Philadelphia 2035 (King of Prussia, Washington, Franklin: middle-class, cell phone, worth)

[Pine to Vine]

Originally Posted by rotodome

Not sure who you mean exactly. Me? (I thought it was clear that I've already accepted the probable doom, but won't cheer it on)
Some of the questions you're demanding answers for honestly seemed a bit rhetorical.

Roto - The questions I posed are both rhetorical and practical, but they need to be answered by someone in order for the theater to be saved. You are a solid poster whose opinions and perspectives I respect. That said, I'm not suggesting you or anyone else on CD has the answers (or certainly the means to save the Boyd), but it may be that the questions I raised are the reasons why no one with the means sees a viable route to saving the Boyd.

As for this:

Originally Posted by rotodome

The Philadelphia I grew up in (I was born in the 70's), was a place in which the Sameric(Boyd) was a grand theatre. I remember waiting in line on Chestnut Street (where there were many theatres) to see all of the original star wars movies on the big screen (...and the screen at the Sameric was ENORMOUS), in that majestic auditorium. The Sameric is where premieres for high-profile Philadelphia movies (eg: Rocky, Philadelphia) would be held. Celebrities would attend. It was a pretty magical place. There is nothing like it in the city. It's a big loss. It's especially sad to have seen all of the lesser theatres on Chestnut disappear (except the Prince!), and then watch for years as the greatest of them declined, was ultimately abandoned, and then sat empty and neglected while it rotted beyond easy renovation. That theatre somehow survived through some of the city's darkest years in the late 80's to mid 90's. And now the recent resurgence of Center City, with all of that development money being thrown around, made some hopeful that the theatre might have held on long enough to finally be saved. People fought the good fight to try to save it for several years, but now that fight's just about over. The tragedy is partly that it can't be saved now, and party that it was even allowed to get to this point in the first place. IMO it's not something to be happy about. There are other things to be happy about, but not this.

I was born in the 50s and grew up in a small town with a very nice one screen theatre. Not as opulent as the Boyd, but a pretty nice place for our small town. All through my adolescent years, we would stand in long lines under the elm trees of the house next door to see Jerry Lewis comedies and John Wayne westerns. I saw MASH and Woodstock there. It closed some time in the 70s and sits there empty to this day. I understand nostalgia and it makes me sad that there is not a viable way to re-open that theatre. Time has moved on and so must I.

Don't count me among people happy that the Boyd will change. It is sad, and I connect with those who grew up here who feel a sense of personal loss. But do count me among those who would rather see it be re-invented than face the wrecking ball, if that is the only realistic choice.

[rotodome]

Originally Posted by jm02

Roto - The questions I posed are both rhetorical and practical, but they need to be answered by someone in order for the theater to be saved. You are a solid poster whose opinions and perspectives I respect. That said, I'm not suggesting you or anyone else on CD has the answers (or certainly the means to save the Boyd), but it may be that the questions I raised are the reasons why no one with the means sees a viable route to saving the Boyd.

As for this:

I was born in the 50s and grew up in a small town with a very nice one screen theatre. Not as opulent as the Boyd, but a pretty nice place for our small town. All through my adolescent years, we would stand in long lines under the elm trees of the house next door to see Jerry Lewis comedies and John Wayne westerns. I saw MASH and Woodstock there. It closed some time in the 70s and sits there empty to this day. I understand nostalgia and it makes me sad that there is not a viable way to re-open that theatre. Time has moved on and so must I.

Don't count me among people happy that the Boyd will change. It is sad, and I connect with those who grew up here who feel a sense of personal loss. But do count me among those who would rather see it be re-invented than face the wrecking ball, if that is the only realistic choice.

One thing I question about the current Boyd scenario is why demolition (aside from the facade) and re-building is being presented as the only possible way to fit the iPic program into the theater site. It seems that there is ample evidence to the contrary.

For example, when the renovation was done to the BAM Rose cinemas in Brooklyn, they basically carved new smaller theatres out of the large existing theater, putting some of them on the old theatre's balcony, and some on the old main floor level.
The Boyd's balcony alone similarly might hold three or so smaller auditoriums.
The result at BAM is some very classy and attractive smaller auditoriums where you have a more intimate experience with the ornate ceiling of the old theater. link to pic of a Bam Rose auditorium here and link to a pic of the Boyd balcony here
The iPic style easy-chairs could easily be accomodated in such a scenario.
The historical benefit is that the old theater is actually beautifully re-used & maintained, not destroyed. The city gets something with much more local character. It adds unique value and potentially more interest as an attraction to the new theatres, and in the future, the modification could theoretically be reversed if it made sense to do so. It's a win-win.

Maybe I'm wrong, but I'm not sure these new developers have actually demonstrated why stabilizing and converting the existing auditorium is impossible vs destroying it and building new. Granted, I always have a little trouble taking developers' words at face value. But what's the actual cost difference? Is it really just the question of a few million dollars? Doesn't it seem likely that some entity or entities would step up, get their name(s) on an auditorium or two, and make it possible, if this were something that were pitched to them?

[Pine to Vine]

^^^ I agree. This seems workable and filled with wins. So here's the good news: There is already a group of folks interested in preserving the Boyd. Rather than a landlord merely holding title, they now have a developer to engage with who wants to actually do something with the property. They will not be pushovers, of course - they rarely are. But a combination of good ideas with public exposure might result in something more than a nice though generic theatre. If something like this were to be achieved, it would be another feather in Philly's cap.

[rotodome]

It's a long shot, but I've got my fingers crossed.

[Lenses & Lights.]

Think it'll happen in the next few years? Is it worth it? How about extending into Northwest or farther into Northeast Philadelphia?

Casey calls for subway extension to Navy Yard

[rotodome]

Originally Posted by BillyJacc

Think it'll happen in the next few years? Is it worth it? How about extending into Northwest or farther into Northeast Philadelphia?

Casey calls for subway extension to Navy Yard

Completed in the next few years? Not a chance. It may get started if someone lines up funding, but who knows?
And IMO if the navy yard expansion is having trouble moving forward I see little hope for expansion in NW or NE any time soon. As mentioned in the article, Septa has 5 billion dollars worth of critical deferred maintenance to its infrastructure that it needs to tackle before queuing up expensive expansions.

[Lenses & Lights.]

Originally Posted by rotodome

Completed in the next few years? Not a chance. It may get started if someone lines up funding, but who knows?
And IMO if the navy yard expansion is having trouble moving forward I see little hope for expansion in NW or NE any time soon. As mentioned in the article, Septa has 5 billion dollars worth of critical deferred maintenance to its infrastructure that it needs to tackle before queuing up expensive expansions.

Yeah...Maybe late in our lifetimes but it's good if they can get the ball rolling for the needed repairs and upgrades to it's infrastructure.

[RightonWalnut]

Originally Posted by BillyJacc

Think it'll happen in the next few years? Is it worth it? How about extending into Northwest or farther into Northeast Philadelphia?

Casey calls for subway extension to Navy Yard

Yes. Well worth it. There are currently over 10,000 employee in the Navy Yard. By this time next year there will be over 12,000 employees in the Navy Yard as Urban Outfitters expands and there will be more added year by year. The Navy Yard is growing quickly and I think right now it is more important than expanding into the Northeast or Northwest. The Northwest is already served pretty well by multiple regional rail lines and while the Northeast is lacking, it is mostly car-oriented anyways. I think there needs to be more service in South Philly, a light rail line along the Delaware Waterfront, Regional Rail expansion to King of Prussia, a subway stop at 19th or 22nd and Market or another Regional Rail line at 19th or 22nd and JFK, a Regional Rail stop at the zoo, the re-use of the Spring Garden subway stop along the Broad-Ridge spur and the re-use of the old city branch right below Spring Garden that runs through the Franklintown/Parkway Museum District before SEPTA should consider expanding into the Northeast. Everything I mentioned will be much more frequently used.

[MikeNigh]

A Regional Rail stop at the zoo would be cool.

[Duderino]

Regarding the extension of the BSL to the Navy Yard, it's very good news that Pennsylvania has a fairly influential Senator advocating for this. It will make a difference regarding funding decisions in Washington.

Other than the increase in mass transit funding finally enacted in Pennsylvania -- which will finally allow SEPTA to make its expansion plans a reality in the coming years -- there is actually a movement to give states more power to implement federal funding based on their priorities.

Impact of Turning over the Federal Highway Program to the States

Not surprisingly, this is a conservative-initated effort, but I think there could be bi-partisan support for this because more mass-transit oriented states would no longer have to contend with more highway-focused states for funding priorities that are decided in DC.