Can Philly Save the Dad Vail?
Mayor, others fighting to keep Dad Vail, "where it belongs"
NBCPhiladelphia - Kristen Welker, Ray Cordero
Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutters wants to do whatever it takes to get the Dad Vail back on the Schuylkill River.
It looked like the Dad Vail Regatta was set to row its way up to Rumson, N.J. next year but that doesn’t mean Philly is ready to let it go.
Mayor Michael Nutter and U.S. Rep. Bob Brady plan to sit down with race officials Thursday in a hope to keep the Dad Vail on the Schuylkill River in 2010, the mayor's office confirmed with NBC Philadelphia Wednesday afternoon.
“There’s no better place and it’s the proper place to do such an event,” said Nutter.
The mayor said he's not sure why Dad Vail reps didn’t approach the city about their economic concerns. The city has worked around money and sponsorship concerns with other groups to ensure that they could still be held in Philadelphia.
“It’s an unfortunate circumstance,” Nutter said.
Brady was asking Nutter to keep the original May weekend slated for the college regatta be kept open, said Philly.com.
At worst, Nutter seemed to want to assure that the Dad Vail would come back to Philly in 2011.
The popular race rowed its way down the Schuylkill River for the past 56 years. Could the sculls be in the water again this May? Stay tuned.
Posted Wednesday, Dec 16, 2009 - 4:16 PM EST
