PHILADELPHIA | Lowrise/General Developments Thread

[City Wide]

This seems like its a lead balloon type of proposal. Lets have a bunch of overhead ramps and overpasses, that'll help traffic, and who cares what it looks like. We're living in the '60's where everything is car centered, right?

[Skintreesnail]

Seriously, this is supposed to be the city's premier boulevard and they keep trying to turn it into a highway. We already have highways that tear through the city. We don't need a massive 10-lane road for a few blocks piercing into the heart of the city. And nobody wants to start crossing a busy street and wait on some traffic island just so we can move more cars faster.

[hammersklavier]

Originally Posted by Vince_

make MLK mass transit only

This is a really good idea! Make MLK a dedicated guided busway with some form of access control, and you can even have stations along the way (for the Zoo, the Falls Bridge, etc). Completely removes bus traffic from the Schuylkill traffic snarl though at the small price of also removing the express buses from the 30th Street Station hub.

[TonyTone]

Did someone seriously put this together and said "Yup this will work, lets make an already hellscape worse"

I would rather keep what we currently have, I really rather them not change it at all.

It's amazing how a proposal could make the current thing look much better.

This is really the worse thing I've ever seen in my life.

[Busy Bee]

19 days too late.

[Urbanthusiat]

This is all I see

[Justin7]

Originally Posted by mcgrath618

Not just someone, the mayor.

Kenney endorsed this? Source?

[Skintreesnail]

Originally Posted by Urbanthusiat

This is all I see

Ha, classic; more proof a child did this.

[700 Level]

[QUOTE=Urbanthusiat;9254506]This is all I see

That is one of the top posts of the year!

[mcgrath618]

Originally Posted by Justin7

Kenney endorsed this? Source?

According to this Twitter Thread, this is the official proposal by the Philadelphia Streets Department, and the Landscape Architects doing Kenney’s redesign are required to consider it.

While not an official endorsement, if that’s what the Mayor’s guy came up with, it’s probably something in line with what he wants.

[Redddog]

Is it me or does this town have absolutely no ability to send RFPs and pick the best one?

They did a great job with the Covid testing decision. This looks like a worse failure.

I know council is beyond hope in it's current form. But can we get a grown-up in there to help these idiots?

Good gawd.

[iamrobk]

Originally Posted by mcgrath618

According to this Twitter Thread, this is the official proposal by the Philadelphia Streets Department, and the Landscape Architects doing Kenney’s redesign are required to consider it.

While not an official endorsement, if that’s what the Mayor’s guy came up with, it’s probably something in line with what he wants.

I opened up the document and this is how it's described on page 19:

The Philadelphia Department of Streets provided the sketch concept for Alternative 1 (Exhibit 4). The alternative consists of three roundabouts, combining the Ben Franklin Parkway roundabouts into a peanut shape or “Figure Eight.” WRA then reviewed the schematic and developed more specific street geometry based on the volume and O-D data. Through an iterative process, WRA refined the final configuration for analysis, as shown in Exhibit 5.

Honestly I don't hate the conceptual sketch but what WRA came up with is just LOL.

[EastSideHBG]

I'm so lost here. Close the outer lanes to traffic and make them bike/pedestrian only (and this opens up this area for outdoor seating and pop up establishments) and calm traffic on the center driving lanes and be done with it. Am I oversimplifying this? To me it seems obvious but I am no traffic engineer so...

Originally Posted by Urbanthusiat

This is all I see

[DeltaNerd]

Originally Posted by EastSideHBG

I'm so lost here. Close the outer lanes to traffic and make them bike/pedestrian only (and this opens up this area for outdoor seating and pop up establishments) and calm traffic on the center driving lanes and be done with it. Am I oversimplifying this? To me it seems obvious but I am no traffic engineer so...

I rather do the opposite and close the inner lanes to cars. Two lanes on the outer side should be good for traffic flow and cars would drive slower because its narrower.

[SEFTA]

YSX1ykz
This is the most ridiculous thing I've ever seen.
The incompetency scares me

[cardeza]

how much more time will be wasted discussing some random image that no one seems to be able to even properly identify. It won't happen. Time to move on. You can find all kinds of crap on the internet that has been proposed or discussed or suggested- that is a long way from something that is about to be built.

Could be helpful to actually look through the document but that would take more than 30 seconds. The purpose of the study is to look at a way to remove the roadway from in front of PMA and expand the "front yard" of the museum and create a larger unified park space. The technical info in the study relates to traffic movements and volumes and they are looking at ways to handle those traffic movements with a different road configuration that would remove the heavy traffic from the front door of the art museum. After the page with the schematic there are a few pages of analysis in which the issues with the design alternative are explained and recommendations are made for future alternatives.

[Vince_]

Ambit posted an awesome new design for a Queen Village eyesore lot at 3rd and Christian. I hope there is retail but I'm not optimistic. Ambit continues to one of the best architecture firms in the city along with Canno in my opinion.




more photos: https://www.instagram.com/p/CN7cG9tDnMB/

[TonyTone]

Originally Posted by Vince_

Ambit posted an awesome new design for a Queen Village eyesore lot at 3rd and Christian. I hope there is retail but I'm not optimistic. Ambit continues to one of the best architecture firms in the city along with Canno in my opinion.




more photos: https://www.instagram.com/p/CN7cG9tDnMB/

Excellent design, I like it. Much better improvement over an empty lot as well.

[summersm343]

Originally Posted by Vince_

Ambit posted an awesome new design for a Queen Village eyesore lot at 3rd and Christian. I hope there is retail but I'm not optimistic. Ambit continues to one of the best architecture firms in the city along with Canno in my opinion.




more photos: https://www.instagram.com/p/CN7cG9tDnMB/

Superb! Hope it gets built. Beautiful design

[PhilliesPhan]

I was in Pittsburgh last week, so I've been catching up on permits I've missed. Looks like plans for the Francisville Triangle have changed in a big way:

ZP-2021-003107
Apr 16, 2021
821 N 19TH ST, Philadelphia, PA 19130-2001
CAMERON SQUARE, NEIGHBORHOOD DEV LP

1. New Construction of two (2) detached 4-story structures. 2. For use as Multi-family Residential totaling twenty-six (26) dwelling units with Roof Decks and Roof Access Structures 3. With forty-two (42) accessory surface parking spaces, including two (2) accessible spaces, three (3) electric vehicle spaces, and ten (10) Class IA bicycle storage spaces 4. With associated curb cuts, site improvements, and landscaping. 5. All per submitted plans prepared by Maser Consulting P.A., dated 3/22/2021 6. The application proposes no signs.

As as near-neighbor to the Triangle, not only have I been hearing rumblings of the developer finally doing something with it, but I've also witnessed multiple instances of soil testing. This could be a great project! Francisville has been on fire for years now, but the neighborhood truly feels like it's in the final stages of redevelopment, with several smaller but significant projects happening across the neighborhood. The section of Francisville I live in feels no different than Fairmount or Spring Garden!