about what he did. And if you’re a leader in any capacity, you want your people to talk about you the way Mike’s former staffers talk about him. www.inquirer.com/obituaries/m...
I regularly encounter (ie, am nearly hit by) e-motos on the Schuylkill and Delaware river trails and am not at all surprised the apparent rise in serious injuries www.inquirer.com/news/electri...
E-bikes have evolved into e-motorcycles. Law enforcement is lagging behind.
Serious injuries are on the rise in emergency rooms around the country, as electric cycles become bigger and faster. Lawmakers and police departments are scrambling to address the problem.
www.inquirer.com
October 6, 2025 at 9:10 PM
I regularly encounter (ie, am nearly hit by) e-motos on the Schuylkill and Delaware river trails and am not at all surprised the apparent rise in serious injuries www.inquirer.com/news/electri...
"Welcome to the swing state of dual governmental dysfunction" is perhaps not the marketing slogan Pennsylvania wanted, but it's the one we have www.inquirer.com/politics/fed...
Pennsylvania could be on the cusp of a ‘double-whammy’ government shutdown
Funding fights in Washington and Harrisburg are creating uncertainty for Pennsylvanians from two levels of government and further eroding trust in institutions.
www.inquirer.com
September 30, 2025 at 6:37 PM
"Welcome to the swing state of dual governmental dysfunction" is perhaps not the marketing slogan Pennsylvania wanted, but it's the one we have www.inquirer.com/politics/fed...
The Philly Cycling Classic and its Manayunk Wall are coming back www.inquirer.com/sports/phila...
The Philadelphia Cycling Classic will return next summer after a 10-year hiatus
The race ran every summer after launching in 1985 but has not been held since 2016 due to a lack of sponsorship. It will officially return on Aug. 30, 2026 with a men’s and women’s race.
www.inquirer.com
September 16, 2025 at 12:27 AM
The Philly Cycling Classic and its Manayunk Wall are coming back www.inquirer.com/sports/phila...
You, too, can help SEPTA take down service-cut signs as regular schedules resume next week: "If anybody from the public wants to remove one and take it home or dispose of it properly, they are welcome." www.inquirer.com/transportati...
SEPTA shifts into reverse to get full transit service restored by Sunday
SEPTA is scrambling to bring reduced transit service to normal levels with days to spare.
www.inquirer.com
September 11, 2025 at 5:19 PM
You, too, can help SEPTA take down service-cut signs as regular schedules resume next week: "If anybody from the public wants to remove one and take it home or dispose of it properly, they are welcome." www.inquirer.com/transportati...
How to hook even the biggest nerd into a football column: Start with a (justified) rant against the word "unprecedented" www.inquirer.com/sports/eagle...
Eagles are better positioned to repeat than they were in 2018 | Mike Sielski
For one thing, Carson Wentz is not part of the equation anymore. For another, this team is far deeper and more talented than the 2018 squad under Doug Pederson.
www.inquirer.com
September 2, 2025 at 9:03 PM
How to hook even the biggest nerd into a football column: Start with a (justified) rant against the word "unprecedented" www.inquirer.com/sports/eagle...
SRT for sure www.inquirer.com/life/happies...
Where are the happiest places in Philly? This Drexel professor asked his students to map them
Eric Zillmer put together the map with his 243 Psych 101 students, who nominated Rittenhouse Square, a Mantua park filled with cats, and Johnny Brenda's, among other places.
www.inquirer.com
August 3, 2025 at 4:44 PM
SRT for sure www.inquirer.com/life/happies...
"All dogs are good dogs, but Philly dogs are the best." And many of them have predictable-but-fun names. www.inquirer.com/health/pets/...
How popular is your dog’s name? Find out in our breakdown of top names and breeds in Philly.
Inquirer analysis of Philly dog licenses counts: 82 Rockys, 17 Harpers, and 13 Hoagies.
www.inquirer.com
July 27, 2025 at 4:11 PM
"All dogs are good dogs, but Philly dogs are the best." And many of them have predictable-but-fun names. www.inquirer.com/health/pets/...
Reposted by Emily Babay
I highly recommend this story on the history behind DC 33’s strike: www.inquirer.com/politics/phi...
DC 33 made concessions in 1992. Decades of resentment since led to Philadelphia’s current city worker strike.
Many AFSCME DC 33 members have been itching for the union to take a dramatic stand against the city ever since then-Mayor Rendell won concessions in a 1992 contract. On Tuesday, they got their wish.
www.inquirer.com
July 4, 2025 at 8:59 PM
I highly recommend this story on the history behind DC 33’s strike: www.inquirer.com/politics/phi...
One piece of bright news this week: It's pool season! www.inquirer.com/news/philade...
Philly’s pools start opening this week. Here’s what you need to know, from the full schedule to pool hours
Philadelphia will begin opening public pools on June 13. Find out which pools are opening and which will stay closed this summer due to construction.
www.inquirer.com
June 12, 2025 at 11:57 PM
One piece of bright news this week: It's pool season! www.inquirer.com/news/philade...
Between Grand Slam Track and Philly Run Fest, this is making a strong case for best running weekend in Philly. Though I should probably see how my own race goes tomorrow before making such statements.
May 31, 2025 at 8:31 PM
Between Grand Slam Track and Philly Run Fest, this is making a strong case for best running weekend in Philly. Though I should probably see how my own race goes tomorrow before making such statements.
Come for the Pennsylvania tornado history, stay for the very dark kicker:
"What I expect people to do, and this includes myself," Brooks said, "is to pay enough attention to the forecast to know that today is the day that the weather might kill me."
www.inquirer.com/science/clim...
"What I expect people to do, and this includes myself," Brooks said, "is to pay enough attention to the forecast to know that today is the day that the weather might kill me."
www.inquirer.com/science/clim...
40 years ago today a rare and deadly tornado outbreak struck Pennsylvania. Are more in our future?
It was “one of rarest” tornado outbreaks on record, says a tornado expert, but “things like that are possible.”
www.inquirer.com
May 31, 2025 at 3:08 PM
Come for the Pennsylvania tornado history, stay for the very dark kicker:
"What I expect people to do, and this includes myself," Brooks said, "is to pay enough attention to the forecast to know that today is the day that the weather might kill me."
www.inquirer.com/science/clim...
"What I expect people to do, and this includes myself," Brooks said, "is to pay enough attention to the forecast to know that today is the day that the weather might kill me."
www.inquirer.com/science/clim...
The Philly edition of Grand Slam Track will be two days instead of three: www.inquirer.com/sports/grand...
Grand Slam Track cuts its Philadelphia event schedule to two days
After running three-day events at the circuit's first three stops, the event here will be just two days. Fans and athletes had complained that the races were too spread out.
www.inquirer.com
May 15, 2025 at 10:56 PM
The Philly edition of Grand Slam Track will be two days instead of three: www.inquirer.com/sports/grand...
"Asked if the university will begin touting a pope alum in marketing materials, he responded: 'Why not!'" www.inquirer.com/education/vi...
Could the new pope, a Villanova alumnus, speak at graduation next year? ‘Very funny,’ the pope responded.
When Villanova President Peter M. Donohue asked the Pope if he would be commencement speaker, the Pope replied, "Very funny."
www.inquirer.com
May 9, 2025 at 6:47 PM
"Asked if the university will begin touting a pope alum in marketing materials, he responded: 'Why not!'" www.inquirer.com/education/vi...
It's May 3 and the drinking fountains at Chaminoux tennis courts, MLK/Montgomery, and Lloyd Hall are all turned on. Miracles do happen.
May 3, 2025 at 1:26 PM
It's May 3 and the drinking fountains at Chaminoux tennis courts, MLK/Montgomery, and Lloyd Hall are all turned on. Miracles do happen.
The N.J. governor primary in one sentence: "Undecided is in first place" www.inquirer.com/politics/new...
Why the Democratic nominee for N.J. governor might only get 20% of the vote
All six candidates in the primary race have a path toward victory.
www.inquirer.com
May 2, 2025 at 4:42 PM
The N.J. governor primary in one sentence: "Undecided is in first place" www.inquirer.com/politics/new...
This lookup by zip code of what booze your Pennsylvania neighborhood drinks is very fun: www.inquirer.com/food/drink/i...
What does your neighborhood drink? Find out with Pennsylvania Uncorked, our breakdown of the most popular wine and spirits
Analysis of a year's worth of Fine Wine and Good Spirits sales data.
www.inquirer.com
April 25, 2025 at 3:37 PM
This lookup by zip code of what booze your Pennsylvania neighborhood drinks is very fun: www.inquirer.com/food/drink/i...
Is there a more evergreen subhead in a story about track and field than "The sport has bigger issues"? www.inquirer.com/sports/penn-...
This year’s Penn Relays have a new neighbor: Grand Slam Track’s arrival in a few weeks
The Relays won't have as many big names as in the past, but the Grand Slam meet at the end of May will ensure that track stars still come to Franklin Field.
www.inquirer.com
April 23, 2025 at 3:29 PM
Is there a more evergreen subhead in a story about track and field than "The sport has bigger issues"? www.inquirer.com/sports/penn-...
Philly will study its aging libraries (and rec centers) and come up with a plan to address needed repairs: www.inquirer.com/politics/phi...
Philly will study its aging libraries and rec centers following HVAC-related closures
Officials from Mayor Cherelle L. Parker’s administration outlined the plan to City Council Wednesday, saying the facilities assessment would help agencies prioritize infrastructure needs.
www.inquirer.com
April 16, 2025 at 8:56 PM
Philly will study its aging libraries (and rec centers) and come up with a plan to address needed repairs: www.inquirer.com/politics/phi...
My favorite sports story of the week has become the Philly-area golfer who played in the Masters to keep things normal for a competitor who otherwise would have played alone www.inquirer.com/news/pennsyl...
A Philly-area finance CEO played in the Masters, but he wasn’t competing
The Kathmere Capital Management chief executive appeared in the Augusta tournament as a "marker."
www.inquirer.com
April 16, 2025 at 2:50 PM
My favorite sports story of the week has become the Philly-area golfer who played in the Masters to keep things normal for a competitor who otherwise would have played alone www.inquirer.com/news/pennsyl...