Recent suggestions from Philadelphia's City Council threaten the city's rebound and could turn swaths of Philadelphia into suburbia, argues Inga Saffron in a recent opinion piece.
City Council members have put forward proposals that may threaten the walkability and attractiveness of metro Philadelphia. According to The Philadelphia Inquirer's Inga Saffron, these proposals threaten Philadelphia's recovery by recommending outdated ideas on how to plan neighborhoods.
Among a number of proposals, Saffron first points to one from Councilmember Jannie Blackwell, "Who is pushing legislation that would double the amount of parking required in new developments." Blackwell found an ally in her push for parking in City Council President, Darrell Clarke, who, when describing the kind of development he would like, points the city toward his own district, which has many car-first developments. "If you wander thorough Clarke's district, you can see several of these mini-suburbs. They are the legacy of the early 1990s, when Philadelphia was at its lowest point," Saffron cautions.
The author would prefer that Philadelphia envision development that values keeping more people in the city. She points out how the current proposals are completely at odds with the president's pro-development playbook. While these council members talk a good game about affordable housing, Saffron warns, "Low-density development sabotages their stated goal of creating affordable housing."
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