$45 million sought to fix part of Fairmount Park Posted on July 10th
Looking to connect Fairmount Park’s rich past to the present, officials yesterday announced federal legislation to authorize funding for a major revitalization of the park’s vast historic Centennial District.
At a fountain in front of iconic Memorial Hall, U.S. Sen. Bob Casey and U.S. Rep. Chaka Fattah said they were seeking $45 million to upgrade the Centennial District, which encompasses the Philadelphia Zoo, the Mann Center for the Performing Arts, the Parkside Avenue corridor, and Memorial Hall, the future home of the Please Touch Museum.
The money would be used to improve the district’s infrastructure, lighting and signs, and to boost major institutions in the park, officials said.
Casey said the legislation, which he introduced, would “bring life to a great memory, but also give meaning to our future here in this city and community.”
He and others noted that Memorial Hall, along the Parkside Avenue corridor in West Philadelphia, was built as the centerpiece of the Centennial Exhibition of 1876, which marked the country’s 100th anniversary and attracted vast numbers of visitors to Philadelphia.
In 1876, from May 10 to Nov. 10, more than 10 million people visited the Centennial Exhibition, said Mark Focht, Fairmount Park executive director.
“That was more than a quarter of the nation’s entire population in 1876,” Focht said.
He said more than 200 buildings were constructed at the exhibition site. Focht said nearly 40 nations and 26 states built pavilions and exhibited wares there, including the newly developed telephone, and the arm and torch of the Statue of Liberty.
A master plan for the Centennial District calls for revitalization of the area over 20 years and examines the connections between the district and the surrounding neighborhoods.
Miller Parker, a representative of the Business Association of West Parkside, said the Centennial District revitalization would be an economic boost to the community.
“We need to expand the connection between the park and the adjacent neighborhoods,” Parker said. “This Centennial District project will stimulate new residential construction. It will mean more jobs.”
Fattah said the legislation would “help us revitalize, empower and drive a local economy that really is steeped in history but also is key to the city’s future.”
City Councilman Curtis Jones Jr. said, “We’re going to work . . . to make this one of the premier destinations in Philadelphia for families and individuals who know their history. We’re going to make it a great place to live, work and play.”
Contact staff writer Vernon Clark at 215-854-5717 or vclark@phillynews.com.