Quote:
Originally Posted by McBane
These buildings are definitely handsome and obviously old. But it appears they were never considered historic on their own merits until the demolition permit was obtained. Not a fan of this approach.
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That just means that preservation approaches need to be beefed up and much more aggressive, not that the buildings themselves were not inherently worthy of being saved.
This is exactly the kind of urban fabric that Philadelphia has to be
very careful to maintain as time and development marches on for its own competitive "sense of place" advantage.
I'll say it again and again: people don't come and grow an attachment to Philadelphia for its gleaming modernity, sexy beaches and glamourous lifestyle. They come to Philadelphia and grow to love Philadelphia for its history and intimate, human-scaled "sense of place," which is arguably unmatched at Philadelphia's scale anywhere else in the US.
That is the city's ace.
When considered in that light, well-preserved historic fabric is a massive asset and absolutely not expendable. It's literally Philadelphia's competitive advantage.