Did anyone get a chance to attend this community meeting last night at the future site of Kimbo's Cafe? (Norris and Frankford.)

This was an incredibly interesting meeting. There was a design group there who presented all sorts of ideas and images for the strip of Frankford inbetween Girard and Lehigh. I didn't even realize there was such a thing as urban planning on Philly...lol. The idea is to keep the grit of Frankford while turning it into a functioning work and shopping place for arts, artists, businesses and shops. Some of the ideas include more lighting, cohesive storefronts (although cohesive could mean cohesively opposing), better sidewalks, signage and trash receptacles. There were plenty of businessowners, artists and residents that showed up and had a very productive and informative conversation about the future of Frankford. The designers were careful to say that this project is going to take years to fully implement, and that the more artists and businesses drawn to the area, the better the upkeep will become and this all takes time. The group of people assembled and ideas made me confident that the final result will not be mall-oriented or forced, but interesting and fresh.

I am somewhat skeptical of the ability of Frankford to turn around, but I have already been amazed at the area around Girard and the transformation going near Norris.

I raised the issue that for any of this stuff to truly take off and to generate outside interest, a major key is making the Berks Street station and ingress and egress from it safe at all times of the day, from the actual station to the path getting there--making sure it's well-lit, police patrolled, and not full of crack vials and the like.

I left at around 8:30-ish before the zoning and implementation was discussed but anyone feel free to add what I missed.

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Resident of Fishtown, Moderator of Fish/No. Libs/Kenzo forum, Real Estate Agent-Prudential Fox & Roach

Brooke - do you know who did the planning work . . . and who funded it.

Just curious. Thanks.

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“Cities have the capability of providing something for everybody, only because, and only when, they are created by everybody.” - Jane Jacobs

They haven't done the work yet--and no, I don't know the group's name. They are trying to get community feedback to plan it.

Not sure about funding.

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Resident of Fishtown, Moderator of Fish/No. Libs/Kenzo forum, Real Estate Agent-Prudential Fox & Roach

the group which sponsored the meeting was NKCDC (New Kensington Community Development Corporation)

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Yes, but there was a design group (firm) there.

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Resident of Fishtown, Moderator of Fish/No. Libs/Kenzo forum, Real Estate Agent-Prudential Fox & Roach

the design firm is Group G

The woman jokingly said they should hire me. Just one of the many jobs that would be cooler than my current one...why oh why didn't I stick with urban policy as my undergrad major?!?! ;-)

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Resident of Fishtown, Moderator of Fish/No. Libs/Kenzo forum, Real Estate Agent-Prudential Fox & Roach

Do they have a website? Do you know other projects they've worked on? I googled them with no result.

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Resident of Fishtown, Moderator of Fish/No. Libs/Kenzo forum, Real Estate Agent-Prudential Fox & Roach

B/c you would be driving a 1981 Camry instead of your new one. :razz:

Ah, the only reason I'm driving a new one is because my mommy sells them and I totalled my last car I paid off, giving me a hefty deposit. Got it back in law school. No way I could afford the payments to buy it unconnected and new now, sadly enough!

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Resident of Fishtown, Moderator of Fish/No. Libs/Kenzo forum, Real Estate Agent-Prudential Fox & Roach