40,000 new jobs? 100,000 new residents? Plan says it could happen

Philadelphia is poised for dramatic growth over the next 25 years, and could attract 100,000 residents and create 40,000 jobs, a City Planning Commission official said yesterday at the release of a draft comprehensive plan for the city.

That projected growth is "an optimistic but realistic number," Alan Urek, director of the strategic planning and policy division of the commission, said of the "Philadelphia 2035 Comprehensive Plan."

"We took six different population forecasts developed using different approaches . . . and, between all the best thinkers in the region that develop population and employment forecasts, the city planning department and the administration and our advisory panel all signed off on this [projection]," Urek said.

The last time that the city completed a comprehensive plan for growth and development was 1960.

Urek described the plan as long-range and all-encompassing.

It looks at physical development, transportation, land use, public utilities, public facilities, and parks and recreation.

"Our intent, over the next four years, is that it will get more detailed as we look at 18 districts across the city and will make broader recommendations," he added.

Among the ideas in the plan:

* Growing the Center City/University City metropolitan center, which now includes 43 percent of the city's jobs and 160,000 residents;

* Adding transit lines to serve Roosevelt Boulevard, the Navy Yard, the central- Delaware riverfront and the centennial district in Fairmount Park. Also, upgrading I-95, and the Market Street East and 30th Street stations.

* Developing new park facilities to ensure that there's a park within a 10-minute walk of all residents.

* Repurposing former industrial sites and designating a city agency to manage vacant and underutilized land.

Because Philadelphia has shifted from manufacturing to a service economy of "eds and meds" - or educational and medical institutions - Urek said there is plenty of underused land to be developed. The plan lists seven "industrial legacy areas" where a new focused planning effort and revised zoning could produce a "stable environment for a diverse mix of activities - industry, commerce, research and development and new waterfront recreation and open space."

The seven areas are the central Delaware waterfront, the Navy Yard, the airport, the lower Schuylkill, Hunting Park west, North Broad Street and the Far Northeast Regional Center.

The plan can be viewed at philaplanning.org. The public is asked to comment on it by e-mail to: phila2035@phila.gov.

After receiving comment, the Planning Commission expects to complete a final plan by late May, Urek said.