Agency finds Center City 'much improved'

Life looks pretty good in Philadelphia these days -- at least in Center City. The Center City District -- a 6-year-old quasi-governmental agency in charge of improving cleanliness, lighting, retail and safety downtown -- released its second annual "State of Center City Report" last week to document conditions in the area. Approximately 70 percent of respondents to the $12,000 study said the "general atmosphere" of Center City was "somewhat or much improved" over previous years. Homicide, rape and burglary are among the "major crimes" that decreased nearly 15 percent last year, but the report -- the culmination of six months of polling -- also indicates that car theft and break-ins have increased in the area. And while the total amount of office space in the region has increased since last year -- as have occupancy rates in the area -- the report notes that many older Philadelphia buildings remain vacant. "4.2 million square feet of [older] buildings have been mothballed," the CCD reported. CCD spokesperson Nancy Goldenberg said the report was largely positive, illustrating the "good job" the District has done in improving the city. Goldenberg added that the decrease in the area's overall crime is a victory for the District and stressed that "the perception of the atmosphere is greatly improved." "People feel that we are doing a good job and ultimately that is how we measure our success," she added. But the office workers, retailers, property owners, residents and pedestrians who participated in the study said they noticed greater over-all improvement in the area in 1995 than in 1996. The prevalence of panhandlers on city streets was respondents' number one concern. But Goldenberg said homelessness is a "problem nationwide" and will be one of the CCD's "challenges" for next year. And while the report indicates that the District prospered last year, the area contains just 3 percent of the city's population, making it difficult to draw conclusions about Philadelphia as a whole. The report points out that while the Center City District contains just 2 percent of the city's land area, the District "is the destination for 80 percent of all tourist visits to Philadelphia and the location for 72 percent of all commercial office space in the city." Areas such as University City are not in the CCD's jurisdiction and are not included in the report, which does note that 4,071 of the 29,008 students enrolled in Penn and Drexel University "reside in Center City." The report's findings have added significance for the University, since University administrators have been looking into implementing a similar "special services district" in University City. Center City Proprietors Association Director Alphonse Pignataro praised the District's efforts and said there is "no question" the area has improved since the District was instituted six years ago. "With the new street lights and new plantings, it will create a whole softness about Center City," Pignataro said. He explained that the University would benefit greatly from the cleanliness and increased sense of safety that such districts provide.

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