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2023

A Look Back at Big Moments in 2023 for Philadelphia

December 8, 2023 by Maggie Jiang

Before 2023 comes to an end, we wanted to reflect on events that have made a significant impact on Philadelphia and the surrounding region. This year was full of changes and excitement–from returning events and groundbreaking concerts to the election of new policymakers– the City has had its fair share of noteworthy moments. As we prepare for 2024, our team has compiled a list of events to look back on.

Philly’s 100th Mayor and transition team are announced

Philadelphia residents have made their voices heard and elected our 100th mayor. Mayor-elect Cherelle Parker, will become the City’s first female mayor after winning the race against David Oh. Parker, a former city councilwoman, also served as a state representative for Northwest Philadelphia. She will assume her role on January 2, 2024 and in the meantime is building a transition team of business leaders and policy makers. We congratulate Mayor-elect Parker on her victory as well as all who have been selected for her transition team! Likewise, we thank outgoing Mayor Jim Kenney for his leadership and service to the City.

Collapse and repair of I-95 unfolds

In June, a significant portion of I-95 collapsed in the Northeast region of Philadelphia. The incident caused major traffic disruptions for commuters and commercial vehicles who were forced to detour through local neighborhoods. I-95 plays a major role in the transportation of commercial goods. This accident posed serious challenges in an already strained supply chain ecosystem. City, State, and Federal officials, however, were able to get the highway repaired in about a two-week period. Restoration of the downed portion of the highway was live streamed on the internet as construction workers and officials worked around the clock to help restore the road.

Construction begins on Penn’s Landing Park

In other news related to I-95, the project of capping a portion of the interstate began after a two-year delay. The goal of this project is to connect Old City to the Delaware riverfront, creating roughly 12 acres of new parkland. With the help of PennDOT, the project is expected to be completed in 2 years, with visible construction anticipated to be seen this coming spring. The cap will contribute to the master plan of the Delaware Riverfront along with two other amenities, the Spruce Street Harbor Park, and the Cherry Street Pier.

Taylor Swift and Beyoncé make waves

Singers Taylor Swift and Beyoncé both had highly anticipated shows come through the City this year. Taylor Swift completed three shows which spanned from May 12-14. Each of Swift’s shows were packed with fans. Those who could not secure tickets listened alongside concert goers from outside Lincoln Financial in the stadium district’s parking lots. Beyoncé also played to massive crowds at Lincoln Financial Field. She kicked off the U.S. leg of her Renaissance tour on July 12 right here in South Philly. Fans began lining up at the gates at 5:30 PM, hours before doors would open. SEPTA accommodated for eager fans by including 5 extra trains the weekend of Taylor Swift’s performances, along with extending late night regional rail services. Commuters who utilized SEPTA to go to Beyoncé’s concert saw similar accommodations, with an additional 10 trains added to the Broad Street Line that day to ease travel to and from the stadium.

The Eagles come close in Super Bowl LVII

The Philadelphia Eagles made it to Super Bowl LVII, going head-to-head against the Kansas City Chiefs. This also marked the first time that brothers have squared off against each other in the 57 years since the Super Bowl Began with both Jason (Eagles) and Travis (Chiefs) Kelce stealing the show. The Eagles were unfortunately defeated, but a rematch may be in the near future. According to The Athletic, the Chiefs and the Eagles are once more favorites to win Super Bowl LVIII. Go Birds!

The Philadelphia Flower Show returns indoors

The Philadelphia Flower Show made its return to the Pennsylvania Convention Center. For the two years prior, the Flower Show was relocated to South Philadelphia’s FDR Park due of ongoing health concerns related to COVID-19. With the exception of 2021 and 2022, the Flower Show has been held at the Convention Center since 1996. ESI was commissioned in 2022 by the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society to calculate the impact of the show returning indoors. The report showcases the local and regional value of the show, but also broader impacts, like increased public transit use, small and minority business growth opportunities, and increasing equitable growth in the aftermath of the pandemic.

Center City District continues its recovery

Center City District’s recovery has been steadily seeing a positive recovery in the amount of activity occurring downtown. Center City is a vital hub of employment, tourist attraction, and a place many residents call home. The arts, retail, restaurants, and more have all contributed to the recovery of Center City. Additionally, the number of residents has risen 26% along with tourism and office workers coming back to 70% of pre-pandemic levels according to KWY News.

The snowless streak continues, but maybe not for long

The Philadelphia region has gone more than 667 days without substantial snowfall, meaning the City has seen less than one inch or more of snow. However, things could change dramatically this winter. The region is predicted to see around 25 total inches of snowfall. This is low compared to other parts of Pennsylvania such as Montrose which is expected to see up to 85 inches of snow, and other parts of southwestern Pennsylvania that could potentially see 120 inches this season.

SEPTA Key Advantage builds momentum

The City of Philadelphia became a participating member in the SEPTA Key Advantage program at the start of September. The city’s participation is a win for city employees and SEPTA. The Key Advantage program seeks to rebuild public transit ridership in the wake of the pandemic, while also providing a new benefit to city employees. Institutions such as Wawa, Drexel University, Penn Medicine, and FMC are also participating members of the program, offering all access passes to employees and students.

Philly draws closer to celebrating the nation’s 250-year anniversary

Philadelphia250, a non-profit organization formed to plan the celebration of our nation’s 250th anniversary makes steady progress in planning the festivities as America approaches this significant milestone. ESI sponsored the second annual countdown earlier this month with the event including live music showcasing the past, present, and future of the City. Similar celebrations will be held in 2026 with plans for an Independence Day Parade much larger than the yearly event the City regularly holds. In July, Vice President Frank Robinson sat down with President and CEO of Philadelphia250 Danielle DiLeo Kim to discuss what led her to this role and how equity and inclusion will be celebrated during the 250th anniversary.

 

Maggie Jiang | [email protected]

Maggie Jiang is a current third year student attending Drexel University working as an intern with the Business Development & Marketing team at ESI. She anticipates graduating in 2026 with a degree in marketing. 

Filed Under: Blog Post Tagged With: Center City District, Philadelphia, Philadelphia250, Robinson-Frank, SEPTA

How Cities Can Better Protect Pedestrians and Cyclists

December 1, 2023 by Maggie Jiang

Since the advent of the mass-produced personal automobile, cities have catered to cars at the expense of other modes of travel. This includes public transit, pedestrians, cyclists, and anyone not in a personal motor vehicle. As the average car size increases, so does the likelihood of fatal crashes. Electric vehicles, which do not use gasoline, tend to weigh more than internal combustion engine vehicles, causing more injuries. When people don’t feel safe walking or using modalities other than cars, they end up driving or using rideshare services instead, which ultimately puts more cars on the road, endangering more pedestrians and cyclists, and slowing down public transportation. There are many ways to make cities safe for all people, regardless of their method of transportation or reasoning behind using it. Every policy choice impacts infrastructure, every piece of infrastructure is a policy choice, and deliberate action in favor of pedestrians will only improve the safety of our streets.

SUVs and crossovers have grown in both size and market share, making up more than 50% of vehicle purchases in 2021. While 50% of Americans may feel safest riding in SUVs, they are twice as likely to kill pedestrians in crashes. This is due to overall size and weight. Larger vehicles weigh more, so anyone they hit will be hit harder, causing more injuries. Size increases also mean larger blind spots in front of the car, so even if a vehicle is stopped at the limit line, they still might not be able to see if someone is in front of them or crossing the street. The hoods on some pickup trucks are over 5 feet off the ground, so while children have a greater risk getting hit, everyone is at risk. Recently, Philadelphia saw the 6’7” Kelly Oubre Jr. hit by a car, causing injuries to his upper chest. This doesn’t happen if car sizes and heights don’t increase.

Speed Enforcement Saves Lives

To protect pedestrians, planners must be intentional about speed limits and road crossings. When a person is hit by a car moving 23 miles per hour, there is a 10% fatality rate. When they are hit at 50 miles per hour, that increases to 75%. By lowering and enforcing speed limits, pedestrian deaths will decrease. Cities like Hoboken have set citywide limits at 20 miles per hour, and Seattle’s is 25 miles per hour on arterials, and 20 miles per hour on residential streets. Continuing this policy will only make streets safer.

While lower speed limits are a good first step, if they are not enforced, they will be ignored. Automatic cameras can enforce speed limits, parking rules, and red lights, all without the racial bias that can come with law enforcement officer involvement. This leads to behavior changes, and many cities have seen success in doing so. New York’s MTA ran a pilot program to ticket cars in bus lanes, finding 224,000 violations, but only 5% of vehicles received more than two tickets. SEPTA and the Philadelphia Parking Authority are also set to implement a similar program after a successful pilot on two routes, which found more than 36,000 cars illegally parked in bus lanes over 70 days. Recently, Baltimore announced plans to expand their red light enforcement cameras, placing 24-hour cameras at several key intersections.

Another way to improve pedestrian safety is to narrow roads, which has been shown to make drivers more cautious, and slower as a result. When vehicular speeds are lower, fewer and less severe injuries occur in the event of a crash. Slimmer driving lanes mean more space for protected bike lanes, bus lanes and shelters, widened sidewalks, and green infrastructure.

Intersections also leave much to be desired. Some urban crossings are good, giving a clear visual and audio cue that it is safe to cross the street, synced with the car traffic signal, and on a long enough timer to allow pedestrians to cross. However, many “less used” pedestrian crossings use methods that rely on the pedestrian to activate the signal, or alert drivers. This can mean simply pressing a button, which notifies the signal to change, but it can also mean having physical flags to carry across the road. HAWK (High Intensity Activated Crosswalk) signals, which display yellow flashing lights to drivers, switch to a red light when a pedestrian pushes a button are another option. These options offer an improvement from no signal at all, but still favor drivers because the default traffic pattern (which stays with the driver) is the automotive right of way. Cities can prioritize pedestrian safety by creating safe intersections when designing roads or implementing them without a resident complaint. Dangerous intersections may appear to be underused, but that can also mean that pedestrians are choosing to cross at a safer location.

Prioritizing Protected Bike Lanes

Cyclist injuries and deaths can be avoidable. In the United States, many bike lanes are “sharrows,” where bikes share the lane with cars, or unprotected. Car culture is so prevalent in the United States that many drivers feel entitled to the full right of way, which means not only invading cyclists’ space, but also parking in bike and bus lanes, or even on sidewalks at times. When drivers treat the entire public road as a space for their vehicles, pedestrians and cyclists are forced to walk or bike in the road, which is even more dangerous than an unprotected bike lane or sidewalk in disrepair.

Improving cyclist safety means creating bike lanes that are flat, even, and have physical separation between driving lanes, parking lanes, and loading zones. Cycling is sometimes seen as a hobby in the United States instead of a key method of transportation, simply because many people who would bike as a means of commuting do not feel safe enough to do so.

Additional Benefits

All of these tactics shift the priority from drivers in cars to everyone else using public roads, which helps bolster public transit ridership and reduce car trips, more than half of which are under 3 miles in cities. Addressing and correcting this imbalance also helps public transit run more efficiently, which saves time and money. Increasing physical activity, which happens when people bike and walk instead of drive, also has physical and mental health benefits, which reduces the overall cost of healthcare.

Reducing car use and infrastructure in cities also has environmental benefits. Slimmer roads mean less impervious surface area, so stormwater can be better absorbed, lowering the risk of flooding (which often disproportionately impacts disinvested neighborhoods due to the role systemic racism played and plays in development). Truly separated and protected bike and bus lanes can have a median that serves as a rain garden, not only absorbing rainwater and processing toxins, but also increasing biodiversity.

Vision Zero initiatives track traffic deaths for different regions, and many of their policies have seen decreased injuries and deaths. But as is evident in the name, the goal is zero traffic deaths. Philadelphia’s Vision Zero program released its 2023 report in October and found that the city has 7.4 traffic deaths per 100,000 residents, nearly three times as many as New York (2.64), and more than twice as many as Boston (3.23). By working to create safer pedestrian and cyclist infrastructure, cities can save lives, get more people moving, and create a better place to live.

 

Grace Hanoian | [email protected]

Grace Hanoian is a Business Development and Marketing Associate at Econsult Solutions, where she supports the marketing and business development team by assisting with proposals, events, and social media. Additionally, Grace has experience working on political campaigns both with communications and fundraising, as well as in state government.

 

Filed Under: Blog Post Tagged With: biking, cars, public transportation, Transportation

Light Reads: Thanksgiving 2023

November 22, 2023 by Maggie Jiang

In the spirit of Thanksgiving, Econsult Solutions wishes to show its appreciation! We would like to thank our colleagues and clients for their support and trust, and look forward to continuing to provide the highest levels of service into the new year and beyond. To celebrate the holiday, we have prepared a list of light reads that include recent articles and reports produced by ESI, along with fun events happening in the Philadelphia region over the long weekend, and the latest current events.

The Latest from Present Value

The Case for Lowering the Voting Age – Jessica Yu & Maggie Jiang

Moving Cities: Montreal – Lechuan Huang

The Importance of Down-Ballot Races – John LaVaccare

Why Leadership Programs Like GPLEX are Good for Economic and Civic Vitality – Frank Robinson

The Impact of Predictive Policing – Patrick Darcy & Samriddhi Khare

 

Recently Completed Projects

Opportunity Lives Here: An Economic Development Master Plan for Delaware’s Three Rivers Area

The Economic and Social Impact of the University of Minnesota Twin Cities Athletics

The Economic, Environmental and Public Health Impacts of the Trans Canada Trail

 

Thanksgiving Reading List

How the “Lock-in Effect” is Helping Shape Today’s Housing Market

Surveillance: We’re All Just Avatars in Microsoft’s AI World

The Electric Revolution Is Coming for Your Lawn Mower

CHOP continues King of Prussia expansion with $24.5M office building purchase

Amtrak’s 30th Street Station redevelopment price swells to $550M, timeline pushed back 

 

Activities, Shopping, Dining

Check out the hottest new restaurants in Philadelphia this Fall from the curated list, courtesy of Visit Philly.

Support small businesses on Small Business Saturday.

The Thanksgiving Day Parade is returning with it’s best floats to town.

Finally, here are 35 other things to possibly do this holiday.

 

Charitable Causes

ACCT Philadelphia provides temporary shelter for the family member we cannot forget about, our furry friends.

South Philadelphia Community Fridge provides access to fresh and healthy food to people in need throughout the community.

In the spirit of giving, discover worthy charitable causes and learn how to give back on Giving Tuesday.

Philadelphia Magazine has also put together a list of possible volunteering opportunities.

 

 

Maggie Jiang | [email protected]

Maggie Jiang is a current third year student attending Drexel University working as an intern with the Business Development & Marketing team at ESI. She anticipates graduating in 2026 with a degree in marketing.

 

 

 

Filed Under: Blog Post Tagged With: Light Reads, Thanksgiving

The Case for Lowering the Voting Age

November 17, 2023 by Maggie Jiang

Election Day is when U.S. citizens exercise their right to vote for policies and political leaders. Starting from age 18 (and sometimes younger), they can register to vote. In Pennsylvania, the largest age groups of registered voters are in the 25 to 34 and 55 to 64 categories, with each one representing 17% of registered voters, for a total of 34%. In contrast, the smallest group of registered voters was the 18 to 24 cohort, representing 8% of registered voters.

In Philadelphia, the results are similar. The largest bloc of registered voters is those ages 25 to 34, with 254,479 voters (25%), and the smallest defined voting group is once again between the ages of 18 to 24, with a total of 83,386 voters (8%).  Even accounting for the inconsistency in group size and population spread, younger registered voters make up a disproportionately smaller percentage of the total voting pool.

Pennsylvania registered voters by age and county

 

Youth in Philadelphia and across the country are becoming more civically engaged and speaking out on issues that affect them, from calls for gun reform and the need to address climate change to city wide walk outs in support of Palestine. So why do young voters represent such a disproportionately low rate of voters compared to the amount of youth that are eligible to vote? 

According to Tufts’ Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement, Pennsylvania has some of the highest youth participation, with an increase in turnout of 19.5% from 2014 to 2022 (a total of 31.7%) for voting eligible 18 to 29-year-olds. Youth in Philadelphia have many opportunities for civic engagement: attending candidate forums, writing letters to lawmakers, attending school-wide assemblies, and more.  

A push to lower the voting age has been a topic in multiple cities as well. San Francisco and Boston are two examples of cities that considered or are considering allowing 16-year-olds to vote. In San Francisco, the San Francisco Bay Area Planning and Urban Research Association (SPUR) has studied and supported this cause. 16- and 17-year-olds can be tried as adults in court or legal processing, as well as pay taxes and drive, which are responsibilities often associated with being an adult, yet these age groups are denied voting privileges. Lowering the voting age would mean that 16- and 17-year-olds would gain two years of experience in voting prior to graduating high school, and could lead younger citizens to become more engaged and educated on political issues. Following the engagement of younger voters, lowering the voting age also has many benefits as voting is habitual. Casting a ballot once increases the likelihood that you will vote again next time. Allowing individuals to vote at 16 or 17 not only emboldens youth to become more civically engaged, but also increases the likelihood that they will vote after high school, instead of voting for the first time during a major transition period in life (getting a full-time job and/or pursuing higher education).  

Many arguments against lowering the legal voting age often revolve around the idea that 16- and 17-year-olds do not know enough about civics or have the maturity or neurological capacity to think for themselves, often being influenced by parents, teachers, and friends. However, a study by Daniel Hart and David Atkins shows that members of this age group have roughly the same political knowledge as 21-year-olds and other legally enfranchised peoples, making the laws around who gets to vote in the US more or less arbitrary. Additionally, when we turn to developmental science, scientists distinguish between two different types of cognition: “hot” cognition, which occurs in decisions which are made under the influence of a group, under stress, or in a hurry, and “cold” cognition, which describes decisions that are made when people have time and can make reasoned judgements. While a 16-year-old may not be very good at making decisions that require “hot” cognition, they are just as capable of making decisions that require “cold” cognition. Studies also show that logical reasoning matures by the age of 15. All voters, regardless of age, are constantly being influenced by outside forces and to insist that individuals under the age of 18 are incapable of voting due to their proximity to influence is a hypocritical argument. Schools don’t just teach different issue areas that are relevant to youth, they also teach students how to find reliable information and sources that can best inform voting decisions. Additionally, studies have shown that the independent, analytical, and empathetic abilities in 16- and 17-year-olds are developed enough for them to make these decisions on their own. 

As issues that require cross cultural and generational collaboration become more pressing, we must realize the importance of encouraging youth to pursue civic responsibility, championing campaigns for voting reform and pioneering the way for progressive policies that work to address the issues that matter to youth. As we look towards the impacts that adults can have, we encourage all to consider lowering the voting age, setting up the youth of tomorrow for success and a lifetime of civic engagement.  

 

Jessica Yu | [email protected]

Jessi Yu is a current junior undergraduate student at Dartmouth College working as an intern with the Business Development and Marketing team at ESI. She anticipates graduating in 2025 with degrees in sociology and government.

 

 

Maggie Jiang |[email protected]

Maggie Jiang is a current third year student attending Drexel University working as an intern with the Business Development & Marketing team at ESI. She anticipates graduating in 2026 with a degree in marketing. 

Filed Under: Blog Post

Spatial Data Science Conference

November 14, 2023 by Maggie Jiang

On October 18 and 19, an ESI cohort attended the Spatial Data Science Conference in New York City. Here, they learned about new techniques for and applications of spatial data science. The first day of the conference consisted of 11 workshops with industry specialists. Day 2, which was the main conference, had 20 short presentations about specific applications, in addition to the presentation of the Spatial Data Scientist of the Year awarded to Kyle Walker. 

Hear from a few of the attendees below: 

“I had a great time at the SDSC conference and workshops, where I explored cutting-edge spatial data science methods. I gained knowledge about various topics, including H3 spatial data indexing, GWR spatial data regression, and using Snowflake’s data warehouse with Carto’s spatial functions. Overall, this experience has inspired me to think about how to apply these advanced technologies in socioeconomic and spatial analysis at ESI.” – Angel Zhong, Analyst 

“I enjoyed learning about a diverse set of use cases on spatial/temporal data and reflecting on my work in economic development consulting, especially in how we can further integrate these data to help our clients evaluate economic and social impacts on policy programs and investment decisions across communities and over time.” – Joyce Liu, Associate Director 

 Watch an overview of the conference here:

Filed Under: News and Events Tagged With: Liu-Joyce, spatial data science conference, Zhong Yingtong, Zhong-Angel

Opportunity Lives Here: An Economic Development Master Plan for Delaware’s Three Rivers Area

November 14, 2023 by Maggie Jiang

Opportunity Lives Here: An Economic Development Master Plan for Delaware’s Three Rivers Area is a comprehensive strategy to build the local economy of a distressed area that has key assets for inclusive growth. ESI led a team of land use planners and community outreach strategists in developing a master plan that is informed by implementable examples and presents real opportunities for equitable economic development.

ESI’s approach to developing the master plan for economic development for the Three Rivers Area is built on the themes of resilience, opportunity, and wellness. The area, which spans three jurisdictions in northeast Delaware, has a history of industrial and commercial development centered on transportation assets. Having long been stressed by disinvestment, properties in need of redevelopment are presented as key opportunities for adaptive reuse for high-growth business sectors and with an aim to meet the needs of residents. The area’s ready workforce coupled with workforce development opportunities, as well as a desirable quality of life and commerce-supporting transportation assets are highlighted as benefits for business and resident attraction.

The ESI team developed a series of actionable recommendations that are informed by the stakeholder engagement process, and case studies drawn from peer regions. Assessments of available land include summaries of land development regulations.

 

Filed Under: Report Tagged With: delaware, Robinson-Frank

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