Center City District turns 10

The organization behind downtown Philadelphia's "clean and safe" program turned 10 years old yesterday, capping a decade that has seen Center City transformed from a no-man's land to one of the country's most celebrated civic recoveries. The Center City District's efforts to clean the streets, install new banners and planters and put a friendly face on the downtown area were praised last night at a gala at the Sofitel hotel. The event was attended by about 200 business leaders, residents and government officials who helped form the organization. It was even possible to literally run into Philadelphia's landmark skyscrapers, as dancers decked out as the city's tallest buildings made their way through the crowd. "Ten years ago we clearly were a city that was not only economically depressed, we were a city that was clinically depressed," CCD Executive Director Paul Levy said. "We lacked self-confidence in the city, and we frankly did not believe that this city could really be a first-rate destination." The CCD maintains an area roughly from 6th Street to the Schuylkill River and from Spruce Street to Vine Street through a mandatory property tax assessment. Its innovative efforts have been lauded by city officials across the country and around the world. Former Philadelphia Mayor Ed Rendell, the city's consummate salesman, praised "the business people and the community leaders in this city who could have cut and run in 1992, who could have said, 'This place is this pits.'" "But almost all of us stuck together.... All of us believed that Philadelphia could come back." Visitors to the downtown today can find an office district with its highest occupancy rates ever, a thriving restaurant scene and a rejuvenated Avenue of the Arts, in addition to a new sense of optimism. Building on this success is the new Kimmel Performing Arts Center, as well as Independence Mall's forthcoming visitors' and Constitution centers. "The Center City District was integral to the great progress that we have made in the city," Mayor John Street said. Winning the support of the business community was a key hurdle in starting this downtown management association, as the businesses pay the bulk of tax assessments. When the district was first instituted, it was approved by 88 percent of Center City residents and businesses. At the last survey in 1994, it was reapproved by a 99 percent majority. "Ten years ago was a tough start because we were just trying to get everybody on board," said John Binswanger, a CCD board member and the owner of the real estate company that bears his name. "Once we got the momentum going, now it's easy because everybody wants to be part of it." CCD recently completed a map of the city's fiber-optic network, as part of an effort to entice technology companies to locate downtown, making Philadelphia one of the only cities to have such a map available. Other projects include a facade improvement program, an anti-graffiti campaign and a program to assist the homeless. "What's been really exciting for me is that we have not stood still.... We have a really great staff that keeps coming up with new ideas," Levy said. "It's been just constant change and challenges." At the gala, CCD unveiled its first-ever television advertising campaign to market the downtown environment, and Levy announced nine other events through the year -- such as concerts and a spring festival -- to continue their anniversary celebration. "CCD has really done an incredible amount of work -- and it's so visible," said College senior Sara Nasuti, who interned with the CCD two years ago. One of its most public programs is the army of teal-clad community service representatives, who walk the streets to help visitors and tourists find their way around the city. "It's always a pleasure when you see someone who enjoyed the city," said CSR supervisor Larry Jones, adding that one of the highlights of his job is to make people "feel a little safer while they walk with you."