This article by the director of the University of Pennsylvania's School of Design identifies some of the major issues surrounding development along the shores of the Delaware River in Philadelphia, and calls on the public to become involved in improving the area.
The University of Pennsylvania's Harris M. Steinberg announced a collaboration with the Philadelphia Planning Commission to hold a series of public forums to increase public awareness and hear public concerns about the redevelopment process.
"The more than seven-mile strip of waterfront that runs from Allegheny Avenue south to Oregon Avenue abuts some of the densest, oldest and most historic sections of Philadelphia. In recent years, it has experienced some of the city's most explosive growth, and a quick glance at the current development landscape is not pretty."
"Towering condominiums with in-your-face raised parking structures; squat, sprawling chain stores that hug the water's edge ringed with oceans of parking; and the specter of possibly two faceless casinos the size of four football fields each (parking would cover an additional 60 fields) have concerned citizens rightly up in arms. Traffic is already a nightmare on parts of Delaware Avenue. Add in that there are only three points of public access to the river's edge along the entire seven-mile stretch, and you have the starting point for an important civic conversation."
FULL STORY: Involving public in waterfront plan
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