The design forum, which comes about after a year of nagging by South Street community activists, does suggest a dawning recognition on the part of the city that this $54 million bridge project isn't primarily about moving cars efficiently. It's about forging a gracious, urban-scaled link between two vital neighborhoods, Center City and University City.
Neighborhood residents have argued for years that the new bridge should feel like the continuation of a city street, rather than a highway interloper in the style of the no-frills Walnut Street Bridge.
But it wasn't until November that architect James C. Campbell and former ward leader Terry Gillen were able to cobble together official support for a design charrette, an architectural-brainstorming session. Using state funds secured by Sen. Vincent Fumo, they've hired Wallace Roberts & Todd - the firm that assisted PennPraxis with its Delaware waterfront study - to guide the dialogue.
Campbell already has a laundry list of changes he believes would be easy to implement: Eliminate the dedicated turning lane. Use the gained space to widen the bridge's sidewalks from a stingy 9 feet to a comfortable 13. Reconfigure the corners so it's harder for a tractor-trailer to whip onto the Interstate 76 ramps.
And finally, dress the bridge in appropriate architectural clothing that reflects its true identity as an urban boulevard, one that just happens to be suspended over a gentle river.
Though city engineers say they're willing to consider ideas that bubble up during the charrette, it's unlikely they'll take up any suggestions. David Perri, the Streets Department official responsible for the project, says there's too little time and even less flexibility.
