Work will get underway next year on a project to transform a section of South Broad Street into an arts-centered park environment.
Leaders of nonprofit Avenue of the Arts Inc. announced at a Tuesday press conference that work will begin next spring on the first phase of the $100M project known as Avenue of the Arts 2.0.
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The renovation effort will kick off on the 300 block of South Broad near the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts, Dranoff Properties' condominium tower, Arthaus, seafood restaurant Loch Bar and the offices of nonprofit Broad Street Love.
The entire project will eventually reimagine 10 blocks of Broad Street, from City Hall to Washington Avenue. The area that was once home to the now-shuttered University of the Arts will see new planters in the median of the street along with new landscaping, outdoor seating, public art and areas for outdoor performances.
Avenue of the Arts Executive Director Laura Burkhardt said the project would take five years to complete, the Philadelphia Business Journal reported.
“Eighty percent of the people that visit Philadelphia are going to wind up on South Broad Street at some point, and it's important that we create something for the future as things continue to grow," Burkhardt told PBJ.
Burkhardt declined to share expected returns on investment for the project, though Avenue of the Arts Inc. said its original investment into the area came to $378M, which was recouped within two-and-a-half years.
The nonprofit group is seeking public and private funding to help fund the project. On Tuesday, the city of Philadelphia announced plans to allocate $1M from its fiscal 2025 budget toward the project. The Avenue of the Arts group is asking for a five-year funding commitment from the city.
The area is already undergoing change with a new apartment building and a historic redevelopment.
Post Brothers and Tower Investments have just opened their $400M multifamily development at 1001 S. Broad St. to new tenants. The development dubbed One Thousand One will eventually feature a 44K SF Giant grocery store and 1,400 rental units.
Nearby, Lubert-Adler Real Estate Funds is repurposing the former Bellevue-Stratford Hotel at 200 S. Broad St. into upscale apartments.
The first block of Broad Street's new look is set for completion in spring 2026, just ahead of events that are expected to bring an influx of tourists: the FIFA World Cup, the MLB All-Star Game and the 250th annual 4th of July celebration.
The project was designed in collaboration with architecture and design firm Gensler and landscape and urban design firm OJB.
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