Eastward Expansion: Deal joins nonprofit and private sectors

As Penn and Brandywine Realty Trust are poised to develop the postal lands east of campus, the face of University City is ripe for transformation.

Experts seem sold on the University's vision going forward, hopeful that it will provide a successful model for future development based on the partnership of the nonprofit and private sectors.

Eugenie Birch, chairwoman of Penn's City and Regional Planning department, called the project a "vote of confidence" in the city's economic viability.

She pointed out that Brandywine's significant investment in the project indicates that the company thinks it will get enough of a return to justify a major expenditure.

Brandywine is leasing 14 acres of land from Penn on which it is planning to build a 40- to-50-story office tower and a 35- to 40-story residential tower.

Birch added that this project is "showing what the 21st-century city can be" because it demonstrates how a large "anchor institution" like Penn can constructively engage with the community and the private sector to improve an area.

This stands in sharp contrast with expansion moves by Columbia and Harvard universities. Constrained by space, those schools have used eminent domain to demolish neighborhoods in order to gain breathing room for campus expansion.

Richard Voith, a Penn Real Estate professor and senior vice president at Econsult Corp., which advised Brandywine on the deal, also pointed to the jobs Cira Centre South will bring to West Philadelphia.

The facility will keep 5,000 Internal Revenue Services from relocating outside Philadelphia, but more importantly, it will house those working in the education sector.

"Education's a growth industry here, and this is a net positive," he said.

This sentiment was echoed by Harris Steinberg, executive director of Penn Praxis, the School of Design's consulting arm.

Steinberg noted that the land-lease deal according to which Brandywine is developing Cira Centre South will help Penn maintain a long-term cashflow from its properties.

This follows developments like the Hub at 40th and Chestnurt streets, Domus at 34th and Walnut streets and now the Radian at 38th and Walnut streets.

Penn allowed outside developers to foot the bill for those project, which will in turn address the University's own housing needs.

Despite the potential of the construction, much of the plan is still subject to revision by Brandywine, and it may be years before students see the residential and commercial aspects of the development.

"What you might see before you leave is a parking garage," History of Art department Chairman David Brownlee said.

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