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CITYSCAPE: RIP Passyunk Avenue pedestrian plaza. It was a nice idea.
A proposal to turn a short stretch of Passyunk Avenue into temporary park couldn't withstand resistance from a local business owner.
CITYSCAPE: RIP Passyunk Avenue pedestrian plaza. It was a nice idea.
Even Mitch Cohen, owner of Cohen & Co. hardware store, sounded like he couldn't believe he was saying it when he told CP a couple weeks ago that he'd come around to the idea — proposed by the South Street Headhouse District via a grant from the city — of turning his block into a pedestrian plaza. A scaled-down version, which would close only one lane of traffic rather than the whole block, had won him over; the same could not be said for the owners of J-Brite, the dry cleaner nearby. Sally Jeon, whose family owns J-Brite, told CP she was terrified the change in traffic patterns would decimate her business.
A recent Wall Street Journal article on a pedestrian plaza created in Jackson Heights illustrated the dangers of a poorly conceived pedestrian plaza: one business owner told the WSJ sales were down 60 percent, while another had to lay off four workers. While the Passyunk proposal seemed very different front the Jackson Heights one, SSHD decided it could not ignore local retailers' concerns.
They conclude:
As a Business Improvement District, SSHD is charged with insuring that all businesses are supportive of our projects and programming. At the onset there was support for the pedestrian plaza from businesses and residents alike. However, after further vetting of the project it became apparent that some owners in the immediate area were concerned that the creation of the Pedestrian Plaza would negatively impact their businesses, with the risk outweighing the reward.
SSHD is disappointed that the project will not become a reality yet is pleased that those business owners and stakeholders who were against the plan left negotiations knowing that the SSHD Board of Directors were trying to make the area better for its businesses and surrounding neighborhoods. These plazas have met great success in other cities, having provided sanctuary and respite in the midst of busy shopping corridors, have added square footage to local businesses and provided new green spaces. SSHD is hopeful to gain support in the future for initiatives such as this one. Owners and stakeholders will not always agree, yet moving forward SSHD is focused on finding the common ground to make projects like this one become a reality.
SSHD thanks those who supported this endeavor including local businesses, residents, the Queen Village Neighbors Association, the South Street Mini Station Detail, the City of Philadelphia and the Mayor’s Office of Transportation & Utilities. Special thanks to the landscape architect, Karen Clancy, RLA, ASLA, who donated her professional services and created the concept for the Pedestrian Plaza, Lt. Joe Bologna who made himself available at every meeting and offered his support of the plan and to Sal Kucuk of S&H Kebab House who hosted many of the meetings complete with an abundance of food and staff.
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