There's just something about Philadelphia. It has a hold on me -- its ancient brick sidewalks, corner delis, narrow streets and murky rivers. It's an innate attachment. Maybe even love. A native, I spent almost eight years away (in New Haven, then Nashville), and they only intensified that affection. A recent John S. and James L. Knight Foundation study, Soul of the Community, is interested in exactly those sorts of feelings -- the powerful and abiding pull residents often feel to space and community. To home. What are the things that keep Americans entrenched, engaged with their fellow citizens and dedicated to supporting local development even when life might just be easier elsewhere?

With help from Gallup, the Knight Foundation interviewed close to 43,000 people in 26 communities over three years. They organized reactions into 10 categories: aesthetics, basic services, civic involvement, economy, education, leadership, openness, safety, social capital and social offerings. It's an expansive list, and the results are mixed for Philadelphia (economy and leadership are two notable weak spots).

For now, let's focus on "aesthetics" -- one of the most interesting and amorphous categories -- defined by the study as "physical beauty and green spaces." For our fair city, this metric landed squarely in the upper right corner of the study's motion chart, meaning it's both vital for forming attachment and an area where Philadelphians feel their city succeeds.

In some ways, this should come as no surprise. The age of our hamlet alone guarantees stunning architectural and historical gems -- it's hard not to walk down some of Philadelphia's oldest (and most well-preserved) blocks without feeling a sense of wonder. The city is also home to some tremendous parks, from the rustic, transportive majesty of Fairmount Park to recent redevelopment success stories such as Franklin Square and its family-friendly transformation. This doesn't all happen by accident. History might have gifted us some aesthetic advantages, but maintaining a beautiful and livable city is an ongoing effort.

Green Team
Few organizations do more for our city's natural beauty than the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society. This spring, they launched Plant One Million, a campaign that promises to plant one million trees in the tri-state area by 2020. "Millions of trees have been lost due to development, disease and age since the 1970s, and there hasn't been a lot of effort to replace them," says PHS Public Relations Manager Alan Jaffe. "The idea is to form partnerships with all sorts of entities, from local governments to institutions, corporations, individuals, civic groups and individuals -- anybody that's interested in tree planting as part of their programming."

In terms of the Knight study's metrics, planting trees not only boosts the city's aesthetics, it also increases civic involvement, shows leadership and even makes the city safer. "There have have been all kinds of studies that prove if you beautify a neighborhood, crime goes down -- the 'Broken Windows' theory," explains Jaffe. "When you have a neighborhood riddled with vacant lots and other unpleasing elements, it creates reasons for crime and misbehavior. And with commercial corridors, trees encourage people to do more shopping. They also increase your real estate values. A study done at Penn a few years ago said that your real estate value will go up seven to ten percent just by having a tree in your front yard or on your street."

Beyond tree planting, PHS is increasingly focusing its efforts on more overtly aesthetic goals. Some credit goes to new president Drew Beicher. He came from the New York Restoration Project where he worked with prominent artists and landscape architects. "He's coming here with the idea that we want to raise the bar on the design sense of the public landscapes in Philadelphia," says Jaffe.

This year, the perennial City Hall in Bloom program -- a PHS initiative that beautifies the flower beds around City Hall -- will become City in Bloom, expanding to Love Park and Logan Circle (the program launches May 20). For the latter, they're transporting topiary animals from the Flower Show and placing them around the Swann Memorial Fountain and in the surrounding green spaces. The goal is to democratize these whimsical works of art, sharing them with the entire city. And, this June, PHS will plant a City Harvest garden on a vacant lot at 20th and Market Streets, making it the city's most prominent showcase for urban agriculture yet.

Design Within Reach
The Community Design Collaborative's whole mission revolves around the link between great design and community development. They link volunteer architects and designers with non-profits and neighborhood groups, offering pro-bono design services and consultations on projects ranging from commercial corridor redevelopment to food access to green space rejuvenation.

"We believe that design matters in every community," says Executive Director Beth Miller. "In some ways, the Collaborative is an organization that deals with aesthetics or design -- why it matters and how it impacts the way you feel. And, in some ways, as a volunteer organization, we're also trying to encourage civic involvement as well as leadership."

Miller emphasizes the tremendous innate beauty in the city but also worries that people can take it for granted.

"I think preservation is a really key element," she explains, noting the preponderance of abandoned theaters on North Broad. "It's almost like we have too much."

In the end, creative partnerships and small, thoughtful acts can have a huge impact on how our city looks, and how it feels to live here.

"This work evokes a sense of stewardship, pride and responsibility -- people working together to create something," adds Miller. "And it can happen at a low cost, low scale level, like with plantings. There's a way to present your community and your neighborhood, whether it's just your front stoop or the vacant lot down the street, that makes you feel pride."

LEE STABERT is a freelance writer living in Philadelphia. Send feedback here.

PHOTOS:

On any given street - the greenly cultivated Philadelphia aesthetic

New tree planting in South Philadelphia

Allan Jaffe, spokesperson for the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society

Tree planting site in Logan Square

This well developed green on the Ben Franklin Parkway is a desired space for tree planting sites

Opening day at Meadowbrook Farms

Young Philadelphians brighten their homes with flowers and plants

Christian Street

All photographs by MICHAEL PERSICO