Zog beat me to posting a link to PW's latest article on "living legend" Ed Bacon, but it was under "Pennsport", so I thought I'd put it here, also.
http://www.philadelphiaweekly.com/ar...asp?ArtID=6160
The guy's got more sense than any ten other people involved in planning in our fair city. Now, does anyone have a link to that pic of him on a skateboard?
I've got a few criticisms, tho. I think he was wrong about 30th St. becoming the new main corridor that Broad St. used to be, & before that, 5th or 2nd was. Billy Penn wanted to move the development of the city west, too--but it moved north & south instead. Now that I-95's there, next to the river that started it all, I think that it's gone full circle. This is where the room is, this is where the people want to be.
Also, as he admitted himself, putting the Schuylkill expy thru Fairmount Park was his worst mistake. Still, he's our number one wise old man. What a guy!

It's amazing to me that someone so old is still in touch with the youth and what attracks young professionals to the city. Why he never ran for Mayor I'll never know. Or did he?

__________________
Jason
Lynn Swann 06'

"Individualism is absent when other peoples' standards, not reality and reason, are ones primary guide."

I think it shows how smart he is to NOT have run for mayor. What person in his right mind would wanna run this place?

__________________
John Street Sucks. Duh.
STARSKREAM

I think what attracts young professionals to the city are age old principles of good urban design. The problem is we lost sight of them as a nation since WWII. Mr. Bacon never forgot them. It is too bad we can't have someone with his kind of clear thinking running the city.

there's an interesting short clip of Bacon in My Architect--a good clip in a very good film.