It's a cross between a Motel 6 and a working-class Philadelphia neighborhood, full of the kinds of things that Rep. Curt Weldon, R-Pa., will tell you made America great: flags hanging from every two-story, red-brick row house; classic cars parked at the curb; and a lovely view of some rusting, gray World War II destroyers. Welcome to Congressional Village, the convention home-away-from-home for a hardy group of House members staying on the grounds of the old Philadelphia Navy Yard.
The accommodations for about 100 members and their families are nothing fancy, but that's not the point, explained Weldon, who hatched the idea of using the former Navy shipyard after being asked by two members to help them find lodging close to the convention site. The property is now owned by the City of Philadelphia, which leases part of it to a private company. Members are paying for their accommodations.
"This is a family-friendly operation.... We're not serving $1,000 gourmet meals or anything-mostly hot dogs and hamburgers, and we had steak the other night," said Weldon, who represents a suburban Philadelphia district. "This is the real Philadelphia."
Rep. Richard Pombo of California, who is staying in one of the four-bedroom town houses with his wife and three children, concurred. Pombo described his family's digs as "kind of Spartan." But, he added, "what it did was, it gave us a chance to bring the kids. It gives them a safe place to stay [and] a lot of things to do while we're off at the convention."
In addition to an aboveground pool and hot tub, there are 40 mountain bikes on hand for the kids, as well as video games, racquetball and basketball courts, and a double Ferris wheel that was brought in after service at last week's White House picnic. About 100 volunteers are on hand to provide everything from check-in services and food to baby-sitting.
Despite the perks for the kids, there's no mistaking the aura of a family vacation on a budget, from the plastic patio furniture on the lawns to the netless tennis courts just up the road. Center City rises up in the background, just beyond an abandoned Mustin Air Field, where weeds now grow through cracks in the pavement. The site is directly on the flight path of Philadelphia International Airport, and between 11:30 a.m. and 1 p.m., planes take off and land about every 30 seconds.
Former Rep. Jimmy Hayes, the Democrat-turned-Republican from Louisiana, who is staying at the village with his old Capitol Hill buddies, joked, "As a Holiday Inn, it would get shut down in a second."
Still, the whole operation strikes a self-described "country boy," Rep. Robin Hayes of North Carolina, as downright "uptown." Hayes, whose rural district is also home to the Army's Fort Bragg and to Pope Air Force Base, said, "I've been in a lot, lot, lot worse than that. Heck, I'm from the country. This is de-luxe."