PHILADELPHIA | Highrise Development Thread X

[PHLtoNYC]

Originally Posted by skyhigh07

I was walking around NYC last night around Penn Staton. I lived in the city between 2014-2017 and I will say compared to what I remember then versus now, it’s not great - more litter, druggies and homeless. It feels like city officials don’t know how to respond to it or don’t want to. Putting the office vacancy rate aside, my sense is that CC’s bounce back from Covid is largely the work of CCD. Their date driven, engaged approach is a big part of keeping the city afloat imo.

I wouldn't use Penn Station as a descriptor of current New York. That is like using Market East as a descriptor for current Philadelphia.

Manhattan is still dirty, but is by and large doing fine. There is an uptick in homeless though, especially under the annoying scaffolding.

Originally Posted by mcgrath618

Negladelphians like to complain about how far behind we are compared with our European peers in terms of cleanliness, city services, etc.
Obviously all of the countries in Europe are different from the US and have their pros and cons (health care, taxes, etc.) but insofar as cities? It’s really only London so far that has wowed me with cleanliness, safety, city services, etc.

Even Amsterdam, the king of all urbanism arguments, had its own set of problems.
That’s not to say I haven’t enjoyed everywhere I’ve been, nor that Philadelphia can’t learn anything from a place like Amsterdam, Paris, etc. I was just led to believe I’d never want to come home after I saw how much better Europe was

The grass isn't always greener, but I still love European cities. The history, walk-ability, eclectic variety of food, things to do, sites, shopping, etc., is what I fell in love with. Outside of the Northeast and Chicago, the US falls short in that realm.

Thoughts on Vienna and Stockholm? I visited those 2 this year for the first time, loved both of them. Vienna was also voted the World's Most Livable City.

[BroadandMarket]

Originally Posted by yuryphilly

The biggest problem is the lack of leadership and acceptance of the status quo. Littler and crime can be dealt with by active involvement. The city has the resources but lacks direction because our mayor decided to opt-out, that makes me sad. If we hired an army of people to pick up litter at least a couple of days a week, it would make a huge difference. Put a regular NY-style trash can on every corner. Have cops patrol hot spots more often, not just sit in their cars. There is a lot of apathy in the city government right now because people feel nothing can be done.
But I am glad to read positive thoughts about Philly on this forum, I mostly hear or read how bad the city is.

100%. The city should be hiring Philadelphia public high school grads and all they do is maintenance like this. Pick up trash, weed wack overgrown sidewalks, street sweepers, power-washing sidewalks, picking up needles, etc.

I know the street sweeper program is on its way back, but in traditional Philly fashion, they are reinventing the wheel instead of doing what works. They are not doing alternate side sweeping which is clearly what works better.

[3rd&Brown]

Originally Posted by BroadandMarket

100%. The city should be hiring Philadelphia public high school grads and all they do is maintenance like this. Pick up trash, weed wack overgrown sidewalks, street sweepers, power-washing sidewalks, picking up needles, etc.

I know the street sweeper program is on its way back, but in traditional Philly fashion, they are reinventing the wheel instead of doing what works. They are not doing alternate side sweeping which is clearly what works better.

Street Sweeping has like a 5 year phase in. It's pathetic.

Do you know this year's "phase" covered the same exact area as last year's with no expansion? From what I discern, I also figured out that streets with parking only on 1 side of the street don't get swept? That's crazy because in a place where common sense rules, you could actually sweep a street with cars on only one side literally every day.

Then we have our meager 10 gallon recylcing bins. What % of the trash on the street do you think is simply recylcing that escapes our undersized bins with no lids? Probably 50+%.

Simple, right? Apparently not. Just give us regular sized bins with lids.

It's not that hard.

[skyhigh07]

Originally Posted by PHLtoNYC

I wouldn't use Penn Station as a descriptor of current New York. That is like using Market East as a descriptor for current Philadelphia.

Manhattan is still dirty, but is by and large doing fine. There is an uptick in homeless though, especially under the annoying scaffolding.

No I agree. I was just referencing an area in which I could see a definitive contrast over the last few years. Manhattan is fine but I would say the area around Penn extending down toward Chelsea hasn’t been great lately. Also the subways need some help. I was randomly threatened/shoved twice within the last 6 months lol - never had that problem when I lived there.

[cardeza]

Originally Posted by 3rd&Brown

Street Sweeping has like a 5 year phase in. It's pathetic.

Do you know this year's "phase" covered the same exact area as last year's with no expansion? From what I discern, I also figured out that streets with parking only on 1 side of the street don't get swept? That's crazy because in a place where common sense rules, you could actually sweep a street with cars on only one side literally every day.

Then we have our meager 10 gallon recylcing bins. What % of the trash on the street do you think is simply recylcing that escapes our undersized bins with no lids? Probably 50+%.

Simple, right? Apparently not. Just give us regular sized bins with lids.

It's not that hard.

some parts of the city have large bins and many people just get their own if they really want the larger size- I have one. I dont know where you live or what type of Streets workers operate down there, in my area 99% of trash and recycling that is placed out makes it into a truck. We may have issues on windy days where recycling containers blow over or whatever but generally this is a non issue. Many in my area have the larger recycling containers. Also, I dont think there is any rule preventing someone from placing more than 2 of the 10 gallon buckets out for pickup.

[cardeza]

Originally Posted by summersm343

I have to chime in. I do agree mostly. It always blows my mind when people are so negative towards Philadelphia. It really is a fantastic city with so much to offer. I do find from personal experience that a lot of people whom are so negative about the city tend to live in the suburbs or the countryside, and do not travel a lot. If they do “travel”, they’re going to Florida or a tropical island, which I really wouldn’t consider traveling. Therefore, I’m dumbfounded because they have no comparison, and Philadelphia now is leagues better than Philadelphia 20 years ago. The city is just extremely and easily walkable, has fantastic food, amazing neighborhoods and architecture and so, so many cultural institutions and arts, museums, etc. This city really does have so much to offer.

With that said, I do think the majority of Philadelphia’s negative perceptions with people all boils down to crime. While I do think people do overreact to crime, and it tends to be mostly limited to specific areas/neighborhoods…. If this city could get the crime (especially violent gun crime) under control, then the city would have a much, much better perception both domestically and internationally. European cities are much, much safer in this regard.

Regarding liter and cleanliness? Most European cities are similar to Philadelphia. I just wish city leadership would put more of an effort towards cleaning up all the goddamn litter. It’s really not that hard.

I would say those are the biggest things that need to and should be addressed to change perceptions on the city. Other things would be removing ATV/dirt bikes from the streets, cleaning up the streets regarding grit/dirt/weeds, getting homeless and druggies off the streets, cleaning up parks and refurbishing parks, continuing to rebuild and revitalize more neighborhoods, reduce speeding/reckless drivers, improve schools and reduce poverty.

All in all though, Philadelphia is a fantastic city. It has its problems like everywhere else. You’re never going to solve all the problems of a city. We address crime (particularly gun crime) and clean up all the damn litter? I guarantee you that will go a LONG way towards improving perceptions of Philadelphia.

It kills me how people discuss "philly problems" as if they are in a vacuum. There is more than can be done locally, but urban violence is an american thing. Gun violence is an american thing. Philly cannot transform itself into a European type city from a safety perspective as long as its located in PA. Philly is part of a state and a country that does not place any value on gun control and thus is far more dangerous than most cities in other first world countries- this is also the case for most large american cities. Gun violence is just not a thing in most countries. There will be no comprehensive "addressing" of gun crime without cooperation from Harrisburg and DC.

Also, people need to start getting more specific about where they are seeing all this litter. MOre can be done, but it gets tiresome to keep reading comments that allege the city is covered in a layer of litter. Center City and UC are cleaned daily by outside groups. North Broad is now cleaned daily by an outside group. Upper middle class and upscale neighborhoods are not full of litter. Colleges control huge swaths of this city and have their own cleaning forces. Its not as clean as it could be, but its probably cleaner than it was in the 1950s-1990s. The problems are most in low income neighborhoods that are overrun with vacant properties and renters. A lot of the trashiest areas are vacant lots and no-mans land territories near railroad lines, highways etc.

[Londonee]

Originally Posted by cardeza

Also, people need to start getting more specific about where they are seeing all this litter. MOre can be done, but it gets tiresome to keep reading comments that allege the city is covered in a layer of litter. Center City and UC are cleaned daily by outside groups. North Broad is now cleaned daily by an outside group. Upper middle class and upscale neighborhoods are not full of litter. Colleges control huge swaths of this city and have their own cleaning forces. Its not as clean as it could be, but its probably cleaner than it was in the 1950s-1990s. The problems are most in low income neighborhoods that are overrun with vacant properties and renters. A lot of the trashiest areas are vacant lots and no-mans land territories near railroad lines, highways etc.

But why is a highway no-mans land? Why do every one of our on-ramps and off-ramps have to be covered in a layer of filth? Like, this is the entrance to people's neighborhoods and homes? Is this not where thousands and thousands of visitors and residents transit daily?

The 26th Street connector - the main artery between the airport and Center City West - is an absolute trash covered disgrace. Welcome to Philly!

The exit from 76 to Oregon Avenue is probably covered in 10 tons of trash and garbage. I have to take a shower after my Home Depot trips, it's just depressing.

Anyways, to one of the posters saying it's nice to hear positive things about Philly, everyone on here is a pretty big booster - but the never-ending flow of trash and weeds is really grating and defenders of it like cardeza are part of the problem.

[cardeza]

Originally Posted by Londonee

But why is a highway no-mans land? Why do every one of our on-ramps and off-ramps have to be covered in a layer of filth? Like, this is the entrance to people's neighborhoods and homes? Is this not where thousands and thousands of visitors and residents transit daily?

The 26th Street connector - the main artery between the airport and Center City West - is an absolute trash covered disgrace. Welcome to Philly!

The exit from 76 to Oregon Avenue is probably covered in 10 tons of trash and garbage. I have to take a shower after my Home Depot trips, it's just depressing.

Anyways, to one of the posters saying it's nice to hear positive things about Philly, everyone on here is a pretty big booster - but the never-ending flow of trash and weeds is really grating and defenders of it like cardeza are part of the problem.

26th street has been much better in recent months, probably due to owners of Bellwether District- the fact you made that statement indicates you haven't seen it in months. They have cut back a lot of the foliage and cleaned up shouler- the other side was already in decent shape because there is a maintained grassy lot on the north side of the highway.

I am most certainly not part of the problem. I have spent countless hours reporting stuff to 311 and getting issues resolved related to illegal dumping and other violations that make the city look like crap. I simply said these generic statements about the whole city being dirty are BS.

A lot of the worst areas are adjacent to property owned by railroads- that is a major issue.

[3rd&Brown]

Originally Posted by cardeza

26th street has been much better in recent months, probably due to owners of Bellwether District- the fact you made that statement indicates you haven't seen it in months. They have cut back a lot of the foliage and cleaned up shouler- the other side was already in decent shape because there is a maintained grassy lot on the north side of the highway.

I am most certainly not part of the problem. I have spent countless hours reporting stuff to 311 and getting issues resolved related to illegal dumping and other violations that make the city look like crap. I simply said these generic statements about the whole city being dirty are BS.

A lot of the worst areas are adjacent to property owned by railroads- that is a major issue.

The dense rowhouse neighborhoods outside of Center City and well as the highways/on ramps/off ramps are uniformly dirty if not dirtier than they should be...even the wealthier ones. I would not include West Philly, NW Philly, the Far Northeast, or Packer Park in that summary. Everything else, yes. Basically river to river, 76 north to South Street. Then from Vine all the way to probably Old York Road.

[mcgrath618]

Originally Posted by PHLtoNYC

I wouldn't use Penn Station as a descriptor of current New York. That is like using Market East as a descriptor for current Philadelphia.

Manhattan is still dirty, but is by and large doing fine. There is an uptick in homeless though, especially under the annoying scaffolding.



The grass isn't always greener, but I still love European cities. The history, walk-ability, eclectic variety of food, things to do, sites, shopping, etc., is what I fell in love with. Outside of the Northeast and Chicago, the US falls short in that realm.

Thoughts on Vienna and Stockholm? I visited those 2 this year for the first time, loved both of them. Vienna was also voted the World's Most Livable City.

I love Europe too! I’ll let you know how I feel about Vienna when I go next week.

Stockholm is nice, but I found it to really only be a city worth visiting for ~2-3 days. I also don’t think I could live there. Too cold.

[Londonee]

Originally Posted by cardeza

26th street has been much better in recent months, probably due to owners of Bellwether District- the fact you made that statement indicates you haven't seen it in months. They have cut back a lot of the foliage and cleaned up shouler- the other side was already in decent shape because there is a maintained grassy lot on the north side of the highway.

I feel like I'm on it daily lugging my kid down to little league practice at FDR... if that's a nicely maintained road to you then we just simply have different expectations of what a city can look like. They clean it up once a year...and then it slowly falls into absolute disarray the other 10+ months. It also happened to be recently repaved which got rid of some of the lengthier visiting legacy trash that had lined the road for well over a year...

My favorite "feature" of the strip are the decaying wooden fence posts that serve absolutely zero purpose. My favorite building is the graffiti covered derelict warehouse at Hartranft that looks like it houses characters from a Wes Craven movie.

I'm optimistic about the Bellwether guys, but that's still TBD and again that's asking private companies to do a simple/basic city task.

[wcphil]

Wow, a 28; story tower at broad and oxford. Someone can do this more justice but here's the link.
https://www.facebook.com/10005720872...ibextid=Nif5oz

[TonyTone]

Originally Posted by Londonee

I feel like I'm on it daily lugging my kid down to little league practice at FDR... if that's a nicely maintained road to you then we just simply have different expectations of what a city can look like. They clean it up once a year...and then it slowly falls into absolute disarray the other 10+ months. It also happened to be recently repaved which got rid of some of the lengthier visiting legacy trash that had lined the road for well over a year...

My favorite "feature" of the strip are the decaying wooden fence posts that serve absolutely zero purpose. My favorite building is the graffiti covered derelict warehouse at Hartranft that looks like it houses characters from a Wes Craven movie.

I'm optimistic about the Bellwether guys, but that's still TBD and again that's asking private companies to do a simple/basic city task.

Let's keep it real, the cities Trash Issue, and lack of Maintence is due to decades of neglect from the city, and the citizens in it.

You let something go on for so long it ends up turning into habit.

Not to long ago Penndot proposed a toll on the 95 Bridge but PA Courts struck it down, I say if we want to deal with our Maintence, and trash issue in the city we are gonna have to fund it.

https://www.phillyvoice.com/penndot-...83-harrisburg/

I know we all want stuff to be clean, but it doesn't happen for free. In order for weekly around the clock clean ups to occur is by funding it, and a road toll could just do that, I would say a tax but this city already has enough tax burdens.

But let's talk about the trash, the neighborhoods with the most trash issues are the economically depressed ones point blank period. Outside of those areas you have main corridor trash areas due to high traffic, and not enough Maintence, then you have the dumping grounds, and thats due to short dumping from contractors, businesses, and others who feel the need to dump, because they don't want to pay the $100+ Min Dump fee, If the city really wants to fix the dumping issue, they need to open a Transfer station to the public that is weigh as you pay. For example you can take a truckload of tires to a transfer station, and it would cost $20-60 in Delaware, compared to a minimum of $100+ in Philly.

There are options to fix the issues, but the people, and the city need to be proactive to get it done.

[PHL10]

Originally Posted by wcphil

Wow, a 28; story tower at broad and oxford. Someone can do this more justice but here's the link.
https://www.facebook.com/10005720872...ibextid=Nif5oz

A 28-story apartment tower is slated for Broad Street just south of Temple’s campus

https://www.inquirer.com/real-estate...-20230920.html

[cardeza]

Originally Posted by 3rd&Brown

The dense rowhouse neighborhoods outside of Center City and well as the highways/on ramps/off ramps are uniformly dirty if not dirtier than they should be...even the wealthier ones. I would not include West Philly, NW Philly, the Far Northeast, or Packer Park in that summary. Everything else, yes. Basically river to river, 76 north to South Street. Then from Vine all the way to probably Old York Road.

so you are saying the entirety of North Philadelphia, including Temple's campus and all of North Broad (which is cleaned every weekday) is full of trash? Got it. the area you describe from Vine St north also includes a lot of the active street sweeping zones. It would also include Fairmount and Brewerytown.

BTW, those areas you exempted are a significant chunk of the city.

[cardeza]

Originally Posted by Londonee

I feel like I'm on it daily lugging my kid down to little league practice at FDR... if that's a nicely maintained road to you then we just simply have different expectations of what a city can look like. They clean it up once a year...and then it slowly falls into absolute disarray the other 10+ months. It also happened to be recently repaved which got rid of some of the lengthier visiting legacy trash that had lined the road for well over a year...

My favorite "feature" of the strip are the decaying wooden fence posts that serve absolutely zero purpose. My favorite building is the graffiti covered derelict warehouse at Hartranft that looks like it houses characters from a Wes Craven movie.

I'm optimistic about the Bellwether guys, but that's still TBD and again that's asking private companies to do a simple/basic city task.

Let me be more explicit- the last 5+ times I have been to the airport or to Delaware 26th street has not been trashy. I did not mean to infer I saw this once in the last year. It is clear that the area is being better maintained and anyone who drives down there frequently can attest to that. I attempted to place a complaint with JOhnson's office and didn't hear back from the initital person I made contact with and I eventually got to someone in Domb's office who got it cleaned up by City people. After that it's been significantly better but I believe Bellwether is doing it- I also reached out to them via their website- they never responded, but the area is cleaner so someone did something. Im all for being harsh critics and holding the city to a higher standard but some of you are so repetitive and dug in that its quite obvious facts become irrelevant and I dont think there is anything that can happen on some of these topics that would cause you to deviate from your positions. Think about it, years back when there was no street sweeping it was demanded on this forum, now that we have SOME street sweeping the basic position hasn't changed- everything is crap, the whole city is dirty and the street sweeping isn't frequent enough, widespread enough or properly done so nothing has changed- supposedly.

Also, you say its too much to expect a private property owner to maintain the boundary of their property because that is a "basic" city function. No its not. The dumping along the perimeter of that property is their responsibility to clean up as was the overgrown foliage along the fencing adjacent to 26th street. The refinery did nothing to maintain that side of the property and its the property owner's job to do so. Also 26th street is a state road so its the responsibility of PennDOT, not Philly.

[Justin7]

A new 28-story apartment building from Landmark Properties, a national student housing developer, is planned for 518-528 N. Broad Street across the thoroughfare from the Sullivan Progress Plaza Shopping Center.

Landmark’s first two projects targeted University City in West Philadelphia, but the project at 518-528 N. Broad Street. will be their first foray into North Philadelphia.

Think you may have accidentally a digit, Jake.

This looks great, though.

[Jayfar]

Originally Posted by Justin7

Think you may have accidentally a digit, Jake.

This looks great, though.

I see the address has since been corrected in the article to 1518-28 N. Broad Street.

CDR submission is online too, in case no one had posted it yet: https://www.phila.gov/media/20230919...3-2023-CDR.pdf

[phishtown]

Originally Posted by Jayfar

I see the address has since been corrected in the article to 1518-28 N. Broad Street.

CDR submission is online too, in case no one had posted it yet: https://www.phila.gov/media/20230919...3-2023-CDR.pdf

A solid 329ft, and with the speed this developer has moved with The Mark in university city, I’m hopeful on this one.

[TonyTone]

Originally Posted by Jayfar

I see the address has since been corrected in the article to 1518-28 N. Broad Street.

CDR submission is online too, in case no one had posted it yet: https://www.phila.gov/media/20230919...3-2023-CDR.pdf

That burned up church was the last piece on the chest board.

I guess that family that owned the church was right. Temple really did want their land to build something on it.