PHILADELPHIA | Lowrise/General Developments Thread

[PHL10]

Originally Posted by PHLtoNYC

Philadelphia250 to issue call for community projects leading up to 2026 celebration

https://www.bizjournals.com/philadel...Pos=6#cxrecs_s

"The nonprofit coordinating Philadelphia’s plans for the semiquincentennial is issuing a public call for community projects that will pave the way to the 2026 celebration."

"Many Philadelphia attractions were legacy projects that came out of past major anniversary commemorations, DiLeo Kim said. For example, Memorial Hall, now home to the Please Touch Museum, was built as an art gallery for the 1876 Centennial, which also informed the layout of the city’s Centennial District, she noted. The Ben Franklin Bridge and FDR Park were born out of the 1926 sesquicentennial, while the 1976 bicentennial yielded projects like Robert Indiana's iconic LOVE sculpture and the African-American Museum in Philadelphia, DiLeo Kim added."

Let's do something ambitious like a classical arch or some towering monument and not some weird/modern/abstract sculpture that no one can intuitively understand.

Build something like this:



and not something like this:

[3rd&Brown]

Originally Posted by PHLtoNYC

Philadelphia250 to issue call for community projects leading up to 2026 celebration

https://www.bizjournals.com/philadel...Pos=6#cxrecs_s

"The nonprofit coordinating Philadelphia’s plans for the semiquincentennial is issuing a public call for community projects that will pave the way to the 2026 celebration."

"Many Philadelphia attractions were legacy projects that came out of past major anniversary commemorations, DiLeo Kim said. For example, Memorial Hall, now home to the Please Touch Museum, was built as an art gallery for the 1876 Centennial, which also informed the layout of the city’s Centennial District, she noted. The Ben Franklin Bridge and FDR Park were born out of the 1926 sesquicentennial, while the 1976 bicentennial yielded projects like Robert Indiana's iconic LOVE sculpture and the African-American Museum in Philadelphia, DiLeo Kim added."

How about extension of the Broad Street Line and street cleaning?

One could only hope.

[PHLtoNYC]

Originally Posted by 3rd&Brown

How about extension of the Broad Street Line and street cleaning?

One could only hope.

Or make the Broad Street median look like Park Avenue!

[skyhigh07]

Originally Posted by PHLtoNYC

Or make the Broad Street median look like Park Avenue!

Perhaps, an unpopular opinion here - Trees are nice, but I’d rather not have anything that blocks the vista of what is perhaps the most breathtaking building in the country.

[Redddog]

Originally Posted by skyhigh07

Perhaps, an unpopular opinion here - Trees are nice, but I’d rather not have anything that blocks the vista of what is perhaps the most breathtaking building in the country.

Short trees and plantings in a median. Like Park ave.

What a ridiculous swing and a miss with those lanterns or whatever they call them.

[Vince_]

Originally Posted by skyhigh07

Perhaps, an unpopular opinion here - Trees are nice, but I’d rather not have anything that blocks the vista of what is perhaps the most breathtaking building in the country.

It doesn't need to have trees that'll block the view of City Hall, just some greenery and landscaping that could make the view more atheistically pleasing during winter months. It should have pedestrian crosswalk protections from the road like NYC has.



This looks like shit.

[PhilliesPhan]

Originally Posted by PHLtoNYC

Philadelphia250 to issue call for community projects leading up to 2026 celebration

https://www.bizjournals.com/philadel...Pos=6#cxrecs_s

"The nonprofit coordinating Philadelphia’s plans for the semiquincentennial is issuing a public call for community projects that will pave the way to the 2026 celebration."

"Many Philadelphia attractions were legacy projects that came out of past major anniversary commemorations, DiLeo Kim said. For example, Memorial Hall, now home to the Please Touch Museum, was built as an art gallery for the 1876 Centennial, which also informed the layout of the city’s Centennial District, she noted. The Ben Franklin Bridge and FDR Park were born out of the 1926 sesquicentennial, while the 1976 bicentennial yielded projects like Robert Indiana's iconic LOVE sculpture and the African-American Museum in Philadelphia, DiLeo Kim added."

Here's my idea: take down those stupid ass light poles and make pedestrian-scale improvements (primarily sidewalks, lighting, and trash removal) along North Broad. I've become accustomed to the light poles over the years, but the inspiration behind the design is stupid (they were intended to be viewed from the air), they're sources of trash and graffiti buildup, too many of them don't even function properly, and they block the view of City Hall from the north.

[PHLtoNYC]

Originally Posted by Vince_

It doesn't need to have trees that'll block the view of City Hall, just some greenery and landscaping that could make the view more atheistically pleasing during winter months. It should have pedestrian crosswalk protections from the road like NYC has.



This looks like shit.

That picture made me LOL for some reason. It's reminds me of a GIF "how something looks in an ad vs. reality".

But yea, I wasn't advocating for forest like trees, but smaller trees, schrubs, flowers, etc. Park Ave has vegetation and it does not block the vista.

https://www.google.com/maps/@40.7558...7i16384!8i8192

Hell, we could keep it simple like this stretch of Michigan Avenue... https://www.google.com/maps/@41.8937...7i16384!8i8192

[ScreamShatter]

I sure I’m the minority, but those light posts on N Broad at night are fire. It gives the street so much energy and makes it seem more modernized and approachable. Sure, I don’t like that it blocks city hall. But it has value too.

[Knight Hospitaller]

So, as of today, the city dropped the vax card mandate for dining and other establishments that serve food/drink. The Wells Fargo Center and at least one museum (Museum of the American Revolution) have announced compliance. Mask mandates to follow shortly based on the new metrics which, love 'em or hate 'em, at least allow everyone an objective standard to which to refer (and debate/discuss). The hospitality industry pushed for this because the suburbs didn't have these restrictions despite having similar or worse numbers to Philadelphia. That's one thing I meant by "freer" with respect to the anecdotes that I shared. Given some nice options in the 'burbs these days, many folks I know, regardless of vax status or opinion on COVID policies, strongly preferred to not be unnecessarily "carded" or otherwise encumbered simply to take their spouse to dinner. The OpenTable numbers had shown city restaurants having more trouble filling tables than their city counterparts as a consequence. Likewise, one could enjoy cultural amenities like Longwood Gardens (indoors and out) without restrictions vs. some city institutions. The city has a lot to offer, which is why I love it, but an unlevel playing field has worked against it to some degree.

[3rd&Brown]

Originally Posted by Knight Hospitaller

So, as of today, the city dropped the vax card mandate for dining and other establishments that serve food/drink. The Wells Fargo Center and at least one museum (Museum of the American Revolution) have announced compliance. Mask mandates to follow shortly based on the new metrics which, love 'em or hate 'em, at least allow everyone an objective standard to which to refer (and debate/discuss). The hospitality industry pushed for this because the suburbs didn't have these restrictions despite having similar or worse numbers to Philadelphia. That's one thing I meant by "freer" with respect to the anecdotes that I shared. Given some nice options in the 'burbs these days, many folks I know, regardless of vax status or opinion on COVID policies, strongly preferred to not be unnecessarily "carded" or otherwise encumbered simply to take their spouse to dinner. The OpenTable numbers had shown city restaurants having more trouble filling tables than their city counterparts as a consequence. Likewise, one could enjoy cultural amenities like Longwood Gardens (indoors and out) without restrictions vs. some city institutions. The city has a lot to offer, which is why I love it, but an unlevel playing field has worked against it to some degree.

Of course, all of this is anecdotal. You're sure suburban restaurants are more full BECAUSE of the lack of "requirements". Sounds like a correlation to me. It's still plenty hard to get into the best restaurants in Philly.

Anyways. Everyone is going to find "evidence" to fit their own personal narrative. Never mind that service workers be damned for your "inconvenience".

It's neither here nor there at this point. We're at the point in this pandemic between availability of vaccines and Omicron being the low grade brush fire that it was (i.e. providing a certain level of herd immunity to the entire population) that I genuinely don't care where anyone stands at this point. If you're not vaccinated at this point and you die, oh well. You had your chance.

The thing about proof of vaccine that I liked (when it was necessary) is that we all well know the people who screamed the most about it were the "personal freedom" folks who in all likelihood said "they could decide for themselves" and refused both the vaccine and to mask up. I'm okay for using personal discretion. But you shouldn't have expected to be able to be both maskless and unvaccinated indoors in cramped city restaurants until very recently. It (was) one or the other in my book. And the only way to accept somebody for their word previously was to show the receipts.

Let's move on.

[Knight Hospitaller]

^Always said it was anecdotal (except for the Open Table data, which was reported on somewhere - but still a question of correlation or causation). More emotion than reason has been woven through these sorts of discussions, with people wed to their narratives and not open to considering multiple angles (hence the unseemly mockery by some). I'd agree with your statements if they got the science correct, but that would be a discussion for the "venting" thread or offline. The point is that Philadelphia and the Burbs sit side by side, took two different approaches, with pretty much the same results. That needs to be studied before the City implements future requirements that MAY unnecessarily disadvantage it.

[chimpskibot]

Originally Posted by Knight Hospitaller

The OpenTable numbers had shown city restaurants having more trouble filling tables than their city counterparts as a consequence. Likewise, one could enjoy cultural amenities like Longwood Gardens (indoors and out) without restrictions vs. some city institutions. The city has a lot to offer, which is why I love it, but an unlevel playing field has worked against it to some degree.

I think this is purely anecdotal. I say this as somoene who lived on the mainline (Malvern) up until last year and now live in CC. The amount of restaurants and attractions in the burbs cannot compare to the City point blank. Along with the lack of decent eating establishment there is like double the population in the burbs than the city and many of those people are much wealthier than the avg city resident. In my experience there was a lull in the beginning of the winter, but how much of that is attributed to covid restrictions or the bitter cold, high covid numbers, and lack of offered dining in? These are obviously not impidiments to people in the burbs who are more nonchalant to covid or have a car and garage? If you go to any analogous neighborhood here in the city (middle-class/upper middle class) the restaurants and attractions are packed.

[PurpleWhiteOut]

This was an interesting note in regards to the parking garage at 727-35 Chestnut St. Oddly it got changed to contributing for the Chestnut St district, and the owner came forth arguing that it should be moved back to non-contributing. I know discussion on this garage has come up before, and this sounds like a potential highrise on the horizon, but of course I would take numbers in an argument with a grain of sand unless someone has some insider knowledge.

"They described the 700 block as a “dead zone” and argued that the parking garage “contributes to blight.” The owner plans to apply for a demolition permit and replace the garage with an apartment complex, claiming that the 600 potential new tenants would be a “a shot in the arm for the district.”

https://hiddencityphila.org/2022/02/...phia-register/

[mcgrath618]

I have no qualms with demoing any building that looks like that, especially a parking garage.

[allovertown]

Originally Posted by PurpleWhiteOut

This was an interesting note in regards to the parking garage at 727-35 Chestnut St. Oddly it got changed to contributing for the Chestnut St district, and the owner came forth arguing that it should be moved back to non-contributing. I know discussion on this garage has come up before, and this sounds like a potential highrise on the horizon, but of course I would take numbers in an argument with a grain of sand unless someone has some insider knowledge.

"They described the 700 block as a “dead zone” and argued that the parking garage “contributes to blight.” The owner plans to apply for a demolition permit and replace the garage with an apartment complex, claiming that the 600 potential new tenants would be a “a shot in the arm for the district.”

https://hiddencityphila.org/2022/02/...phia-register/

So many worthy buildings are not registered as historic... And yet someone took the time to go and get this garage marked as historic? Truly wtf.

[mcgrath618]

Originally Posted by allovertown

So many worthy buildings are not registered as historic... And yet someone took the time to go and get this garage marked as historic? Truly wtf.

How this was registered before the DeLong building boggles the mind.

[PurpleWhiteOut]

Yeah, the argument, I guess, was similar to the debate over the parking garage that Jefferson is currently replacing in the Market East project. I don't think a parking structure should ever be designated historic as well, even if the introduction of cars was technically a historic era. Thankfully it WAS approved to move back to non-contributing, so hopefully we see plans soon.

[mja]

Originally Posted by PHL10

Let's do something ambitious like a classical arch or some towering monument and not some weird/modern/abstract sculpture that no one can intuitively understand.

Build something like this:



and not something like this:

Yeah, I get what you are speaking to, but I'm not really sold on building a triumphal arch in 2022. There is plenty of room to make something meaningful, contemporary, and still aesthetically pleasing.

[PHL10]

Originally Posted by mja

Yeah, I get what you are speaking to, but I'm not really sold on building a triumphal arch in 2022. There is plenty of room to make something meaningful, contemporary, and still aesthetically pleasing.

I was just using the arch as an example of something that remains impressive to this day. I'm very much open to many possibilities but whatever it may be, it should have the an impact 50 years from now where a visitor would say "wow, what's that?" "Oh, they built that for the semiquincentennial."