April 23, 2018
Thom Carroll/PhillyVoice
The Philadelphia Eagles parade along the Benjamin Franklin Parkway at 20th Street during the Super Bowl championship parade, Thursday, Feb. 8, 2018.
OK, Philly. Time to put your money where your mouth is.
Last Friday, Mayor Jim Kenney’s office announced the Eagles’ Super Bowl parade cost $2.27 million in total. So, it’s time to pay up.
The tab includes $2 million in overtime for city officials — most notably police officers who worked overtime — and the rest will go to damages incurred during the festivities. (What damages, you say?)
The Eagles reportedly will cover the $273,000 in damages, leaving it up to taxpayers to cover $500,000. The city will pick up the $1.5 million difference.
“We thank the Eagles for their contribution to cover property damages on top of everything else they did to make the parade and ceremony so special,” Mayor Kenney said. “We’d also like to thank the Commonwealth for helping defray the security costs to help ensure that this was a joyous day for residents throughout Philadelphia and the region.”
Kenney added that the funds brought in from the playoff home games at the Linc totaled $2.3 million, and would help offset the bill on the parade. He called the Super Bowl celebration a “nearly flawless celebration,” regardless of the flack the city garnered nationwide for living up to its rowdy, good-for-nothing, underdog reputation.
The other Philadelphia event that compares to the revelry was the 2008 Phillies World Series parade, which cost taxpayers more than $1 million, according to the Inquirer.
“We’re very proud of the team,” Kenney said in a statement, “and its fans made Philadelphia shine on the day of the parade.”
