Group sees Schuylkill as connector, not divider

Apparently, Penn is not the only group aiming to revitalize the area where the Schuylkill River divides University City from downtown.

The Schuylkill River Development Council, based in Center City, has been working vigorously to improve the long-overlooked West Philadelphia-Center City corridor for several years.

Seeing the river as an economic divider, the SRDC has thus far focused most of its resources around rehabilitating and redeveloping several blocks on either side of the Schuylkill.

Long neglected, it is that very area which has seen a flurry of development and improvement proposals recently.

In addition to Penn's recent acquisition of the 24 acres currently occupied by the U.S. Postal Service, Brandywine Realty Trust is planning a 28-story glass office tower adjacent to Amtrak 30th Street Station. There are also numerous other smaller projects either under construction or on the drawing boards.

The SRDC has been a major player in several of those projects, as it brings together a consortium of public, private and institutional groups, including Penn, to plan the area's future. It also works with 27 different neighborhood groups to better accomplish its goals.

"The University of Pennsylvania plays a significant role in our efforts as both a key investor, stakeholder and strong visionary leader," said Louise Turan, SRDC's executive director. "The active participation of Penn's president, staff, faculty and students ... strengthens our mission and puts us clearly on a path to success."

As one of its main projects, the SRDC has worked to secure funding for an eight-mile-long Schuylkill River Park, from the Fairmount Water Works southward to Fort Mifflin -- a Revolutionary War-era military fort just south of the Philadelphia International Airport.

And with over $12 million of that money already raised, it looks like the park and trail will be a reality in the not-too-distant future.

"The Schuylkill River has been cut off from Penn students and West Philadelphia for more than 100 years by lack of access," Turan said, pointing to the river's "challenging pedestrian crossings ... and lack of recreational amenities."

As of now, the first piece of that puzzle, an approximately one-mile-long segment of the park, extending from Locust Street north to the water works, is nearing completion.

In addition to creating the parks, the SRDC also will upgrade the existing bridges along the river, in an attempt to make them more amenable to multimodal traffic, including pedestrians.

Using as models other major cities that have successfully redeveloped their riverfronts -- such as New York, Baltimore and Milwaukee -- the agency thinks that Philadelphia can be the next major urban area to see a renaissance along its riverfront.

"The new Schuylkill Riverfront is a $2.5 billion investment in the future of Philadelphia and the region," Turan said. "The revitalization of the eight-mile corridor between the [Philadelphia Museum of Art] and the Delaware [River] will make Philadelphia a better place to live, work, learn, visit and play."

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