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Target 9: Parks and Recreation
Provide Park and Recreation Resources within 10 Minutes of 75 percent of Residents
Currently less than 60 percent of Philadelphia’s residents are adequately served by a park or recreation center within a halfmile of their residence. Click here for a map of Parks and Recreation Centers. Greenworks Philadelphia endorses the recommendation made in GreenPlan, the Parks and Recreation Department’s draft open space plan, that 100 percent of residents live within a 10-minute walk of a green, open space by 2025. To meet this long-range goal, Greenworks Philadelphia seeks to create an additional 500 acres of greened public space by 2015. Philadelphia will reach this goal by redeveloping and providing public access to its major waterways, creating open space during neighborhood redevelopment efforts and maintaining efforts to clean and green vacant lots.
Currently less than 60 percent of Philadelphia’s residents are adequately served by a park or recreation center within a halfmile of their residence. Click here for a map of Parks and Recreation Centers. Greenworks Philadelphia endorses the recommendation made in GreenPlan, the Parks and Recreation Department’s draft open space plan, that 100 percent of residents live within a 10-minute walk of a green, open space by 2025. To meet this long-range goal, Greenworks Philadelphia seeks to create an additional 500 acres of greened public space by 2015. Philadelphia will reach this goal by redeveloping and providing public access to its major waterways, creating open space during neighborhood redevelopment efforts and maintaining efforts to clean and green vacant lots.
Source: GreenPlan (City of Philadelphia's Open Space Plan) Click the image above for a larger version
Develop Parkland And Open Space Connections Along The City’s Creeks And Rivers
The Schuylkill River
The smaller of Philadelphia’s two rivers, the Schuylkill River runs from Philadelphia through Valley Forge and Reading to its headwaters in the anthracite coalfields. In the city, the land that abuts the river includes parks, factories, oil refineries, institutions, highways and railroad tracks. Recently Philadelphians have worked diligently to reclaim parts of the river as green space for public use.
The smaller of Philadelphia’s two rivers, the Schuylkill River runs from Philadelphia through Valley Forge and Reading to its headwaters in the anthracite coalfields. In the city, the land that abuts the river includes parks, factories, oil refineries, institutions, highways and railroad tracks. Recently Philadelphians have worked diligently to reclaim parts of the river as green space for public use.
The Schuylkill River Development Corporation
has led the efforts to revitalize the Schuylkill waterfront between the Fairmount dam and the Delaware River, completing a 1.2 mile recreational trail and greenway where 16,000 people a week enjoy the outdoors. It is now working to extend the trail below South Street through a section of land called the DuPont Crescent.
On the sections of the Schuylkill that run through East Falls and Manayunk, neighborhood organizations and local civic leaders are developing plans to reconnect residents to the river. These efforts will kick-off with the creation of a bike and pedestrian trail link between the Wissahickon Creek and the Schuylkill River in 2010.
The Delaware River
The Delaware River is Philadelphia’s historic trade route and the center of its original settlements and commercial centers. Over the years the waterfront became disconnected from the main fabric of the city, particularly since the construction of Interstate 95, which effectively cut the river off from the rest of Philadelphia. For decades, efforts to rejoin the city to the waterfront have failed.
The Delaware River is Philadelphia’s historic trade route and the center of its original settlements and commercial centers. Over the years the waterfront became disconnected from the main fabric of the city, particularly since the construction of Interstate 95, which effectively cut the river off from the rest of Philadelphia. For decades, efforts to rejoin the city to the waterfront have failed.
Since 2006, PennPraxis, the clinical arm of the University of Pennsylvania’s School of Design, has been leading a civic visioning and action plan for the Central Delaware, a seven mile, 1,100 acre stretch from Oregon Avenue to Allegheny Avenue. In 2009, Mayor Nutter created the Delaware River Waterfront Corporation, which will use PennPraxis’ work as a starting point and develop a master plan to guide future public and private investments. Its first major effort will be to transform Pier 11 at the base of the Ben Franklin Bridge into a world-class recreational amenity.
A parallel process is underway for the North Delaware, an eleven mile, 700 acre section of riverfront that extends from the Betsy Ross Bridge in Bridesburg to Pleasant Hill Park in Holmesburg. The Delaware River City Corporation (DRCC) has been leading the effort to replace vacant industrial and other lands with a publicly accessible greenway One signature project will soon transform the 4.5 acre Lardner’s Point Park, which is located just south of the Tacony Palmyra Bridge. DRCC recently received $500,000 in Athos Oil Spill mitigation funds that it will use to remediate the land and construct new walking trails and a fishing pier in what will be a new public park.
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Prioritize New Green Space Creation Within Low-Served Neighborhoods
More than 6,800 parcels of land have been cleaned and greened by the City during the past eight years. Much of that land is now owned by the Redevelopment Authority, which has begun to take steps to map and inventory it through a comprehensive data management system. The City’s priority is to sell much of this land back to private sector owners as quickly as possible and have it redeveloped. Yet, in some cases, the highest and best use may be a park that might be enjoyed by many and help with stormwater management. That has cost and implementation implications, however. Although it may be the case that there is no “one size fits all” solution, Greenworks Philadelphia proposes that the Redevelopment Authority work with the Department of Parks and Recreation, the Mayor’s Office of Sustainability and the Philadelphia Water Department to determine how best to approach and balance these competing interests. This group should also begin to pilot different green financing methods to assess their potential and develop a standardized set of procedures.
More than 6,800 parcels of land have been cleaned and greened by the City during the past eight years. Much of that land is now owned by the Redevelopment Authority, which has begun to take steps to map and inventory it through a comprehensive data management system. The City’s priority is to sell much of this land back to private sector owners as quickly as possible and have it redeveloped. Yet, in some cases, the highest and best use may be a park that might be enjoyed by many and help with stormwater management. That has cost and implementation implications, however. Although it may be the case that there is no “one size fits all” solution, Greenworks Philadelphia proposes that the Redevelopment Authority work with the Department of Parks and Recreation, the Mayor’s Office of Sustainability and the Philadelphia Water Department to determine how best to approach and balance these competing interests. This group should also begin to pilot different green financing methods to assess their potential and develop a standardized set of procedures.
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