STATE OF CENTER CITY PHILADELPHIA 2021 Restoring | Returning | Reanimating Contents Introduction 1 Office 12 Health Care & Higher Education 18 Conventions, Tourism & Hotels 23 Arts & Culture 27 Retail 30 Employment 37 Transportation & Access 47 Downtown Living 53 Developments 62 Acknowledgements 64 Center City District & Central Philadelphia Development Corporation CENTERCITYPHILA.ORG Chapter Name| 1 Reanimating the City District | Center Center of the City Park Dilworth The global pandemic, local stay-at-home mandates and civil boarded-up storefronts and installed new artwork on many. We unrest created extraordinary challenges for all cities. In Center commissioned 200 decorative banners created by Philadelphia City, pedestrian volumes initially plummeted by 72%, as office artists. Our landscape teams planted street trees, filled park workers, hotel guests, regional shoppers, students, theater and flowerbeds with tens of thousands of bulbs and upgraded street restaurant patrons disappeared. At night, streets were devoid of lighting. We continued to provide fee-for-service cleaning for five cars, sidewalks were empty. From the very start in March 2020, adjacent residential neighborhoods. we had all of our on-street and park employees designated To enhance safety, we deployed new bike patrols and security “essential workers.” The central lesson from the Center City vans in afternoons and seven evenings per week, supplement- District’s founding 30 years ago suddenly had renewed reso- ing the role of our Community Service Representatives (CSRs). nance: the revival of economic activity and vitality depends upon In 2020, CSRs had more than 177,000 sustained conversations confidence in a public environment that is clean, safe with pedestrians seeking directions, responding to inquiries and attractive. from businesses or addressing safety or streetscape problems. We staggered shifts to preserve social distance in locker rooms, In 2019 and 2020, our homeless outreach teams, working in provided crews with safety equipment and, until retailers start- partnership with Project Home and the Philadelphia Police ed to reopen in June 2020, paid for and delivered lunch to all service detail, persuaded more than 300 individuals to come off on-street crews. Our dedicated employees, drawn from neigh- the street to connect with services and shelter. While daytime borhoods across the city, never stopped working, continuing to homelessness and panhandling on Center City sidewalks had serve as a visible, reassuring presence, responding to every new, been steadily rising since 2015, both declined in 2020, with op- unexpected challenge that came their way. portunistic panhandling dropping dramatically. Still, the absence of other people made the presence of those in need more visible CCD cleaners power-washed sidewalks and removed graf- and reduced the beneficial effect of many “eyes on the street.” fiti from building facades and street furniture. They painted Center City District & Central Philadelphia Development Corporation CENTERCITYPHILA.ORG 2 | State of Center City 2 Matt Stanley Matt Stanley BeauMonde Originals Staying mindful of established health guidelines, CCD promoted A successful Restaurant Week in September promoted outdoor Center City’s sidewalk level businesses that remained open, en- dining, takeout options and observance of all safety protocols. couraging takeout from restaurants, reminding residents across In January 2021, we launched a #TakeoutPhilly ad campaign to the region through traditional advertising, email newsletters and sustain restaurants, especially those unable to invest in heated social media about the unique shops, boutiques and fine dining outdoor seating, by encouraging residents to order directly from opportunities downtown. restaurants and tip generously. CCD licensed the campaign at no cost to neighborhood commercial corridors across the city. Staff worked closely with retail associations and City agencies to A successful Restaurant Week create “streeteries” in restaurant-dense Midtown Village and Rit- in September promoted outdoor tenhouse Row, closing streets to traffic on extended weekends, dining, takeout options and enabling restaurants to seat more customers, expanding dining beyond the sidewalk. observance of all safety protocols. CENTERCITYPHILA.ORG Center City District & Central Philadelphia Development Corporation Reanimating the Center of the City | 3 785 100 Building Facades Uniformed Cleaning Cleaned of Personnel and Graffiti Tags Supervisors Matt Stanley Well-managed parks and civic spaces are defining public ame- nities of downtown. To provide safe spaces for social gathering, we expedited repairs to Dilworth Park, turned the fountains on by early summer, frequently cleaned socially distanced seating and programmed activities that restored vibrancy without attracting large crowds. We invited residents to enjoy live entertainment during “Dinner at Dilworth” with takeout from nearby restaurants. We staged small-scale seasonal markets featuring local artisans and hosted performers and a brass quartet from Opera Philadelphia. Working closely with the City’s Health Department, we reconfig- ured the Wintergarden on the Greenfield Lawn, reimagined the Deck the Hall Holiday Lights display, deployed an open-sided BeauMonde Originals Rothman Orthopedics Cabin and managed the Rothman Orthopedics Ice Rink with time limits, reduced capacity and online-only ticketing. Despite a year of intentionally scaled-back Dilworth Park Annual Visitors events with crowd limitations, 6 million people visited Dilworth Park in 2020, about 60% of the volume in 2019. In Sister Cities Park, an expanded Children’s Discovery Garden reopened in the summer with capacity limits and new elements that became instant hits with children: a climbing net, a “hid- ing” nest, a stream dam and push-button water jets. Children’s programming continued through warmer months, providing safe outdoor spaces for families. Local artist Janell Wysock was 0 0 commissioned to create the fall installation “Color Under the 0 00 00 000 000 Canopy,” wrapping the park's trees with colorful panels of fabric. 7, 15, For the winter, a giant climbing log replaced water in the pond. ,0 ,828, ,68 10 10 10 5,999, Since 1997, CCD has invested $151.3 million in streetscape, 9,621,00 lighting and park improvements. 2016 2017 2018 20192020 Source: Center City District Center City District & Central Philadelphia Development Corporation CENTERCITYPHILA.ORG 4 | State of Center City 4 Matt Stanley Center City District Streetscape Assets, 2020 Center City District Streetscape Maintenance, 2020 STREET LANDSCAPING 3,740 Light Fixtures Trees Planted (Plant Center City) 103 Pedestrian Light Poles 2,879 Lighted Parkway 12 Trees Pruned 173 Building Facades Trees Replaced 46 City Hall Lighting - 85 10 Locations Light Fixtures on 12 Avenue 446 Shrubs, Perennials & Vines Planted 225 of the Arts Facades Light Fixtures Illuminating 64 Bulbs Planted 4,200 23 Sculptures Light Fixtures Illuminating 254 LIGHTING 6 Underpasses Pedestrian Light Poles Repaired 3 Pedestrian Poles Relamped 72 1,453 1,393 Parkway Sculpture Lights Relamped 6 Landscaping Graphic Displays Parkway Façade Lights Replaced 2 Street Trees 903 Local Artist Banners 199 SIGNS Planters 385 CCD Parks Banners 122 Wayfinding Signs Cleaned 110 Wayfinding Signs Updated 87 Trees in 4 Parks 165 Promotional Banners 943 Transit Portal Signs Cleaned 48 Storefront Artwork 55 Parkway Signs Cleaned 13 Printed Posters 69 Bus Shelter Signs Cleaned 36 Digital Screens 5 CCD PARKS 1,048 Street Furniture Shrubs, Perennials & Grasses Planted 630 Trees Planted 21 Adjustable Honor 25 Park Bike Racks 32 Box Corrals Trees Pruned 39 Park Benches 31 Bulbs Planted 26,700 Fixed (In-Ground) 15 Streetscape Benches 18 Honor Box Corrals OTHER Banner Poles 157 On-Street Bike Racks 17 Graffiti Tags & Stickers Removed 36,255 On-Street Bollards 753 (All Street Furniture & Fixtures) 1,268 Signs Pedestrian Light Poles 442 Lighted Parkway 209 Building Facades City Hall Lighting - 259 10 Locations Light Fixtures on 12 Avenue 65 of the Arts Facades Light Fixtures Illuminating 240 23 Sculptures Light Fixtures Illuminating 53 6 Underpasses CENTERCITYPHILA.ORGCENTERCITYTPHILA.ORG Center City District & Central Philadelphia Development Corporation Reanimating the Center of the City | 5 Total CCD Employees by Home ZIP Code Philadelphia Employment by Area in Philadelphia 1 Far Northeast 1 6.7% 3 2 2 5 1 3 Roxborough/ Olney/ 2 1 Manayunk Near Northeast 1 Oak Lane 7 1 1.0% Germantown/ 3.8% 5.9% 5 Chestnut Hill 1 3.6% 4 Bridesburg/ 1 1 North Kensington/ Philadelphia Richmond 5 6.0% 6.2% 5 1 West 2 Philadelphia 6 3 4 4 3.0% 1 University 4 City Greater 3 Number of Employees 11.3% 1 1 by ZIP Code Center City 4 42.0% 11.0% 5 7 None 1-2 2 3-4 1.3% 9 8 5-6 Southwest South 7-9 Philadelphia Philadelphia 4.6% 2 1.1% Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Longitudinal House- Navy Yard hold Employment Dynamics, 2018. 1.2% PHL Airport 3.6% 140 (82%) of CCD employees live in the City of Philadelphia; each year CCD contracts provide work opportunities for another 118 Philadelphia residents Restoring the Economy: Maintaining and animating spaces The absence of more than 115,000 professional, tech, business was an interim strategy, a holding action, waiting for production and financial services workers and thousands of non-essential and distribution of vaccines to bring the economy back to life. health care and education employees, caused ridership on For those who live or continued to work