DEAR ABBY: I’m a senior man who has been married and divorced twice. For the last eight years, I have been in a relationship with an amazing woman. She has always had some control issues, but because of the love we share, I was able to look past them.
I’ve always been the one who paid for everything. I recently had some heart issues and was unable to work my part-time job, so my income was reduced. I was no longer able to continue to do the things she was used to. She recently retired and wants to do more traveling, which, at this time, I can’t afford. This has caused friction.
Two years ago, I put a ring on her finger, which she accepted with reservation, telling me she never wanted to get married or live together. She likes things the way they are. She recently told me she’s no longer in love with me the way she had been.
I don’t want to think badly of her, but I think it’s because of my health and financial issues. This hurts so bad. For some reason, I still love her and can’t move on. I’m a hopeless romantic and a true gentleman. I’m gun-shy about trying again at 70, but I hate being alone and depressed. What do you suggest?
— DISILLUSIONED IN NEW JERSEY
DEAR DISILLUSIONED: I am sorry you are depressed and hurting. From what you have written, I can only conclude that when you were paying for everything, your ladylove liked the ride she was on. Now that things have changed financially, she has jumped off, so to speak. You may not believe this right now, but you are lucky she has shown her true colors.
You do not have to stay alone and depressed. You also do not have to participate in relationships that are all give and no take. With this in mind, look for women who are independent and willing to share some of the financial costs of a relationship. You may be surprised to find that there are many out there.
** ** **
DEAR ABBY: My wealthy uphill neighbor and I share a retaining wall, which has been damaged by her reckless irrigation practices. Since the damage can be seen only from my side, she’s not concerned.
An inspector recommended excavating on her side to allow waterproofing the wall and installing a drainpipe. I wanted to bring in a wall contractor to get an estimate, but she would not allow it. Evidently, she doesn’t want any of the plants in her backyard disturbed.
Two weeks ago, she notified me by certified mail that she would no longer communicate with me. The city says it doesn’t get involved in beefs between neighbors. I’m at my wits’ end. Any advice?
— HOG-TIED IN CALIFORNIA
DEAR HOG-TIED: Because water causes erosion, it is only a matter of time before your property is affected by your neighbor’s drainage. She may have sent you that certified letter on advice from her lawyer. This is why you now need to engage legal counsel of your own. She’s a difficult person, and you need to protect yourself and your property.
ARIES (March 21-April 19). You’re instinctually motivated by a primal and unconscious strategy — a knowing that has been inside you since birth. It’s the same instinct your ancestors have had for thousands of years, and you can trust your modern interpretation.
TAURUS (April 20-May 20). Today’s social moments are full of fast, emotional shorthand. You can catch it all when you’re relaxed. Once you get out of your head and start observing without the distraction of having to earn anyone’s approval, you’re golden.
GEMINI (May 21-June 21). Life will improve, yes. But don’t push or become so focused on a better tomorrow that you don’t see what’s around you now. Don’t waste the good things in this moment. Fully engage.
CANCER (June 22-July 22). Emotional intelligence is your superpower today. You sense what’s needed without being told and respond with just the right mix of care and restraint. And though this kind of attunement sometimes goes unacknowledged, you will be buoyed by the evidence that you helped.
LEO (July 23-Aug. 22). You don’t have to think absolutely everything through. Let yourself be spontaneous. Today it’s an attractive shift. Say yes to the fun option. Go where the energy is, do what feels good and enjoy the company that comes with it.
VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22). The amateur tries to squeeze out the effects of chance. The pro skillfully positions to accept chance’s graces. Go easy. If you win this, great. If you don’t, onto the next. This easy attitude attracts Lady Luck and improves your odds.
LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 23). Harmony isn’t something you have to manufacture; it’s already present in the way things are naturally unfolding today, and you’ll love that you don’t even have to put your hands on the wheel, make corrections or do much at all besides being true to yourself.
SCORPIO (Oct. 24-Nov. 21). You marvel at the natural world. But if everything existed in its natural state, what would creative people do with themselves? Today you’ll entreat good fortune as you honor your strong need to change, heighten and improve things.
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21). Curiosity leads the way. A conversation, idea or invitation opens a fresh perspective that just feels fun to you. You may realize you’ve been unnecessarily constricted in some way, and now you get the chance to expand and exhale in the form of laughter.
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19). Steady effort is paying off — really! You’re building something real, even if today’s progress seems to take place in mind or theory more than with tangible results. Those are coming. Trust that your consistency is working beautifully.
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18). There’s a call to action, maybe as simple as a deadline or a challenge. You don’t experience urgency as pressure or stress; rather, it’s clarity. When it’s go time, you’re already in motion, leading the team, organizing the moment so no one is alone inside it.
PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20). Along your merry way, there’s an ember of excitement gleaming under the surface of this ordinary day. It’s like you know on some level that good things are coming. You don’t know the where, when or how of it, and that’s half the fun!
TODAY’S BIRTHDAY (Feb. 27). It’s your Year of Creative Courage when inspiration, skill and resources converge. Your efforts bloom into tangible accomplishments, recognition and financial rewards. More highlights: A special relationship takes you to new places both close to home and far away. A new income stream requires little work. A festive friend group meets periodically. Virgo and Scorpio adore you. Your lucky numbers are: 12, 2, 4, 39 and 15.
Frustration and anguish spilled over Thursday night as Superintendent Tony B. Watlington Sr. presented his sweeping, $2.8 billion facilities plan to the school board at a heated, lengthy meeting.
Watlington revised the plan to include 18, not 20 school closings — saving Conwell Middle School and Motivation High — and still wants to modernize 159 schools over a decade. He pitched it as a “once-in-a-lifetime” opportunity to drive academic improvement.
But the community did not seem impressed — at an anti-school-closure rally prior to the meeting, and at the public session itself, which stretched on for more than eight hours, into the early hours of Friday morning.
Tony B. Watlington Sr., superintendent of the School District of Philadelphia, presents his facilities plan during Thursday’s board meeting.
“Dr. Watlington, you’re breaking my heart,” said Amanda Chandler, a teacher at Harding Middle School, one of the schools on the chopping block.
The district’s plan “isn’t an opportunity — it’s calculated abandonment,” said Beth Cole, a teacher at Stetson Middle School, which is also slated to close.
Watlington first unveiled the facilities plan, which was years in the making, in January. After weeks of community meetings, the superintendent formally presented the blueprint — with some tweaks — to the school board Thursday. The board has not yet said when it will vote on the plan, but has scheduled a March 12 town hall to hear more public feedback.
‘Massive upheaval’
The district has 70,000 empty seats in schools citywide. For example: Watlington said he recently watched a recording of a 1969 Overbrook High graduation. The school educated 5,000 students then. Now, it has fewer than 500.
And while some schools are underenrolled, some are overfull, particularly those in the Northeast. Inequities are widespread, also. For instance, only half of city students have access to Algebra 1 in eighth grade, barring them from admission to Masterman, a top city magnet that requires algebra for admission.
The board must address all those issues, said Reginald Streater, school board president.
School board president Reginald Streater said the board must deal with 70,000 empty seats in city schools.
“We have chronic underfunding, coupled with enrollment shifts that have materially created structural challenges that no district board can simply absorb without consequence to the district,” Streater said. “These realities have materially affected our ability to accelerate our fight against systemic chronic underachievement within the School District of Philadelphia.”
Streater did not weigh in on the details of the plan, but some other board members did, indicating there may be some pushback when it comes time to vote.
Board memberCrystal Cubbage said she wanted a “bolder plan” including more new buildings. (Watlington’s version proposed a single new building in the lower Northeast for the Arts Academy at Benjamin Rush.)
“I’m struggling to reconcile this massive upheaval, and the $2.8 billion price tag, with the fact the plan is not explicitly designed to produce better outcomes for all of our children,” Cubbage said.
Audience members in the packed board room cheered as board member Wanda Novales voiced criticisms of the plan.
Novales said she recognized the complex challenges the board and district face, but “the standard cannot simply be operational efficiency,” Novales said. “I am struggling to see the heart …that sees the lived realities of our neighborhoods.”
Areas like Kensington and Fairhill have long been underresourced, Novales said, and the plan falls short in providing opportunities to students there.
“This conversation cannot just be about buildings. It must be about students,” Novales said.
Joyce Wilkerson, the longest-serving member of the school board, and a member of the School Reform Commission, the board’s predecessor, said the district has known it had to “rightsize” for years.
“We can’t afford to be locked in inaction,” Wilkerson said.
More pushback
Students from the affected schools spoke pointedly about the proposed changes.
Jade Colon, a student at Stetson Middle School, in Kensington, said her school’s roof has leaked for years. It’s never been properly fixed.
“We are told this plan is about equality, yet we see our neighborhood — one that has already faced decades of disinvestment — being asked to sacrifice yet again,” said Colon. “True equality isn’t found in a swing space or a longer walk to a different building across dangerous intersections like Kensington and Allegheny. True equality is found in investing in schools we already have.”
Students rally before a School District of Philadelphia board meeting Thursday outside the district’s headquarters in Philadelphia, as community members protest proposed school closures.
David Samuel, who attends Parkway Northwest, another school on the closing list, said the school is “building strong children.”
Virtually all Parkway Northwest students are on track to graduation.
“Those are lives being moved forward,” Samuel said. “Closing Parkway Northwest wouldn’t be closing a school; it would be closing my home.”
The plan drew pushback from a number of politicians who showed up to voice displeasure to the board.
“I do not have the words to describe how disappointed I am by the district’s proposal today,” City Councilmember Jamie Gauthier said, underscoring concerns about harm to Black and brown students.
Removing Motivation from the closing list is a good step, said Gauthier, who represents a West Philadelphia district. But she wants Watlington to consider removing Robeson, Blankenburg, and Parkway West, too.
The superintendent said the district has done its best to spread opportunity, but he acknowledged the difficulty of the decisions in front of the board.
“In an ideal world, I never believe in closing schools,” Watlington said, a remark met with some groans from the crowd. “I would never want my child’s school to be closed, to be frank.”
NEW YORK ― It appears all of that on-ice time during the NHL’s break for the Winter Games paid off for Matvei Michkov.
He scored not only the Flyers’ first goal of the game, but also the overtime winner, redeeming himself after taking a penalty to put the Flyers on the kill at the end of regulation in a 3-2 win over the Rangers.
“He had two big goals,” Konecny said. “First, obviously the overtime one, but I thought the one he scored for us, you know, the first one, was a timely one that helped us calm down and get us back into it. He’s playing great. He looked fast.”
The Flyers were on the second leg of a back-to-back, and they looked it in the first period. The Rangers had them on their heels, dominating puck possession and smothering the Flyers’ breakout attempts.
But Sam Ersson held down the fort early, as the Flyers’ netminder made a few point-blank saves, including a high-danger shot from Adam Fox. But Sam Carrick flung a shot from along the boards at Ersson, and it slipped right through the five-hole, to put the Rangers up 1-0.
“We told him, that’s going to happen, those goals like that,” coach Rick Tocchet said. “I don’t know what happened. Whatever happened, happened, but he dug in there.”
Hathaway tried to spark the Flyers late in the first with a fight after taking a boarding penalty on Brennan Othmann. But coming out of the break, the Rangers added to their lead with an early goal from Alexis Lafrienière, who beat Noah Cates in front of the net to bury a pass from Will Cuylle.
The Flyers got one back on the power play from Michkov, who scored his 14th of the season and third power-play goal. They outshot the Rangers in the second period, 10-5.
And out of the second intermission, the Flyers kept that momentum going. Trevor Zegras sniped one over the shoulder of Igor Shesterkin under 40 seconds into the third period to tie the game at 2-2.
“The first 10 minutes of the first period, we were kind of running around, just giving them the puck, turnovers, and [Ersson] made a ton of great saves for us,” Zegras said. “But I thought after that, we settled in, less turnovers, and just played our game.”
Cates had two point-blank opportunities in front of Shesterkin late in the third to take the lead on the power play, but couldn’t bury either chance.
Michkov’s goaltender interference penalty put the Flyers at a disadvantage to open the extra period, and the situation was made even worse after Rasmus Ristolainen lost his stick late into the penalty kill.
Ersson’s season has been up-and-down this year, but despite the early soft goal, he made 23 of 25 saves, keeping the Flyers in it while they found their legs early in the first period and delivering in overtime.
Sam Ersson made 23 saves in the Flyers’ overtime win against the New York Rangers on Thursday.
“[Ersson] was fantastic, he was fantastic,” Zegras said. “The save he made on Fox in the first four minutes, the penalty kill in overtime, he was amazing … When that first one goes in, he made so many ridiculous saves that it didn’t even matter.”
Ultimately, the Flyers still need to get as many points as possible. Still out of a playoff spot, Zegras said every game is like a playoff game for this group, and they’ll need more timely goals like the overtime winner from Michkov on the breakaway.
“The last 25, I guess yesterday 26, are all playoff-type games for us,” Zegras said. “We’ve got to do something special down the stretch to get in, and we all know that.”
Breakaways
Emil Andrae drew into the lineup for the first time since Jan. 26. He played 11 minutes and 50 seconds … The Flyers have conceded the first goal 39 times this year in 58 games.
Up next…
The Flyers return to action on Saturday against the Boston Bruins (3 p.m., 6ABC).
Tyrese Maxey broke Allen Iverson’s 76ers franchise record for 3-pointers, finishing with five 3s and a team-high 28 points Thursday night in the Sixers’ 124-117 victory over the Miami Heat.
Maxey also had 11 assists and helped steady the Sixers after they blew a 16-point halftime lead. Joel Embiid had 26 points and 11 rebounds, and Kelly Oubre scored 21 points for the Sixers, who have now won three straight after dropping their previous four.
Bam Adebayo had 29 points and 14 rebounds, and Tyler Herro scored 25 points for the Heat, who have lost two straight.
Maxey entered the game with 882 made three-pointers, three behind Iverson, and broke the record with 1 minute, 38 seconds left in the first quarter. He made all of his five three-point attempts — a career high for a period — and scored 20 points in the first quarter alone. He finished 5 of 12 beyond the arc.
The 25-year-old Maxey now has 887 three-pointers midway through his sixth season; Iverson played his first 10 seasons and parts of two more for the Sixers to accomplish his feat.
Miami took its first lead of the game on a 3 by Herro with 2:44 left, but the Heat didn’t score again. Maxey hit two free throws and then found Kelly Oubre for a 3 to put the Sixers back ahead 121-117. Embiid extended the lead on a 3 with 29.2 seconds remaining.
The Sixers led 73-57 at halftime. Miami rallied to tie it late in the third quarter, and the margin was within single digits the rest of the way.
Next up: the Sixers are on a road trip to take on rivals Boston on Sunday night (7 p.m., NBCSP).
While the school district attempted to cancel last Friday’s planned walkout after receiving what officials called a credible threat, some members of the public said school officials could have offered students the opportunity to protest on Quakertown Community High School’scampus, knowing they were likely to walk out anyway.
“Instead of guiding them to a safer option, we left them to navigate it on their own,” said Jessica Buhman, a parent of two children in the district who addressed the school board before a packed room Thursday. “The risks were foreseeable and unfortunately they materialized.”
Parent Jessica Buhman speaks to the board at the Quakertown school board meeting Thursday.
Some others faulted the district for allowing students to walk out at all. In the “real world … people don’t walk off their jobs to protest,” said Amalia Ritter. “You walk off the job, you’re fired. You want to protest, you do that on your own time.”
School officials have said they had no authority to stop about 35 students who left the high school Friday, walking off campus.
In town, a confrontation broke out. Video footage appears to show Quakertown’s police chief — dressed in plainclothes — putting a girl in a chokehold.
The five students were charged with aggravated assault, a felony-level crime, and jailed. By Thursday night, all five teenagers had been released.
Lawyers for two of the students denied that their clients hit McElree. Witnesses have said McElree didn’t identify himself as the police chief before engaging with the teenagers.
Anger over district’s handling of protest
Much of the attention in the aftermath of the incident has focused on McElree, but on Thursday, residents voiced their frustrations with the school district.
“How does an administrator …not know these kids were going to do something?” said Wes Comes, who also questioned why the district didn’t hold the protest on its own property. “We missed the whole ball. We whiffed.”
A number of speakers, Comes included, questioned what the threat was that prompted the district to try to cancel the protest — saying there had been a lack of transparency with the community.
Some faulted the district for not making any statement of support for the arrested students, who were in custody for days.
“It seems the school is wiping its hands of the kids who were injured and arrested,” said Lisen Cummings.
Laura Foster, an organizer with the liberal Upper Bucks United group, said the district’s communications were “tone deaf.”
“Thanking the students for staying in school while ignoring your students who were out there getting brutally attacked by the police …everyone on this board should have been like, what are we doing?” Foster said.
The meeting was at times tense, with arguments breaking out as speakers took their turns at the podium to share their perspectives. A Pennsylvania State Police trooper stationed at the meeting defused an argument between two women in the lobby.
The board’s president, David O’Donnell, told the crowd that “the emotions up here are just as raw as they are out there.”
“No one up here would celebrate violence against children,” O’Donnell said. “I acknowledge that we probably have a lot to learn from how we handled the situation.”
From left, school board member Todd Hippauf and board president David O’Donnell at the Quakertown school board meeting Thursday.
Pre-meeting gathering
Outside the school before the meeting, a few dozen people attended agathering organized by Upper Bucks United. Stickers reading “support Q5” and “Apoya Los Q5” — referring in English and Spanish to the five teens who spent several nights in jail — were available at folding tables next to a gas burner providing hot chocolate to the protesters.
A parent holds a sign outside the Quakertown School Board Meeting Thursday.
“The First Amendment is a right, not a privilege,” read one of the signs protesters carried.
In the crowd, Wayne Codner — the mayor of neighboring Richlandtown Borough, which is in the Quakertown CommunitySchool District — shook hands with friends in the Democrat-aligned Upper Bucks group.
“I’m a Black, first-generation immigrant from Jamaica in a town that is 95% white — and I’m mayor,” Codner said. “And this doesn’t represent us,” he said of the Friday incident.
Numerous speakers inside the boardroom tied the incident to a broader climate of intolerance and racism in the Quakertown community.
Ashley Crowell, a “single parent and gender queer individual” with kids in the district, told the board that shehad been threatened by men in loud pickup trucks while running in her neighborhood, “because I look offensively masculine” based on her haircut.
Crowell said she believed the escalation during the walkout “was brought about by similar behaviors, also by men in loud trucks — maybe even the same people that made the threats which triggered your decision to cancel the walkout.”
“Our students spoke up …and that resulted in mismanagement of the situation by white men, with ignorance of other people’s lived experiences with discrimination,” Crowell said.
One student grew teary as she spoke about fears that “something would happen to my family” while she was at school, and how “35 students were fighting for my rights.”
After the comments, one board member, Chris Spear, said the board had “heard a lot of accusations of racism” and suggested the district should bring in a consultant, as he said it had in the past.
Spear also noted the criticisms that “this was predictable.”
“As much as the students are going to learn something, the adults are going to learn something as well,” Spear said.
Parents hold signs before the start of the Quakertown School Board Meeting.
Despite the league’s attempt to keep the annual NFL Players Association’s 2026 report card out of the public eye, ESPN reported its results on Thursday night. The Eagles reportedly finished 20th — an improvement from 22nd a year ago — in the annual poll.
The Eagles’ grades with each category range from glowing — especially surrounding the coaching staff — to glaring.
Nick Sirianni passed with flying colors. The Eagles head coach received an A grade, an improvement over his A- finish in 2025. Sirianni was one of 11 coaches who earned an A or higher. Only two head coaches — Sean McVay of the Los Angeles Rams and Dan Quinn of the Washington Commanders — earned A+ grades.
Sirianni wasn’t the only Eagles coach who garnered a strong grade. Vic Fangio was one of three defensive coordinators to receive an A+, joining Jesse Minter of the Los Angeles Chargers (now the head coach of the Baltimore Ravens) and Aden Durde of the Seattle Seahawks.
Eagles players praised coach Nick Sirianni in the NFLPA player survey.
Special teams coordinator Michael Clay and the training staff both earned As. The strength coaches and position coaches both received A- grades.
Former offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo was awarded a C+, the lowest grade of the coaching staff.
For a second straight year, owner Jeffrey Lurie earned a B grade. General manager Howie Roseman took home a B, too.
The Eagles’ worst grades didn’t have to do with the coaching staff or the front office. Just like last year, the team was awarded an F in team travel. In the 2025 survey, players noted that they should get first-class seats on team flights, instead of the coaching staff.
A team source told The Inquirer the organization held a meeting with the Eagles leadership council last offseason to address the concerns detailed in the 2025 NFLPA report card and determine improvements. The only concern the organization had heard related to team travel is that the whole team does not have first-class, lie-flat seats for every road game.
The team introduced first-class seating for starters on flights over three hours, but the Eagles only played one of those long-distance games this past season. For flights of less than three hours, about 28 players have an entire three-seat row to themselves.
The New England Patriots, the Pittsburgh Steelers, and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers were also given failing grades in team travel.
The Eagles locker room was rated a D, down from a D+ in 2025. Last year, players expressed a concern about the lack of space in the locker room at the practice facility, which is now called the Jefferson Health Training Complex.
The players gave the Eagles a C+ for “treatment of families,” a minor improvement over last year’s C- grade. A team source said that they took feedback and introduced a postgame space for players and their friends and family that was not open to season ticket holders.
Additionally, Lincoln Financial Field earned an A, as did the food and dining areas at the training facility. The Eagles received an A- for their weight room, a B+ for their nutritionist/dietician, and a B- for their training room.
A team source told The Inquirer the Eagles are in the midst of a multi-million-dollar facility upgrade driven by the acquisition of the former Rothman Orthopaedics space, which includes an overhaul to the training and recovery areas, including upgraded massage rooms, spaces dedicated to mental health, sleep, and total body wellness.
According to ESPN, the survey was conducted from Nov. 2 to Dec. 11. The report cards were based on responses from 1,759 players, each of which were on a 2025 roster during the time of the survey.
The NFLPA has been conducting anonymous player surveys since 2023. Before this year, they were distributed for public consumption. However, earlier this month, the NFL won a grievance against the NFLPA that argued the report cards were a violation of the collective bargaining agreement.
The NFLPA responded by releasing a statement saying it would continue to conduct the surveys regardless of the ban on public distribution.
Cavan Sullivan scored twice for the Union in the team’s 7-0 rout of Defence Force F.C. at Subaru Park on Thursday night, netting his first in the 76th minute and a second in the 88th.
Despite being the club’s most talked about prospect, Sullivan, the team’s 16-year old midfielder who will join Manchester City at the end of 2027, had been scoreless for the Union in 19 appearances leading up to Thursday night’s match.
But his two goals, which were also coupled with two assists, found him become the youngest goalscorer in Champions Cup history.
Former Penn product Stas Korzeniowski also scored twice in the win, while Geiner Martínez, Jovan Lukić, and Ben Bender each scored once for the Union.
The first series in the Concacaf Champion Cup saw the Union outscore Defence Force, 12-0, over two legs. Now, with their first round series win, the Union advance to face Liga MX giant Club América in the round of 16.
Martínez opens the floodgates
Geiner Martínez opened the scoring with a goal in the seventh minute. It was his first goal for the club, which signed the centerback in the offseason.
Jovan Lukić scored a second from the penalty spot in the 10th. Jeremy Rafanello earned the penalty after being brought down in the 18-yard box, and Lukić converted the kick past Defence Force goalkeeper Isaiah Williams.
Thursday night was the first appearance of the season for Lukić, who missed the Union’s previous two games with a minor injury.
Korzeniowski added a third in the 12th minute, his first for the Union’s first team since the club selected the former Quakers striker in the 2024 MLS SuperDraft.
Cavan Sullivan was credited with an assist on the goal after sending Korzeniowski past Defence Force’s back line. Sullivan’s flick was the final pass of a five-pass combination, one that took the Union into halftime up, 3-0. Sal Olivas and Bender entered the game as second half substitutes, replacing Lukić and Olwethu Makhanya.
Bender scored in the 53rd minute, giving Sullivan earning another assist. Sullivan played a lofted ball to Bender in the 18-yard box that Bender collected before sending a strike into the back of the net.
Malik Jakupovic made his Union debut in the 59th minute, coming off the bench to replace Korzeniowski. The 16-year old forward is a product of the Union’s academy who has played for the U.S.’s under-17 youth national team.
Jesús Bueno replaced Alejandro Bedoya in the 75th minute, which stood as the final substitution of the night for the Union. And then it was Sullivan’s night to ice the cake.
“It was a good statement from us as a club,” Union manager Bradley Carnell said. “Just to be able to play all the young guys and get rewarded, and guys getting goals and contributions.”
Up next…
After a 1-0 loss at D.C. United last weekend, the Union will host New York City FC in their first home match of the Major League Soccer season on Sunday (4:30 p.m., Apple TV).
New York (0-0-1, 1 point) knocked the Union out of the playoffs last season with a 1-0 victory in the Eastern Conference semifinals.
“Everybody wants to be part of Sunday,” Carnell said. “Everyone wants to play and put off a good performance. It’s a derby. We know what it’s all about.”
The Union’s next Champions Cup match will be against Liga MX giant Club América at Subaru Park on March 10. The away leg of the two-game series is scheduled for March 18 at famed Estadio Azteca in Mexico City.
Franklin Mall will reopen Friday after being temporarily shut down since a small fire last weekend at the once-popular Northeast Philadelphia retail destination, property management said Thursday.
The mall has been closed since a fire on Saturdaywithin a single tenant space, management said. The city Department of Licenses and Inspections “issued a temporary closure notice while required inspections are completed to ensure building safety and building structural integrity.”
Management said on Thursday that “following this due diligence Franklin Mall has officially been granted permission to reopen” from L&I.
Franklin Mall will be open for normal business hours, but the management requested “patience with the property’s appearance while teams are actively making repairs to the affected areas within the mall while preserving a safe environment for shoppers.”
The Inquirer reported in early December that Franklin Mall, which many locals still call Franklin Mills, was listed for sale and that the 36-year-old, 1.8-million-square-foot facility at Knights and Woodhaven Roads could be repurposed or demolished for non-retail uses.
The mall opened in 1989 to great fanfare as the largest outlet mall ever, with a zigzag-shaped, one-story-tall concourse that stretched for 1.2 miles.
Franklin Mills once attracted 20 million visitors annually, but now the current version of the mall has less than a third of that traffic.
Under new ownership, it was renamed Philadelphia Mills, and most recently it has been called Franklin Mall, though a main entrance sign still says Philadelphia Mills.
New Jersey joined the growing list of states sued by the Department of Justice after refusing to share personal information of voters with President Donald Trump’s administration because of privacy concerns.
The Justice Department sued New Jersey on Thursday alongside Utah, Oklahoma, Kentucky, and West Virginia as it escalates its effort to obtain voter data. It previously sued Washington, D.C., and 24 other states, including Pennsylvania.
The suits follow Trump’s rhetoric in recent weeks about the need to “nationalize elections.” During his State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress this week, the president repeated the unsubstantiated allegation that “cheating is rampant in our elections.”
The lawsuit in the New Jersey District Court accuses Dale Caldwell, who is serving as the Garden State’s lieutenant governor and secretary of state, of violating Title III of the Civil Rights Act of 1960 by refusing to hand over the list of the state’s registered voters to U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi.
“Accurate, well-maintained voter rolls are a requisite for the election integrity that the American people deserve,” Bondi said in a statement. “This latest series of litigation underscores that This Department of Justice is fulfilling its duty to ensure transparency, voter roll maintenance, and secure elections across the country.”
Caldwell’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Acting New Jersey Attorney General Jennifer Davenport said the state would defend against the lawsuit in court.
“As several courts have already held, the Department of Justice’s request for voters’ personal information, including driver’s license numbers and Social Security numbers, is baseless,” Davenport’s statement said. “We are committed to protecting the privacy of ours state’s residents.”
Bondi sent a letter to Caldwell on July 15 asking for the statewide voter registration list, the suit says. The letter cited alleged discrepancies in New Jersey’s voting registration statistics compared to national averages. For example, it says the state removes fewer duplicates from its voter rolls.
A month later, the suit says, Bondi sent another letter asking for the full list including each voter’s full name, date of birth, address, and driver’s license or last four digits of their Social Security number.
In the months following the August letter, former state Attorney General Matthew Platkin declined to share the information because of privacy concerns — a reason Pennsylvania officials have also cited.
After the administration of Gov. Mikie Sherrill took office in January, DOJ sent a “courtesy email” to check if the state’s position on sharing the records has changed. But it didn’t.
The suit is asking a federal judge to find that Caldwell violated federal law by refusing to share the records and order the state to pass over the information.
Schmidt called the department’s request “unprecedented and unlawful” and promised to “vigorously fight the federal government’s overreach in court.”
“I have an obligation to protect the personal information that Pennsylvania voters entrust us with, and I take that obligation extremely seriously,” Schmidt said in a September statement.
The voter roll lawsuit is the second filed by the Justice Department against New Jersey this week. Bondi sued Sherrill on Tuesday over a Feb. 11 executive order that prohibits state agencies to allow federal immigration agents from entering state property for enforcement actions without a warrant.
The lawsuit said the executive order would disrupt the ability of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to capture “dangerous criminals” who are in prisons or courthouses controlled by the state.
Davenport said in a Tuesday statement that the state would continue to ensure the safety of the immigrant communities.
“Instead of working with us to promote public safety and protect our state’s residents, the Trump administration is wasting our resources on a pointless legal challenge,” Davenport’s statement said.
