"All our childhood memories go back to a park story, a recreation center story, or a library story," argued Mayor Michael Nutter at a March 16 press conference at the
Fairmount Park Horticulture Center. It was an appropriate sentiment since he was announcing a $11 million investment in the
Fairmount Park Conservancy and its
Reimagining the Civic Commons initiative.
The Knight Foundation, with a commitment of $5.4 million, and the
William Penn Foundation, bringing $5.5 million to the table, are teaming up to provide these funds, which will in turn support five major civic projects, some of which have held the public imagination for decades.
The dollars, Nutter said, would further the city’s goal of making "Philadelphia the number one green city in the United States of America." The common denominator of all the projects, he added, is that they will revitalize and transform underutilized, under-resourced spaces.
Speakers joining Nutter were Fairmount Park Conservancy Executive Director Kathryn Ott Lovell; Michael DiBerardinis, Deputy Mayor for Environmental & Community Resources and Parks and Recreation Commissioner; William Penn Executive Director Laura Sparks; and Carol Coletta, vice president for community and national initiatives at the Knight Foundation.
According to Sparks, the investment will continue to build Philadelphia’s profile as a world-class destination for "shared spaces that a diverse population can enjoy." Partly because of our booming Millennial population, "Philadelphia is the ideal national laboratory" for civic space experiments like these, and foundations with a nationwide lens are recognizing it.
Reimagining the Civic Commons, according to the Conservancy, will "explore whether reinventing and connecting public spaces as a network of civic assets will help cities attract and keep talented workers," boost the economy, help get residents more engaged, and "begin to level the playing field between more affluent communities and those in need."
Instead of competing for funds, organizations involved will be able to collaborate with each other.
The conference included details on the five selected projects.
A collaboration between
Audubon Pennsylvania and
Outward Bound will help create
The Discovery Center in East Fairmount Park to inspire leadership development and environmental stewardship near the Strawberry Mansion neighborhood.
The Conservancy dollars will also finally make the
Reading Viaduct Rail Park a reality, repurposing it as a green public space that will rise from ground level to cross three city streets.
Center City District and
Friends of the Rail Park will join together to make it happen.
The Bartram’s Mile Trail Project along the lower Schuylkill River is part of the region’s planned 750-mile
Circuit Trail Network. It will be tackled thanks to a partnership between
Philadelphia Parks & Recreation and the
Schuylkill River Development Corporation.
The funds will also ensure the completion of
Lovett Memorial Library and Park in Mt. Airy, with support from the
Free Library and
Mt. Airy U.S.A.
Finally, the dollars will transform an underutilized piece of West Fairmount Park into the
Centennial Commons, a family-friendly playspace for the Parkside community. The Fairmount Park Conservancy will helm this project.
Stay tuned for more from
Flying Kite about the plans for these individual projects.
Writer: Alaina Mabaso
Sources: Mayor Michael Nutter; Kathryn Ott Lovell, the Fairmount Park Conservancy; Laura Sparks, the William Penn Foundation, and Carol Coletta, the Knight Foundation.