Philadelphia Vacancy: Opportunities in Blight

27th and Girard Avenues. Photo via Flickr user MikeWebkist, Creative Commons License

What would you do with the thousands of vacant lots in Philadelphia? 

Like every rustbelt city in America, Philadelphia's population and economy has shrunk considerably since 1950. As the city has shrunk, vacant and abandoned properties are left dotting the city landscape, awaiting better days. A new report, "Vacant Land Management in Philadelphia: The Costs of the Current System and the Benefits of Reform," was released last week by the Redevelopment Authority of Philadelphia (RDA) and the Philadelphia Association of Community Development Corporations (PACDC), who are trying to grasp the depth of the vacancy problem and what to do about it.

The report estimates that of the 40,000 vacant parcels (identified using Water Department data for plots where water service has been turned off), 31,000 are held privately while 9,000 are public*. The result is serious tax delinquency that costs the city millions in lost revenue each year, and diminished property values of nearby parcels. While some of the properties identified as vacant still have structures on them, most are empty lots. Although these lots are pervasive, they are most concentrated in North and West Philadelphia.

By understanding the conditions surrounding property vacancies, Philadelphia hopes to create a more transparent, simple, and uniform process for the redevelopment of these properties. The report acknowledges that many of the problems and the solutions lie in the city's hands. Although Philadelphia could use its tax foreclosure powers to seize tax delinquent lots, it has been reticent to exercise this power. Now might be the time. Additionally, since no single city agency is responsible for acquisition, parcel assembly, disposition, or even planning for these properties. Mayor Nutter has, however, convened the different agencies responsible for pieces of the vacancy puzzle in order to develop a more coordinated approach.

In some neighborhoods, where the purchase prices of existing buildings exceed the cost of new construction, there is real potential for many vacant parcels to be developed into housing or some commercial use that will add value and vitality. In other neighborhoods where the problems of vacancy are greater, there is potential for some really interesting and different uses beyond housing, such as urban agriculture - a vibrant and important movement in Philly. The city will announce its ambitions for the creation of 500 acres of new open space next month, an initiative that will likely be aided by the extent of property vacancies. Overall, the goal is to reduce the number of long-term vacancies and to encourage transitioning these lots into productive use.

Diversified redevelopment of these vacant parcels would create jobs (construction and commercial enterprises), and generate badly needed revenue. Perhaps more importantly, it could help declining neighborhoods reverse course and stabilize.

*As an aside, the Preservator wonders, however, how many of the 9,000 publicly-owned parcels were razed by the Neighborhood Transformation Initiative under former Mayor John Street? This ambitious initiative (think creative destruction) sought to create development opportunities, but often resulted in blighted, vacant lots.

Related News:
"RDA Vacant Land Report Released" on PlanPhilly
"Growth Report: Reimagining Philly's Vacant Land" on The Griddle
"New Study Puts a Hefty Price on Philadelphia Blight" Jennifer Lin, Philadelphia Inquirer (check out the graphic with this article)

Photo Friday + Hot Links

Austin Limestone. It's everywhere and really suits the environment. Photo by Preservator.

 In the spirit of sharing, here's some interesting stuff from across the transom this week:

Scouting New York on the Smallest Plot of Land in New York City

Inga Saffon's Philadelphia Inquirer Architecture Critic on the new South Street Bridge design. It's not as beautiful as it could be, but there are bike lanes and chunks of it shouldn't be fall onto the expressway or the Schuylkill River anytime soon. We hope.

The New York Times reports on the Underbelly Project, a top secret art exhibition mounted in an abandoned subway station.

NYT City Room also reports on the removal of Roberta Brandes Gratz, whose books The Preservator has long enjoyed, from the NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission and will likely move toward the Mayor's advisory panel on sustainability. Her voice on the LPC was appreciated, and it will serve preservation well to have her in the room as PlaNYC is revised. Here's hoping preservation is better represented in the city's strategy for creating a more sustainable future. We're counting on you Roberta.

Crumbling Coney

Coney Island's classic boardwalk. Photo by Preservator

In the ever-saddening annals of Coney Island, two bummers surfaced this week:

The New York Times reports that 9 boardwalk establishments are losing their leases. And one of The Preservator's favorite sites, Lost City, waxes nostalgic on Ruby's Closing. News like this confirms the fears that the homogenizaiton of Coney Island knows no end.

In other bad news, the Department of Parks and Recreation has proposed replacing part of the boardwalk with concrete. This ticked off Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz, who trashed the idea in a letter to Parks Commish Adrian Benape. The NY Daily News's coverage (here) said that Parks was trying to comply with the city's policy of reducing use of tropical hardwoods. Surely, Marty says, there's another sustainable option that keeps the boardwalk real. There's a part of me that thinks even if everything else changes at Coney Island, at least there's the boardwalk and the beach. The BOARDwalk (not concrete sidewalk) is part of what makes the place what it is, and speaks to its history. To ditch it is remarkably disrespectful and uncreative.

Modernistic Austin

The Preservator has, dear reader, been on a brief hiatus. It wasn't you, it was we. In part, The Preservator has been on the road. One recent stop was at the National Trust for Historic Preservation Conference in Austin, Texas.

In Austin, The Preservator was lucky enough to take a a walking tour of downtown's Art Deco buildings. Evidently, Art Deco came late and stayed late in Texas, leaving behind a rich mixture of public and private buildings in the Texas Hill Country. In Austin, here's some of what we saw.


At the time these buildings were constructed, they weren't called Art Deco, but simply "Modernistic." The Depression-era building boom that led to the construction of these buildings also helped create a more modern image of Texas and its cities.

Our tour was led by the wonderful historian David Bush from the Greater Houston Preservation Alliance. Along with his colleague Jim Parsons, Bush wrote Hill Country Deco, which was the impetus for the tour.

Photo Friday: Carriage Barn

Photo by Preservator

Sunday, October 3, 2010. Morning at the Coach Barn at Shelburne Farms, built 1902.

Gov. Christie Derails ARC Tunnel

New Jersey Governor Chris Christie is making The Preservator’s blood boil. Today Gov. Christie announced that he is pulling New Jersey’s funding for the ARC (aka Access to the Region's Core) Transit Tunnel under the Hudson River.  Gov. Christie put a moratorium on the construction of new tunnels for commuter rail lines under the Hudson River, citing concerns about the project’s budget.  It has been widely reported that Gov. Christie was expected to pull state funding from the project. In doing so, Gov. Christie has made a decision that would adversely affect the entire Northeast Megaregion by choking commuter rail travel even as ridership increases.

Proposed map of ARC Tunnel project. Image via arctunnel.com, by NJ Transit and the Port Authority of NY and NJ

Despite this announcement today, Transportation Nation reports that Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood and Gov. Christie intend to meet tomorrow to discuss alternatives so that the ARC Tunnel project may continue.

Right now Amtrak and New Jersey Transit share the two century-old rail tunnels between New Jersey and Midtown Manhattan. These tunnels are at capacity; meanwhile ridership has more than quadrupled since 1984, and has increased 150% in the last 10 years.  The ARC tunnel would double the existing commuter rail capacity between NJ and NY, carrying an additional 100,000 passengers daily.

On the Manhattan end, this tunnel is a component of the intricate planned expansion of New York Penn Station and the restoration of the old Farley Post Office, set to become the new Moynihan Station. After years in the planning, the ARC tunnel construction phase began in 2009 and tunneling began this year. Of the $8.7 billion budget, the Port Authority of NY and NJ and the Federal Transportation Authority are each putting $3 billion toward the project, and the State of New Jersey had pledged about $2.7 billion to the project. According to Gov. Christie's estimates the actual project budget is anticipated to top $11 billion.

Gov. Christie’s excuse for stalling and canceling the project is that New Jersey would be on the hook for cost overruns. He says that because New Jersey is broke, the taxpayers cannot afford any additional costs. And, by the way, Gov. Christie reportedly wants to use the $2.7 billion committed to ARC to plug the impending bankruptcy of the state’s Transportation Trust Fund, which is used to maintain the state’s roads and rails. At best, transit advocates say, this funding will only solve the state’s transportation funding for a few years.

If U.S. Senator Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ) has his way, New Jersey will have to reimburse the $300 million (plus interest and penalties) of federal dollars already put toward the project. Essentially, the state would be breaking its commitment to the project, in exchange for which New Jersey received Federal funding. If that weren’t enough, Lautenberg asked the Port Authority this week to commit to covering any overruns.

Gov. Christie’s decision is outrageous. While it’s true that New Jersey is struggling financially, the tunnel project is anticipated to turn a profit for the state after it is built. A report by the Regional Plan Association (RPA) this summer projected significant property value increases (and therefore property tax revenue) for homes near rail stations in New York and New Jersey.  Additionally, the same RPA report notes that because the ARC tunnel would shorten commute times, the number of commuters will increase.

The Preservator takes the long view on just about everything. When we’re forward looking, it’s to a deep future, not the next 5-10 years. Times may be hard today, but New Jersey cannot and should not make decisions out of political expedience at the expense of real long term gains. 

Many transportation advocates have suggested that New Jersey should raise its absurdly low gas tax, which has remained stable for decades and contributes to the state’s low prices at the pump. Raising the gas tax may even push more commuters out of the driver’s seat and into the state’s rail system.

In killing this project Gov. Christie would commit one of the worst decisions for the entire region of the century. America can no longer be in the business of building fossil-fuel dependent transportation. The ARC tunnel project has been 20 years in the making and is the precise sort of project that the America of the 21st Century needs. We need more efficient and sustainable ways of moving regional populations to work. Any transportation planner will tell you that you cannot build your way out of a traffic problem by increasing road capacity. It simply doesn’t work. Our nation’s rail system (freight, Amtrak, regional rail) has been woefully underfunded and the Obama administration is working hard on reversing that trend.  (It helps that Vice President Biden was an Amtrak commuter as a Senator.)

You can thank Gov. Christie for keeping the Northeast Megaregion trapped in the 20th Century, with punishing commutes on aging infrastructure. You can thank him for filling New Jersey’s potholes and robbing the region’s future to do so.

Photo Friday: Empire Stores

The Empire Stores c. 1869. 1885.  53-83 Water Street, Fulton Ferry Historic District, Brooklyn. September 13, 2010. 10:52am