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Consultant Selected for Central Delaware Master Plan The Delaware River Waterfront Corporation (DRWC) has selected a team of consultants to develop the Master Plan for the Central Delaware Waterfront. The team includes Cooper Robertson & Partners, master planners; the OLIN Partnership, landscape architects; and KieranTimberlake, architects; and HR&A Advisors, who will prepare the economic analysis of both public and private projects and who will be integrated into every phase of the master planning assignment; as well as several other subconsultants in the fields of transportation, traffic engineering, planning and zoning law, ecology and historic preservation. The Master Plan is tasked with taking the values and principles set forth in the Civic Vision for the Central Delaware and translating them into concrete land use, zoning, and transportation plans. As part of that assignment, the master planners must address public access to the river's edge for the project area, between Oregon and Allegheny Avenues. Next Great City, the Coalition for Philadelphia’s Riverfronts (CPR), and our partner groups look forward to seeing the planning process unfold and engaging with the DRWC and the master planning consultants regarding public riverfront access.
New Riverfront Park on the Way The Delaware River Waterfront Corporation and the City of Philadelphia are working to create a new riverfront park at Pier 11/the Race Street Pier. This action is one of the initial early action recommendations that PennPraxis and the Central Delaware Advocacy Group recommended in the Action Plan for the Central Delaware in order to support the Civic Vision that thousands of Philadelphians created. Field Operations has been selected to design the new park. Coalition For Philadelphia's Riverfronts Launches
The Coalition for Philadelphia's Riverfronts', the riverfront advocacy campaign that grew out of the Next Great City riverfronts recommendation, has officially launched. The launch event was a great success! Thoughtful speeches from Katherine Gajewski, Director of the Mayor's Office of Sustainability, Alan Greenberger, acting Deputy Mayor for Commerce and Planning, Mark Focht, Executive Director of Fairmount Park, and Dr. John Elliott Churchville, CEO of Liberation Fellowship Community Development Corporation, as well as beautiful weather for post-launch kayaking provided a great start for the campaign. Central Delaware Zoning Overlay Passes Out of Committee
Next Great City is very pleased to see that the Civic Vision for the Central Delaware is continuing to move forward. The interim zoning overlay ordinance that we advocated for is now out of Committee and is only a short step away from becoming law. NGC would like to thank Councilman DiCicco and his staff for all their hard work on this legislation. We believe that the ordinance is an excellent first step towards establishing the publicly accessible riverfront greenways that Philadelphia needs. Greenworks Takes Up Riverfronts
Greenworks nods to NGC public riverfronts recommendation by calling for the development of parkland and open space connections along the city’s creeks and rivers Greenway Campaign Underway
The Coalition for Philadelphia’s Riverfronts (CPR) is looking for endorsing organizations to join our call for continuous, connecting greenways along all of Philadelphia’s riverfronts. If you are interested in joining the campaign please contact Rachel for more information or to fill out an endorsement form to show your organization’s support. Progress for Greenways along the Schuylkill & the Delaware
A lot of exciting progress has been made in reaching our goal of creating public riverfronts in Philadelphia. During the week of May 18, not only did the Fairmount Park Commission approve the acquisition of 12 acres - two parcels that will be carved from a bank of the Schuylkill south of Center City to form the next sections of the Schuylkill River Trail, but the Planning Commission also approved the North Delaware Conservation District and an interim zoning overlay for the Central Delaware, both of which require development to be set back from the river. The Planning Commission accepts the Civic Vision as Framework
On April 21, the Philadelphia City Planning Commission met to consider adopting the Civic Vision for the Central Delaware as the framework for future development along the stretch of land between Oregon and Allegheny Avenues, and I-95 and the Delaware River. After an overwhelming show of public support, both at the meeting and through your emails, the Planning Commission decided to accept the Vision. Action Plan for Central Delaware On June 26, 2008 Penn Praxis released An Action Plan for the Central Delaware- an ambitious plan to implement the civic vision put forth to transform the Delaware into a vibrant, green and connected riverfront. At the release event, Mayor Nutter embraced the plan and agreed to two action items- reforming the Penn's Landing Corporation into an open and accountable waterfront manager and creating a park on Pier 11 at Race St. The Next Great City coalition will be partnering with Penn Praxis and the Central Delaware Advisory Group in carrying out the goal of creating a 100-ft greenway along the water's edge. Take Me to the River The Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission has issued guidelines for a new, competitive grant program called "Take Me to the River". The goal of the program is to award funding for low-cost, high-impact, planning, programmatic, and capital projects that will enhance the connection between Philadelphia's communities and the Delaware and Schuylkill riverfronts. Expressions of Interest are due on Friday, June 13th. For more information, contact Karin Morris, Manager, Office of Smart Growth, 215-238-2858. Civic Vision revealed After a year-long period of intense civic engagement and thinking about the waterfront, the Civic Vision for the Central Delaware was released by Penn Praxis on November 14, 2007. The entire report can be viewed here. The report identified some key recommendations to help connect Philadelphia to the riverfront- most of which can also be applied to the Schuylkill riverfront as well. Recent News
Upcoming Events/Meetings The Central Delaware Civic group meets periodically. To find out when and to get on the mailing list, contact Michael Greenle at Penn Praxis. Related Links |