Infill Philadelphia: Revitalizing Urban Neighborhoods through Innovative Design
Latest Update:A new publication illustrates how the community-based collaborative process works and showcases some of the results in three highly inventive neighborhood designs.
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Philadelphia LISC is proud to partner with the Community Design Collaborative on Infill Philadelphia, an initiative that will add the professional design community's voice and creative thinking to the broader conversation about how Philadelphia can re-envision its older neighborhoods. The initiative will be implemented in three phases, each focusing on a distinct aspect of infill development—commercial corridors, neighborhood anchors, housing, or transit-oriented development. Each phase of Infill Philadelphia will feature site-specific design projects; opportunities for public dialogue; and participation by community development corporations, design firms, and local and national experts.The goals of the initiative are to:
- Generate workable design solutions for under-utilized physical assets in Philadelphia neighborhoods in a way that contributes to social and economic community revitalization goals.
- Promote systems change in the realm of community revitalization by developing exciting ideas that will help Philadelphia leaders re-think their vision for our neighborhoods and the city as a whole.
- Foster understanding of the value of good design among community leaders and nonprofit developers, and how best to involve design professionals in the community-revitalization process from beginning to end.
Infill Philadelphia: Commercial Corridors
Infill Philadelphia kicked off in January 2007 with a focus on neighborhood commercial corridors. Historically, commercial corridors have been the pulse of healthy neighborhoods and today remain critical “zippers” in older communities. These neighborhood shopping streets bind neighborhoods together, keep resident and business dollars local, and create local employment and entrepreneurship opportunities.
Three design firms—Brown & Keener Bressi Urban Design and Place Planning; Cicada Architecture/Planning, Inc; and Terra Studio, LLC—are collaborating with three community-based organizations—the East Passyunk Avenue Business Improvement District, People's Emergency Center CDC, and The Partnership CDC— on commercial corridor projects. The design challenges will include defining a commercial corridor gateway, reusing an abandoned neighborhood theater, and expanding a local bar into a full-service restaurant. Philadelphia LISC, a recognized leader in commercial corridor revitalization, is partnering with the Collaborative' on Infill Philadelphia: Commercial Corridors.
A jury of experts representing a range of expertise and perspectives will review the projects and help the teams deliver realizable design solutions. The final designs and findings of Infill Philadelphia: Commercial Corridors will be disseminated to community leaders, local and national developers, public and private funders, and the design community.