The Design Advocacy Group of Philadelphia (DAG) commonly prepares conceptual community planning studies addressing important civic planning issues to illustrate the potentials of complex sites that may not be well understood without examination and proposed plans. These studies are for discussion only and have no official status, although we hope that they will inspire conversation and debate, and will have positive influence on public policy, community and institutional engagement.
The Grays Ferry Riverfront Design Workshop was held in November of 2020, with a report completed in May 2021, and was our most in-depth conceptual community planning study to date. During the workshop, forty professionals working in four multi-disciplinary teams developed conceptual, illustrative plans that responded to different economic changes and pressures, with the intention of informing a plan for advocacy. The report is an effort to develop design principles for the Schuylkill River and the adjacent Grays Ferry neighborhood, as well as to combat displacement and other socio-economic effects of gentrification in the neighborhood. The planning process focused on developing tools to advocate for equitable neighborhood planning and redevelopment.
This study looks at the development pressures surrounding Grays Ferry, which include the Schuylkill River Trail, Pennovation, the refinery site redevelopment, the expansion of hospitals on the east bank of the Schuylkill River and the continuing robust demand for housing near Center City. It suggests making Grays Ferry Avenue a commercial boulevard serving the neighborhood and looks closely at addressing the problems of reaching the waterfront which is separated from much of the neighborhood by a major railroad right of way. It also anticipates a conceptual future redevelopment of the existing shopping mall site. It should be noted that this report represents the views of an independent group of professionals working during the early days of the COVID crisis. It is meant to support a neighborhood and its institutions as they face these challenges, by providing specific ideas for a thoughtfully planned and affordable future.
The DAG Steering Committee
