PHILADELPHIA | Lowrise/General Developments Thread II

[cardeza]

Originally Posted by Urbanthusiat

Now let's do dollars per mile of road. Assuming this site I found is correct, that would equate to ~$56,400 per road mile in NJ vs ~$42,900 per road mile in PA. That's about 31% higher for NJ.

Get out of here with those facts- they have no place in this discussion. I think PA also has like the 3rd most bridges in the country which is another factor that affects how they spend money and what they are responsible for. If they had more money Im sure they could buy more equipment, hire more people and do more. The PA turnpike costs a fortune to drive on- but the shoulders are clean. I think it now costs $11 to drive on I95 in MD- and shockingly its in good condition, the shoulders are clean, they are adding express lanes and there are tons of cops on patrol.

[cardeza]

Originally Posted by 3rd&Brown

For a point of reference, from what I can find, these are the budgets for PA and NJ DOT.

PA DOT: 10.8 BILLION per year
NJ DOT: 4.8 BILLION per year

Hard to believe NJ has cleaner highways because they have more funding.

Do you understand the concept of per capita? PA is 3 to 4 times the size of NJ and the two primary north south highways in NJ are supported by TOLLS.

[cardeza]

Originally Posted by Urbanthusiat

Now let's do dollars per mile of road. Assuming this site I found is correct, that would equate to ~$56,400 per road mile in NJ vs ~$42,900 per road mile in PA. That's about 31% higher for NJ.

Another thing- NJ is one of the highest taxed states in the country so their budget per capita is one of the largest and dwarfs PAs budget, in fact I think they are very close to our budget even though they have 4 million less residents and a far smaller state.

[UrbanRevival]

Not here to race to the defense of PennDOT, but most people almost never take into account Pennsylvania's topography versus a place like NJ.

PA is one of the Top 5 hilliest/mountainous states in the US; NJ is like Top 15 flattest. It's a very overlooked factor in road maintenance and engineering costs, for sure, not to mention the cost of maintaining and replacing PA's bajillion tiny bridges over it's quadrillion creeks and rivers.

Look at the cost differences back in 2014--I can't imagine what they are just a decade later:

https://www.strongtowns.org/journal/...-actually-cost

[PHLtoNYC]

Not my thing, but at least the large West Elm space won't be vacant for long.

Formula 1-branded arcade, bar opening in former West Elm space in Center City
https://www.bizjournals.com/philadel...Pos=0#cxrecs_s

F1 Arcade plans to open its fourth U.S. location at 1330 Chestnut St. in Center City in 2025. The experiential hospitality concept will take over the 19,200-square-foot space previously home to furniture store West Elm, which shuttered at the beginning of the year.

F1 Arcade's Philadelphia location will include full-motion racing simulators in which customers can drive on some of the world's most iconic circuits. The venue will also feature a bar offering dishes taking inspiration from cuisines around the globe, cocktails and "Designated Drivers" mocktails.

The hospitality company, which licenses the F1 Arcade brand name from Formula 1, opened its first venue in London in 2022. It made its U.S. debut in April when it opened in Boston's Seaport neighborhood.

[ScreamShatter]

Originally Posted by Skintreesnail

Yeah, i wouldn't mind either, but realistically it's a pretty major east/west thoroughfare. And there's still fears due to the chestnut street transitway, which I feel would totally work today (light rail would be better though). Sansom would be a better permanent test, which was already kind of proved during the pandemic. After that, the roads connecting the squares: 19, locust, 7, vine (south). I feel like there would be less backlash since they aren't through running. Could even start with a woonerf concept that prioritizes pedestrian and bike traffic over cars, with very low speed limits and other traffic calming measures like chicanes.

Like that idea. Locust, and roads on the east side, get tricky bc of hospitals. I was thinking those 4-5 blocks on Walnut might work bc it’s already commercially supported by pedestrian traffic walking to the stores. Actually, it might attract even more shoppers having more space in the middle with walkways like Mexico City. I think it’d be hugely popular.