Philly Wins "Every Place Counts" National Design Award
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Mayor Jim Kenney and other city and community officials were on hand Monday when the U.S. Secretary of Transportation announced that Philadelphia is one of four cities to win the Transportation Department's "Every Place Counts" design challenge.
The announcement was made on the 10th Street Plaza, a lone shaded island halfway across the Vine Expressway. The highway's intrusiveness -- complete with wailing sirens and rattling dump trucks -- was on full display as Philadelphia Chinatown Development Corporation Executive Director John Chin spoke.
The design challenge win brings the city a two-day US DOT-hosted design session next month with elected and community officials, urban planners, designers, and local residents focusing on Vine Expressway-related issues.
Chin says the award shows that public officials understand the negative impacts of highways, and...
"They want to do it the right way, they want to engage the community in this process, and that's what we're most pleased about," Chins said. "And hopefully, the planning leads to potential resources to actually fix the problems."
The other awards went to Spokane, Washington --Ramsey County, Minnesota -- and Nashville, Tennessee.