Center City : Development News

The Delaware River Waterfront Corporation (DRWC) has been working to design and develop their namesake river's waterfront for well over two years now, although the recent afternoon of May 12 was one of the agency's most important days yet. At 2 pm that day, a press conference and ribbon-cutting ceremony featuring Mayor Nutter kicked off, and the long-awaited Race Street Pier was finally -- and officially -- opened to the public.

Located along the length of Pier 11, which sits just south of the Ben Franklin Bridge, the one-acre waterfront park was designed by James Corner Field Operations, a world class landscape architecture and urban design firm that was also responsible for the stunning High Line park in New York City.

As the DRWC's Master Planning Manager, Sarah Thorp, is quick to point out, "[The Race Street Pier was] designed to be a very spectacular place, both during the day and at night." The park, in fact, has its own extensive lighting system embedded in the pavement. The transformation in the park from daytime to nighttime, Thorp says, is simply spectacular.

Of course, The Race Street Pier is only one small example of what DRWC has in store for the city. The organization's currently-in-progress master plan, which will reveal all the upcoming waterfront development being planned between Oregon Avenue in South Philly and Allegheny Avenue in the north, will be unveiled on June 13. (Watch this space for more information.)

In the meantime, though, Thorp is encouraging everyone to take full advantage of the city's newest waterfront treasure. "The (designers) have done an amazing job creating a really different kind of place for Philadelphians," she says. "This is a really different park -- it's unlike any other in the city."

For more information about the park and its upcoming events, click here.

Source: Sarah Thorp, DRWC
Writer: Dan Eldridge

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When Microsoft's $63 million School of the Future opened in Philadelphia's Fairmount Park in September 2006, expectations among area parents--some of whom nearly battled in order to secure a spot for their children--couldn't have possibly been higher. But by the time that first class of students was preparing to graduate, attitudes surrounding the school--which didn't require textbooks, and where many of the core subjects required for university admission weren't offered--had shifted considerably.

Today, many of the school's educational kinks have been duly worked out. But if such a project was proposed within the city today--that is, if a public development project was proposed to take place within Philadelphia's public park land--the eventual outcome would almost certainly be different. That's because on April 15, Mayor Michael Nutter signed an ordinance to amend the approval process that takes place when the city's public park land is transferred to some sort of non-park use, as was the case with the Microsoft high school.

"It's an effort that's really been spearheaded by the Parks and Recreation Commission," explains Patrick Morgan, who works underneath Commissioner Mike DiBerardinis. "What it does," he says, "is it establishes a process that's predictable and transparent for all the parties: for City Council, for citizens, and for the (Parks and Recreation) Commission."

And while there aren't currently any plans in place to change usage of city parkland, this new ordinance, which is set to take effect with the change of the fiscal year (July 1), will set in motion that new process of transparency.

"Right now, all (city) parkland is being used for its intended purpose," says Morgan. "But if someone proposes changing the use for whatever reason, then this process kicks in."

Source: Patrick Morgan, Department of Parks and Recreation
Writer: Dan Eldridge

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The initial draft version of Philadelphia2035, the prodigious, 216-page guide to the next 25 years of the city's physical development, was first made available to the public (as a downloadable PDF) back in mid-February. But for four hours throughout the afternoon of March 23, members of the Philadelphia City Planning Commission hosted an informal gathering at the Center for Architecture, where physical copies of the draft were presented to the public. More than 100 Philadelphians stopped by during the course of the day.

The purpose of the open house, according to the PCPC's Alan Urek, who acted as one of the event's hosts, was to put the draft recommendations of the plan's citywide component on exhibit for literally anyone who was interested in reviewing it, or leaving comments of their own. Five different stations, each displaying a blown-up portion of the plan, were arranged in a semi-circle in a small room behind the AIA Bookstore. And next to each station was a large flipchart, upon which visitors were encouraged to comment.

"Philadelphia is very friendly to senior citizens," read one such comment. "We choose to live here because of the walkability and activity occurring in metro-center."

"Survival of the fittest," read another note. "Deannex [the Northeast]."

"Did we reach all corners of Philadelphia (during the open house)?" Urek asks. "Probably not. But I was quite encouraged that of the people that came, virtually everyone I talked to had a positive perspective [of the plan]."

Urek also emphasized that for approximately one more week, even those when didn't attend are welcome to post comments and suggestions online. All of those comments, Urek says, will be seriously considered before the revised draft is presented to the City Planning commission in about three weeks. The plan's citywide version will then be finalized in May, and a release party will be held in early June.

Source: Alan Urek, Philadelphia City Planning Commission
Writer: Dan Eldridge

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Nearly six months have passed since we last reported on 1200 Bank, the decidedly swish billiards club being designed by DAS Architects, and which local developer Paul Giegerich plans to construct inside the once-grand Beneficial Bank building at 1200 Chestnut Street, the exterior of which has "become kind of a prime attraction for homeless people," as architect David Schultz puts it.

In the interim, residents of a condominium building located across the street objected to the club's plans to add a rooftop bar, citing the potential for excess noise. But last week, the project went before the City Council's Rules Committee and passed; it was also unanimously approved by the Historical Commission and the Planning Commission. That may have had something to do with the fact that the construction of the 1200 Bank project, according to Schultz, won't require any serious alterations to the historic building, which was designed by the noted Philadelphia architect Horace Trumbauer. "We're not going to alter the space," Schultz explains. "We're going to embellish the space."

Of course, 1200 Bank will involve some modern-day concessions, including an elevator, a minimalist staircase, and the aforementioned rooftop bar, which will be glass-enclosed and sporting a retractable roof. "If you can imagine what a turn-of-the-century billiards club might look like," says Schultz, "that's what we'd like to achieve. The branding and imagery of the project is high-end, old world luxury."

Currently, 1200 Bank's price tag is somewhere around the $6 million mark. And assuming the project passes its final City Council vote, Schultz estimates that the club's doors could open in as little as 12 to 16 months after that.

"This is not the concept that some people have of a pool hall," Schultz adds. "Nothing like this exists in Philadelphia now, and I don't even know if there's anything in the country that's quite like this."

Source: David Schultz, DAS Architects
Writer: Dan Eldridge

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The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency launched its hugely popular Energy Star program back in 1992, but during its first few years, the main purpose was simply to promote consumer products that had high levels of energy efficiency, and low levels of greenhouse gas emissions. In fact, when the voluntary labeling program first began, computers were the only products that could earn the prestigious logo. And yet in 1999, the Energy Star label was made available to any commercial building that could meet its stringent environmental requirements. Indeed, only the top 25 percent of the nation's energy efficient structures receive the label.

The good news locally is that the Greater Philadelphia area seems to have embraced the program significantly. On March 15, the EPA announced that because the region added so many energy efficient buildings in 2010 - many of them schools - its national ranking has risen to 14th in the nation, up from its 2009 ranking of 24th.

Indeed, the list of Energy Star-certified buildings in the area stretches to 130, and many of the names are surprisingly familiar: There's the Aramark Tower, for instance, and the Wanamaker Building, and dozens of elementary schools. But perhaps one of the most impressive examples locally is the SEPTA building, where lighting sensors and window film were added in an effort to become certified.

According to the EPA's Emily Linn, this is a hugely significant achievement for the region, partly due to the fact that Energy Star-certified buildings typically use 35 percent less energy, and emit 35 percent less carbon dioxide, than non-certified buildings.

"The efforts of the Mayor's Office of Sustainability certainly helped a lot," she says, referring to the city's newly improved rating. Through the process of being certified, "I think (companies are) realizing they can save a lot of money," she adds. "Honestly, I think the program sells itself."

Source: Bonnie Smith and Emily Linn, EPA Mid-Atlantic Regional Office
Writer: Dan Eldridge

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If you've ever spent time wandering through the stacks at the Free Library of Philadelphia's Central branch, you'll certainly be forgiven for wondering why on earth the library is currently in the midst of a $175 million expansion and renovation project. The Central branch, after all, is a stunning structure to the naked eye.

But talk to Siobhan Reardon, the library's president and director, and you'll learn that expansion plans for the 280,000 square-foot building go all the way back to the 1960s. That expansion never happened, of course. And when the library considered expansion again in the 1990s, those plans fell through as well. The building is now 80 years old, and as Reardon says, "It's suffering the effects of never having been upgraded or restored in any way, shape or form."

That's all about to change, however. Scaffolding recently went up at the Central branch, and over the next few years, the building will be undergoing tremendous change. The main goal of the renovation, Reardon says, is to make a greater portion of the library more accessible to the general public. Currently, a full two-thirds of the building is accessible only by staff members. 

During the renovation, which is tentatively scheduled for completion in 2015, stacks will be relocated and administrative offices will be moved. The building's top level will be transformed into what Reardon is calling an information commons - a creative space where technology training will take place. Meanwhile, an 80,000 square-foot addition to the Central branch will house a new auditorium, a new children's library, and a teen center.

"The goal now is to rearrange the collections in a way that makes more sense to the public," Reardon adds. "We need to deal with the fact that in this building, we have not been serving our public very well at all."

Source: Siobhan A. Reardon, Free Library of Philadelphia
Writer: Dan Eldridge

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It's hard to believe that the $787 million expansion of Center City's Pennsylvania Convention Center has only been moving forward for a little over three years now. But on March 4, one of modern-day Philadelphia's most monumental economic growth facilitators will officially open for business with a ribbon-cutting ceremony. And on March 9, when the International Flower Show kicks off inside the Convention Center's existing building, the 3,000 attendees of the NASPA convention will be simultaneously holding court inside the building's newly expanded section.

In other words, two events that will almost certainly encourage serious economic activity here will be taking place inside the Convention Center at the same time next week. The expansion, it's worth noting, has increased the size of the PCC by 62 percent; it now clocks in at a jaw-dropping 1 million square feet, and it's expected to have over $140 million in economic impact annually.  

After all, as Jack Ferguson, CEO of the Philadelphia Convention and Visitors Bureau, says, "The Pennsylvania Convention Center is the hospitality economic engine that drives Philadelphia. Now with this world-class venue, an expanded center is generating a greater buzz about Philadelphia as a destination throughout the nation. This will attract more events, meetings, conventions, tradeshows and businesses to want to invest here."

As Ferguson rightly points out, an economic upper-hand isn't the only important aspect of the expansion story; there are also the substantial bragging rights. The new center, for instance, will be home to the largest ballroom in the Northeast corridor (55,400 square feet), as well as 528,000 square feet of contiguous exhibition space. Of course, words alone can't really do justice to the new Broad Street Atrium, or the multi-story glass entrance that will greet visitors at the building's Broad Street entrance. Click here and here to experience them yourself, online. 

Source: Liz Sullivan, Philadelphia Convention & Visitors Bureau
Writer: Dan Eldridge

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Probably the most surprising aspect of Center City's Forum Theater, the notorious porn cinema that has resided at the corner of 22nd and Market streets since the mid-1970s, is that it still exists. Thanks in large part to the widespread availability of internet porn, blue movie houses across the county have been closing their doors at a rapid clip over the past decade.

And yet the Forum has lately found itself the subject of local media attention for a different reason altogether: It's in the midst of an expansion project that would add live nude dancers and private booths to a new second floor. And while that project was approved by the city's Zoning Board of Adjustment last year, the situation got a bit more complicated when a group known as the Center City Residents Association chose to appeal the decision to the Commonwealth Court earlier this month.

According to Ronald Patterson, however, an attorney for the Forum's owners (which include the controversial Anthony Trombetta), the situation is actually much simpler--and nowhere near as malicious--as the CCRA seems to assume. According to Patterson, the Forum's owners, who also operate Les Girls, a neighboring strip club at 2132 Market Street, simply want to relocate that club's operations into the Forum. To accommodate Les Girls, the Forum would transform what is currently a mezzanine level into a proper second floor, with no changes to the building's exterior. Les Girls could then become a mixed-use development, or possibly sold.

"I didn't really want to be the guy who would put a (new) adult use into the neighborhood," says Patterson. "But this is a good thing, I think, going from two (adult uses) to one."

Now that the ZBA's decision has been appealed, "I guess we just wait for two or three months until they make a decision," Patterson says.

Source: Ronald Patterson, Klehr Harrison Harvey Branzburg LLP
Writer: Dan Eldridge

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When the planners of Penn Praxis designed the Civic Vision for the Central Delaware, they envisioned a bustling commercial waterfront loaded with restaurants, shopping, and, above all, green space. As development plans have begun, projects like the Race Street Pier and Pier 53 have brought parks to areas previously disconnected from green space, raising property values and public health in the process. Penn Praxis returns this week with its latest plan, Green 2015, an action plan designed to add 500 acres of open space to Philadelphia by 2015.

Green 2015 is a response to the Greenworks Sustainability Plan, issued by the Nutter Administration, to add 500 acres to the equity of the city, giving special focus to those areas without proper park access. Penn Praxis unveils this plan at the today's Urban Sustainability Forum at the Academy of Natural Sciences.

"In the report, we try to address people who might ask why we would invest in something like this during such tough economic times," says Penn Praxis Executive Director Harris Steinberg. "How do we serve those areas who are underserved? By adding those economic as well as social, environmental and public health benefits of green space."

Even with these considerations, cost is a concern. So the plan focuses first on using city-owned land to reduce acquisition costs, focusing on school yards, rec centers and vacant lands in under-greened neighborhoods, giving planners more than 1,000 acres to work with. The plan also examines storm water management goals set forth by the EPA, adding funding to these initiatives. Mayor Nutter and Parks and Recreation Commissioner Michael DiBerardinis will be on hand Tuesday to mark the official start of this action plan.

"There is a lot of collaboration across many different agencies, which I think bodes very well," says Steinberg. "It is always hard during tough economic times because you have to strike a balance between existing resources and getting the most out of your work but we expect a positive response overall."

Source: Harris Steinberg, Penn Praxis
Writer: John Steele

When it comes to trees, the folks at Center City District don't mess around. The group maintains about 750 street trees and, with their redesign of Dilworth Plaza set to get rolling after the first of the year, that number is about to get a whole lot bigger. But that hasn't slowed them down one bit. This week, the group announced the first event in the Plant! Philadelphia series, a planting initiative designed to increase green space and involve Philadelphians in creating it.

On Thursday, Dec. 2, a group of students from Abraham Lincoln Academy's Environmental Academy program met with CCD officials to help plant two new trees. The first set down in front of Thomas Jefferson's famous Graff House, where he wrote the Declaration of Independence. The other went on a treeless block at 6th and Chestnut. Along the way, the students learned some history of the area as well as the value of tree planting.

"There can never be enough trees because they do so much for our urban environment," says CCD VP of Planning Nancy Goldenberg. "But beyond what private developers do, this program is specifically for street trees. Those are something that every tourist, every visitor, every resident, every employee benefits from."

The program came through a donation from the Dow Chemical Company, helping CCD buy, plant and maintain the two young Hackberry trees. Goldenberg hopes other businesses follow suit to help improve on CCD's current planting schedule and get the city to more healthy green levels.

"We plant about 60 new trees each year because of drought or they get hit by trucks or whatever," says CCD VP of Planning Nancy Goldenberg. "Plant! Philadelphia is an effort to involve Philadelphia people and businesses in that effort and help the city reach its goal of planting 300,000 trees by 2015."

Source: Nancy Goldenberg, Center City District
Writer: John Steele

While the Philadelphia City Planning Commission (PCPC) remains hard at work on the Philadelphia 2035 plan--a strategic, long-term document focused on creating a stronger future for Philadelphia's transit and development--another group of planners have gotten in on the act. What these planners lack in knowledge, they more than make up for in experience living in Philadelphia and observing the functionality of city design and services.

These concerned community members are part of a pilot program called the Citizen's Planning Institute (CPI), an educational program working to empower citizens to make their voices heard in the planning process. Funded by the William Penn Foundation, CPI offers basic lessons in everything from land use to zoning issues, placing extra emphasis on under-represented communities around Philadelphia, in the hopes of creating more dynamic, city-wide development.

"We targeted specifically neighborhoods not as experienced with the process to be more active and effective with a focus on a "planning 101 approach," says CPI Director Donna Carney. "So they could see that they have the power to change their neighborhoods through this process."

The pilot program attracted 100 applicants, of which 30 were chosen to represent their neighborhoods. The resulting panel contained over 850 years of Philadelphia residency and helped shape a planned expansion to the program in 2011. The current students "graduate" when the courses conclude on Dec. 6 but plans are already in the works to add elective topics such as urban design, historic preservation, marketing and finance.

"As we expand on the program going forward, a whole variety of outreach activities could be handled by the Citizen's Planning Institute in the future," says PCPC Director of Planning and Policy Alan Urek.  "We would look to it to help inform some of the recommendations on the comprehensive plan."

Source: Donna Carney, Citizen's Planning Institute
Writer: John Steele

It may seem ironic for a brand like Mitchell and Ness to relocate its flagship store at 1318 Chestnut Street to a more modern location. After all, the brand is rooted in nostalgia, offering fans all the old-school apparel money can buy, celebrating the history of teams both local and national. But sure enough, M&N announced that they will be opening a new store at 1201 Chestnut Street this week, in time for the holidays. The original flagship store will remain open through the first of the year as well. President Sean McKinney believes that, while they are not moving far, the new store will signal a "rebirth for the brand."

"Our products are great but when you go into our current location, the layout and the customer experience is really not that much different than most sporting goods stores out there, and I think it does our product a disservice," says Mitchell and Ness president Sean McKinney. "In the new space, you can understand the relationship between an old, wool baseball jersey hanging in an old wooden locker. The product will be displayed and showcased much better, connecting the Mitchell and Ness history with sports history and our vintage products."

Artistically designed with wood accents and exposed brick, 1201 Chestnut will feature antique-style clubhouse lockers as display cases and, on the second floor, features a repurposed basketball court. But McKinney assures us that they have not lost nostalgia completely. The building was once a bank, complete with regal latticework in the ceilings and polished railings that fit nicely in the refurbished Mitchell and Ness. McKinney believes the combination of history and modernity is what Mitchell and Ness is all about.

"With our brand being around since 1904, we definitely wanted a building with some history to it," says McKinney. "A lot of the architecture and the character of the building is going to remain. We have refurbished in some cases but we loved the history that the building had."

Source: Sean McKinney, Mitchell and Ness
Writer: John Steele

While often seen as intractable bureaucracy, zoning matters. And it isn't just city officials who think so. When the issue of creating a more accessible zoning code went to a vote in 2008, it received nearly unanimous support. Since you can't build so much as a doghouse in Philadelphia without examining the zoning code, the Zoning Code Commission created a list of criteria that even the least savvy builder could sift through, holding numerous public meetings and taking suggestions online for how to make things clearer. Now, with the plan entering its final draft stage, the ZCC is making one final call for suggestions, notes and edits before the code goes before the City Council in December.

"We have changed the structure so it is much more apparent what is located where, including maps and charts and graphic illustrations throughout the code," says Zoning Code Commission Executive Director Eva Gladstein. "We have heard from so many citizens. We heard from concerned parents worrying about daycare standards. We have heard from a number of architects who felt that the original design standards were too prescriptive. There are so many examples."

Over the last two years, the Zoning Code Commission has attempted to explain the importance of zoning with ZoningMatters.org, the online home of the new zoning code where citizens have been making suggestions and helping shape the new code. The ZCC will continue to accept suggestions through November 12 with the hopes of having a new code in place before the first of the year.

"Our zoning code last had a comprehensive update in the early 1960's so the world has changed drastically since that time," says Gladstein. "What kind of uses could be next to you or down the street? Where can you put a pizza shop or a theater? Where can offices or manufacturing be located? It affects your front yard, your backyard and where you live and work."

Source: Eva Gladstein, Zoning Code Commission
Writer: John Steele

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Anyone who has ever braved the long walk underground from City Hall to the transit lines has entered a concrete expanse known for low lighting and poor signage. So despite early skepticism, when local residents and business owners saw Center City District's plan to redesign Dilworth Plaza--the ledges, pavers and stairwells to the north and west of City Hall--at a community meeting in September, 2009, trepidation turned to excitement. Earlier this month, Rep. Chaka Fattah announced $15 million in federal TIGER grant funding would go towards the ambitious, $50 million project.

"Currently, Dilworth Plaza is a rabbit hole of underground corridors and this project is one that it is sitting on top of the very centerpoint where all transit in the region comes together so we need new entrances, alerting people where to go," says CCD executive director Paul Levy. "At the surface level, it has been a hodgepodge of different elevations, walls that don't allow clear lines of sight so we will be adding a large lawn to the south with generous landscaping around it to create a park environment."

Along with the lawn, glass-enclosed subway entrances and digital signage, the new Dilworth Plaza will feature a large fountain that will double as an ice rink in the winter, a cafe, and seating areas to accommodate concerts and events. With funding in place, construction is set to begin immediately to coincide with a $200 million SEPTA renovation, and will be complete by 2013.

"This will be a park, it will be a great place to gather to appreciate City Hall but also a highly identifiable gateway to the regional transit system," says Levy. "Want to go to a baseball game? Enter here to go to South Philly. Want to go to the universities in West Philadelphia? Enter here. Want to get to the regional rail lines? Enter here. Really highlighting transit."

Source: Paul Levy, Center City District
Writer: John Steele

When adults reach a certain age, the world can feel like a pretty uninhabitable place. Long stairwells, narrow doorways and high entryways can all do a number on achy knees and hips. Philadelphia knows this all too well. The stoops and narrow rowhomes dotting Philly's most storied neighborhoods become difficult as home owners age, and a group of designers and activists think it's time for a change.

Examining this issue is the Philadelphia Corporation for Aging, a state-funded group working to make Philadelphia safer for seniors. On Friday, PCA's Visitability Committee, in partnership with the Community Design Collaborative and Philadelphia's Office of Housing and Community Development, unveiled the results of "Visitability for Urban Neighborhoods," a design charette searching for a home building model that would benefit older homeowners as they age.

"People think of senior housing as high-rises, subsidized housing," says PCA Director of Housing Susan Klein. But over 80 percent of seniors in Philadelphia own their own homes. What I see is that we keep on building places as if people are going to live 'til 40 in good health and then die."

To correct these design mistakes, the charette called for a new home model that could blend in with the other rowhomes in Philly neighborhoods but would include three visitability tenets: an entrance without a step, wider hallways and doors and a first-floor half bathroom. Subsidized housing already uses these tenets but so far, for-profit builders have been slow to come around. This charette was intended to change their minds.

"While this is very important for seniors, if you are buying a house at 40, it also affects you," says Klein. "You may want Aunt Ann to come to Thanksgiving Dinner or you want to get a stroller through or just that you want to stay in that home forever."

Source: Susan Klein, Philadelphia Corporation for Aging
Writer: John Steele