Philadelphia Advances Five Green Corridor Transformations with Investments Up to $329 Million

en.Wedoany.com Reported - Philadelphia is advancing transformation projects for five streets and waterfront spaces—South Broad Street, Market East, the Old City section of Market Street, Washington Avenue, and Penn's Landing—with individual investments ranging from $1.85 million to $329 million. The lead entities include municipal departments as well as public-private partnership organizations and design and engineering firms.

The AveArts 2.0 project, a $150 million multi-year effort led by Gensler and OJB, is transforming South Broad Street—the "Avenue of the Arts"—following the model of the Avenue des Champs-Élysées in Paris. The segment passes through City Hall and extends north-south to Washington Avenue. Carl Dranoff, Chairman of the Avenue of the Arts Board of Directors, calls the project one of Philadelphia's most important public opportunities. Phase 1A opened in June, testing the design vision in the avenue's center median and highlighting the median as the core expression of the avenue concept. Gensler subsequently divided the project into two phases: first the center median, then extending the design to the sidewalks up to the building edges. Oliver Schaper, Gensler Director and Project Lead, said the plan required a flexible solution—introducing a family of similar elements that could be arranged differently on each block, thereby supporting the entire avenue as a corridor.

In July, Philadelphia announced it had secured funding to launch planning and design for the Market East corridor. The Market East Revival project, overseen by the Office of Transportation and Infrastructure Systems and the Department of Planning and Development (DPD), is part of Mayor Cherelle L. Parker's coordinated efforts. The goal is to connect commerce and the arts, creating a safer, more connected commercial corridor. A $1.85 million municipal grant funds new bus shelters, transit headhouses, trees, murals, lighting, and plantings, coordinated by the Center City District. The project is jointly overseen by DPD and the public-private Market East Corridor Advisory Group. Construction has not yet begun. A total of $2.5 million in federal grants was awarded in July to support planning and public engagement, providing the basis for improvements to Market Street sidewalks, curbs, and lanes. Public engagement, research and analysis, and outreach to peer cities and subject matter experts are ongoing; a plan to revitalize the corridor will be released by the end of this year.

The $16 million Market Street Old City Improvement Project broke ground in 2024 and opened to the public in June of this year, modernizing the corridor across four blocks between Second and Sixth Streets. Philadelphia-based planning firm Urban Engineers led implementation, with Ground Reconsidered responsible for landscape architecture and design, led by Julie Bush. The team's strategy was to use materials to reinforce the site's grid system, making lane separations and curb bump-outs more legible. Plant selections include Amsonia blue ice, purple coneflower, wood spurge, and geranium Rozanne—plants that provide seasonal interest and tolerate drought and extreme heat. Bush noted that the benefit of exposed aggregate concrete is its compatibility with the granite pavers along Market East; for bike lane separations and curb bump-outs, it is a design language that can extend all the way to City Hall.

The Washington Avenue Connector, commissioned by the Delaware River Waterfront Corporation, is a $9.5 million urban improvement project that will transform a half-mile stretch of Washington Avenue into a safer, greener multi-modal passage. Launched in April 2025 and scheduled to open to the public this fall, it is led in design by Andropogon, a firm specializing in ecological design and sustainable landscape architecture. The planting strategy relies on native trees, hardy shrubs, and perennials designed to adapt to urban conditions while managing stormwater runoff. A new multi-modal shared path on the south side of Washington Avenue directly connects to the curb-protected Delaware River Trail; curb bump-outs at intersections slow traffic and improve visibility; center medians serve as pedestrian refuge islands in the middle of Washington Avenue; and new signals with pedestrian push buttons allow the city to coordinate signals and calm traffic to a consistent speed.

Penn's Landing Park is part of the $329 million urban revitalization initiative, the Interstate 95 Central Access Philadelphia (CAP) project. Construction officially began in 2023, with the structural highway cap expected to be completed in 2029 and the final park to open to the public by 2030. Internationally renowned firm Hargreaves Jones is responsible for the overall site planning, grading design, and green space layout of the 11.5-acre cap park. As part of the CAP project, the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) is installing an extension of the South Street Pedestrian Bridge spanning Columbus Boulevard. The bridge, scheduled to open in 2027, will connect pedestrians and cyclists to the Delaware River Waterfront and is led in design by Hill International. The bridge's construction approach includes installing the arch structure at night, rolling the bridge body across the six-lane highway by truck, and placing it on pre-installed piers. With this addition, Philadelphians will have easier access to the city's waterfront green space and gain a new landmark structure.