A Philadelphia city councilmember wants more to be done to keep residents safe from construction sites after an NBC10 Investigators report.
The NBC10 Investigators had reported on Dec. 1 that building contractors who are in the process of having their license suspended or revoked can create an “alter ego” to continue building.
On Thursday, Dec. 4, councilmembers passed a bill that would require contractors to insure the properties next to where they will be building.
One of the co-sponsors of the bill, Jeffrey Young, said that this should add some accountability to the process, but he says there is still work to do in closing the loophole.
Councilmember Young spoke about Elaine Thomas in a speech to his colleagues on Thursday.
Her home was demolished over the summer after it partially collapsed.
Philadelphia’s Department of Licenses and Inspections faulted Elegance Group for the collapse after the contractor was planning to build a home on the empty lot next to Thomas’ house.
“And now today, that same developer that destroyed her home is building under an alter ego,” Young said in the meeting.
He was citing an NBC10 Investigators report that found that the owners of Elegance Group had their license suspended under a different business name – Expert Builders – just days before Thomas’ home collapsed.
Having the same owners create or use a different company name to get a new license and keep building is sometimes referred to as an alter ego company.
The city alleges that that owners of Expert Builders and Elegance Group did just that.
Young lives and represents part of Center City and most of North Philadelphia where Thomas lived.
“My office is absolutely looking on all legislative realms to figure out how we can close this loophole,” Young said.
He suggested perhaps offering a test before contractors receive a license.
“Make sure they’re actually equipped to do the work. Make sure they actually know how to do the work that they’re set out to do,” he explained.
Philadelphia License and Inspections could stop a contractor from building by not issuing permits if a contractor has outstanding fines and violations.
Elegance Group allegedly has more than $20,000 in unpaid fines and more than 100 violations.
The bill that council passed on Thursday of adding insurance protections to property owners goes to Mayor Cherelle Parker’s desk for her signature next.
If she signs it, it would go into effect early 2026.
NBC10 has reached out to Elegance Group but we have not yet heard back.