Greater philadelphia community alliance
Greater philadelphia community alliance
This process will identify the community’s shared vision and goals for restoring the commercial corridor, prioritize the issues, and identify economic and placemaking strategies to improve the physical assets of the corridor and its redevelopment potential. This project will identify strategies to improve commercial activity, mobility, and the public realm to make it clean, attractive, active, and safe. This process will also review and consider the City’s Comprehensive Plan 2035 and Commercial Corridor Policies, leverage existing public and private investments, and celebrate the neighborhood’s historic urban fabric and diverse community.
The project team administered a Community Survey designed to help prioritize issues and opportunities and to gauge support for potential strategies related to the economic conditions, redevelopment, and physical assets of Point Breeze Avenue.
Through ongoing and extensive efforts by the planning team and Steering Committee, the survey was advertised and distributed between October 30, 2022 and March 30, 2023. The survey was made available online, distributed through emails, social media, and made available at Greater Philadelphia Community Alliance, the Point Breeze District Office’s of Congressman Dwight Evans. and Representative Jordan Harris. It was also distributed at the first Public Workshop, where a postcard advertisement was mailed to residents and business within and surrounding the Avenue.
There were over 900 responses. The survey results will inform the development of alternative strategies to be further discussed and evaluated throughout the planning process.
Click here for the summary of the Survey results.
– Revised September 13, 2023
The project team held a Public Workshop at St. Simon Church at 22nd and Reed Streets on January 25, from 6-8 pm. The meeting was advertised through various means, including a postcard mailer sent to over 3,700 homes and businesses surrounding the Avenue and mass emails and social media posts.
The meeting was structured in an open house format with interactive workstations, allowing participants to come and go any time during the workshop period and move around to various stations of their choosing. The purpose was to provide the opportunity to learn about the Revitalization Plan and the process and to provide input and ideas on the area’s visions, strengths, and priority issues.
The project team held the second Workshop at St. Simon Church at 22nd and Reed Streets on Thursday, September 7, 2023, from 6-8 pm. The purpose of the Workshop was to obtain public input on the draft economic, placemaking, and transportation strategies to create a clean, diverse, inclusive, attractive, active, and safe corridor. The draft strategies are based on the prior feedback from the community outreach, including the first public meeting, the stakeholder interviews, the community survey, and the Steering Committee, consisting of your fellow residents and neighbors. Please check back soon for a summary of the Workshop results.
A POVERTY
ACTION PLAN
INITIATIVE
The consultants facilitated Stakeholder Focus Group meetings with representatives of the community. The consultants worked with the Steering Committee to identify representatives who play an important role in ensuring the interests of key stakeholders, city agencies, and interest groups are appropriately represented and who can help work towards a detailed action plan, as these organizations can help share information and carry out the plan recommendations. The stakeholders were divided into small Focus Groups based on the following topics: Community Groups, Transportation, Businesses, and Housing.
Key purposes of these meetings were to obtain input to help identify priority issues, goals, and strategies for improving and redeveloping Point Breeze Avenue to meet the needs of local business owners and better serve the neighborhood’s residents. The discussions focused on visioning, issues, and opportunities for Point Breeze Avenue and how the organizations can support this vision.
Stakeholder Meeting Summaries
The draft preliminary strategies for physical improvements along the corridor include traffic calming, streetscape amenities, and vehicle, bike, and pedestrian safety/circulation improvements. These draft strategies are based on the feedback from the community outreach, including the first public meeting, the stakeholder/focus group interviews, the public survey, and the Steering Committee meetings. These draft strategies are conceptual and intended for community review and feedback.
The consultant prepared an overall Illustrative Plan that summarizes the physical improvements and strategies. The Plan also provides a preview of the potential organization for the Report, which will group the strategies into six core focus areas:
Click here for the DRAFT Illustrative Plan
The Illustrative Plan also recommends the redevelopment of three key node and gateway areas at Federal Street, 21st Street and at Cassie Holley Court. The design options for these areas were presented at the Point Breeze Community Day on August 26, 2023 and the Public Workshop on September 7, 2023.
If you were unable to attend the Public Workshop, please provide your input in the comment form below. The project team will refine these design illustrations and strategies, based on the feedback received at the Workshop and additional comments received here.
COMMENTS
Please use this form to submit comments concerning the Point Breeze Avenue Corridor Revitalization Plan.