Knox hopes for
a big payoff

By Tom Waring
Times Staff Writer

Tom Knox isn’t shy when it comes to talking about his business ventures.
Knox, who fashions himself as an outsider in the mayoral race, has run 15 businesses over a 40-year career.
In his opinion, he’s been a smashing success.
"I’ve got the bankroll to prove it," he said.
The multimillionaire has used some of his fortune to pay for television commercials that have helped position him as perhaps the favorite heading into Tuesday’s Democratic primary.
As the front-runner for the last few weeks, Knox has seen Bob Brady and Dwight Evans pick apart his record. He fights back, contending that Brady, Evans, Chaka Fattah and Michael Nutter have been in office for a combined 75 years or so and not solved issues such as crime, public education, homelessness and quality jobs.
"You need a mayor who’s not part of the system," he said. "That’s me."
Knox, 66, has appeared to connect with voters with his story of growing up in the Abbottsford Homes housing project in East Falls and dropping out of high school at age 16 to join the U.S. Navy to support his family after his father was injured on the job. When he announced his candidacy last November, he did so on a large field across from his former home.
The candidate has had less success wooing party leaders. He has just a few ward leaders committed to him, including City Councilwoman Jannie Blackwell. He has no union endorsements, though it’s widely rumored that International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 98 will be out in force for him on Tuesday. The only media outlet to endorse him has been the bilingual El Hispano weekly newspaper.
On the campaign trail, he rails against "big boss politics" and vows to "take down the for-sale sign on City Hall." He speaks bluntly, promising to pay for 1,000 new police officers and other initiatives, in part, by ending no-bid contracts and municipal corruption. One of his favorite criticisms of city government is that it’s more interested in hiring "cronies instead of cops."
"These types of things won’t happen when I’m mayor," he said.
While crafting an outsider image, he also plays up the 18 months he spent as a dollar-a-year deputy mayor in charge of waste and productivity under Mayor Ed Rendell in the early 1990s. Rendell, who has been kind to the five major candidates, has given Knox a lot of credit for helping to turn around Philadelphia’s economic fortunes.
Critics label him as abrasive, but Knox said the city needs someone with an edge to fix its problems.
"I want to get the job done," he said, adding that he’ll surround himself with good people looking to serve the city, not themselves.
Early in the campaign, he collected about 80,000 signatures on a petition calling on the state to allow Philadelphia to make its own gun laws. State lawmakers, whom Knox contends are influenced too much by the National Rifle Association, ignored the petitions.
Knox also wants better service from SEPTA and thinks one way to achieve that is to increase the number of Philadelphians on the transit authority’s board of directors. Right now, only two of 15 members are from the city.
As for the two slot machine parlors proposed for the Delaware River waterfront, he is adamantly opposed, arguing that the casinos would lead to increased traffic, crime, trash and prostitution in neighborhoods.
One of his ideas is to open 40 neighborhood health centers staffed by doctors and nurse practitioners and located in pharmacies and supermarkets. The cost will be either $7.50 or an insurance co-pay, or the care will be free if the patient has to wait longer than 30 minutes.
The candidate is also promoting a Learn to Earn initiative geared to keeping students from dropping out of school. Students attend life-skills classes after school and earn money that goes to pay for their family’s utility bills, rent or summer camp tuition. The program would be funded by individual donors, banks and foundations.
On another education matter, he wants to offer career training in high schools for any student who wants that course of study. A trained and educated workforce, he contends, would encourage businesses to move into Philadelphia.
In terms of a replacement for outgoing School District of Philadelphia CEO Paul Vallas, Knox wants the School Reform Commission to hire an educator for the position. He labeled Vallas a "bean counter." ••
Reporter Tom Waring can be reached at 215-354-3034 or twaring@phillynews.com