Philadelphia 2035 (Progress, Franklin, Houston: cinema, interiors, pay)

[cpomp]

Originally Posted by rotodome

This rationale that the "best hope" to preserve an important historic theatre is to demolish it makes NO sense.
They want to throw a bone to preservationists by restoring the small chestnut street facade...which is the least impressive, remarkable, or important historical aspect of the theater.

IMO this false 'hardship' argument they're using is a flimsy justification for demolishing the LAST great movie palace in Philadelphia!
iPic could just as (or more) easily do this on another nearby site. Like for example, how about the vacant lot on Walnut were the Eric Rittenhouse theatre burned down and has been sitting vacant for decades? here: https://maps.google.com/maps?q=phila...46.79,,0,-7.71

Several other cities have managed to save historical movie palaces. Why not Philly, who has a greater legacy than most, and prides itself on it's history?? Gah.

This is a statement from Friends of the Boyd on the matter:Friends of the Boyd

Would much rather see a sleek high rise condominium in that parcel on Walnut St

[rotodome]

Originally Posted by cpomp

Would much rather see a sleek high rise condominium in that parcel on Walnut St

If it were a zero sum argument, then personally I'd value saving a unique historical treasure in a city like Philadelphia over yet another condo building.
But since it's not, I don't see why you couldn't have a new building on that (Walnut St)site with both a theatre AND a residential component. Such a thing is far from unprecedented. And it would be great to have more activities on the park.

[gwillyfromphilly]

Originally Posted by jm02

(btw - the web link was not functional for me, but I found the notice via search).

I just fixed the link.

This is pretty big news. I would guess this puts Blattstein in the driver's seat. Do folks who've lived here longer see things differently?

I'm a little surprised myself. I would have loved to see another casino on the waterfront. Hopefully they can get another project going in the Fishtown area as a replacement. As for the rest of the casino bids still at play, I would rather have it located on North Broad than Center City. Philly doesn't need any casinos in it's downtown area. That's my opinion on it.

[pgm123]

Originally Posted by jm02

Yea - I think is just the traditional Chinatowns where tourists and locals are used to visiting that are under threat. Cities evolve and new ethnic populations show up in neighborhoods previously housed by other ethnic groups. Anyone who has been to Little Italy in NYC or the Italian Market is South Philly can attest to this. (Interesting that North Boston has been somehow remained a bastion of Italians, however, somehow bucking that trend.) In Philly, however, Chinatown would be particularly vulnerable to gentrification given its prime location sandwiched between the financial district, Northern Libs and growth potential of North Broad.

Thought the article was interesting. Personally, I'd hate to see the neighborhood cease to be the center of the Asian community and just a place for tourists, a la NYC's Little Italy. The authentic Asian neighborhood they've created contributes to the urban fabric that makes the city interesting.

Those other neighborhoods are, strictly speaking, not Chinatowns, but ethnoburbs, according to one sociologist. The difference is that a true Chinatown is essentially an ethnic ghetto--poor and working class immigrants move to these areas because there is a support network and things are cheap. After a couple generations, they'll tend to move to better neighborhoods with better schools. These areas will often be places to find authentic culture, but they are not the same as a true Chinatown, for better and for worse. It's an often repeating pattern that is caused by a combination of an increase in the standard of living and an increase in rents.

I'd love to see Chinatown stay intact, but it doesn't seem really likely. There will still be ethnic enclaves in the city, but the era of downtown ethnic ghettos seem to be fading.

[rotodome]

Originally Posted by pgm123

Those other neighborhoods are, strictly speaking, not Chinatowns, but ethnoburbs, according to one sociologist. The difference is that a true Chinatown is essentially an ethnic ghetto--poor and working class immigrants move to these areas because there is a support network and things are cheap.

I don't understand this distinction, since that's exactly what most of the mentioned neighborhoods are. There's nothing "burb" about, say , Sunset Park. Would South Philly also fall under this one sociologist's categorization?

I do think that it's a little crazy to expect any urban neighborhood to persist in the same form and the same place with the same demographic for hundreds of years. There's really no reason why it should.

[Cnote11]

Originally Posted by jm02

Interesting article in today's Inky about Chinatown: A hard look at the future of Chinatowns

I suppose this is the day I move out of Philadelphia; I definitely feel most at home in Chinatown (and Old City/Wash Square area) I still mourn the stagnation and loss of a could-have-been flourishing Koreatown.

[RightonWalnut]

Title: Museum Towers II
Project: Residential Apartments/Retail
Architect: Perkins Eastman
Developer: Forest City Residential
Location: 1801 Buttonwood St., Philadelphia, PA
Neighborhood: Franklintown/ Parkway Museum District
District: Center City
Floors: 16
Height: ??









http://www.phila.gov/CityPlanning/pr...d%20Street.pdf

[pgm123]

Originally Posted by rotodome

I don't understand this distinction, since that's exactly what most of the mentioned neighborhoods are. There's nothing "burb" about, say , Sunset Park. Would South Philly also fall under this one sociologist's categorization?

I do think that it's a little crazy to expect any urban neighborhood to persist in the same form and the same place with the same demographic for hundreds of years. There's really no reason why it should.

I may have quoted the wrong post. I thought I was referring to areas like Flushing, Queens, but that's not in there at all. The general tendency is for the neighborhood in the inner city to change to accommodate new immigrant groups and the old immigrant groups to form an ethnic enclave farther out or to simply integrate into the main culture and disperse.

[rotodome]

Originally Posted by pgm123

I may have quoted the wrong post. I thought I was referring to areas like Flushing, Queens, but that's not in there at all. The general tendency is for the neighborhood in the inner city to change to accommodate new immigrant groups and the old immigrant groups to form an ethnic enclave farther out or to simply integrate into the main culture and disperse.

Flushing was actually mentioned, in the same sentence with Sunset Park and Sheepshead Bay. I don't think that Flushing is especially suburban either. Certainly they are all landing points for immigrants. But I do think that Flushing comes closer to the "ethnoburb" definition (as I think I understand it) than those other two, only in that it's generally more affluent, and a bit more "2nd generation" than them.
But then, that's also arguably the case with other Chinatowns that are being recognized as 'Chinatowns' (eg: Philadelphia's Chinatown), so maybe not the best tack to take.

I think that the new general tendency, in the late 20th & 21st century (as opposed to 18th & 19th century immigration patterns that were driven by entirely different economies and infrastructure) does not necessarily follow that same old model of "inner city first, then disperse".

Is a critical distinction just the "tourist attraction" element of historical Chinatowns?

[kidphilly]

More changes to Renaissance Plaza proposal

PlanPhilly | More changes to Renaissance Plaza proposal