The Community Design Collaborative and the City of Philadelphia’s Commerce Department recently hosted the Citywide Storefront Challenge, an awards program  recognizing attractive, distinctive storefront improvement projects along some of Philadelphia’s neighborhood commercial corridors. The program grew out of the success of the Storefront Improvement Program (SIP), a City program that offers businesses and property owners grants of between $8,000 and $12,000 for storefront improvements.  In his welcoming remarks at the awards presentation, Andy Frishkoff, Director of the Office of Neighborhood and Economic Development , said that the goal of SIP is to “revitalize the city’s business corridors to revitalize their historic roles as businesses and community gathering places.”

According to Frishkoff, $300,000 in City funding has been matched by $1.4 million in private funding since SIP’s start in 2008. The grants have gone towards restoring or renovating 85 storefront facades and creating 277 permanent jobs. Anecdotally, storeowners say that business has improved as people want to shop, work, and meet their neighbors at these more attractive businesses.  

The event celebrated both the success of SIP and the improved storefronts. Nine awards were presented to recognize storefront improvement projects that led to  “night and day” transformations, got the best “bang for the buck,” and served as the “instigator” for other positive changes locally.

Kevin Dow, the Chief Operating Officer and Deputy Director of the Commerce Department presented the awards, saying “small businesses are the driving forces that bring cities out of recession.” Before-and-after images screened at the awards ceremony showed the range of strategies business and property owners are using to spruce up facades. Some projects restored original building details, not always as easy as it appears.  Others added inventive new elements (be sure to take an extra careful look at the Suzuki Piano’s Academy bike racks in our slide show).

The Winners

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Have you recently seen a storefront turn from eyesore to eye-catching? The Community Design Collaborative and the City of Philadelphia Commerce Department are looking for your nominations to the Citywide Storefront Challenge. The Challenge is a competition to identify those businesses that have recently (January 2008 – September 2010) redesigned their storefronts and now exemplify the principle that: “Good Design is Good Business.” The Awards range from “Most Unique Sign” to the “Nightlife Award” (the improvements that bring a building ‘to life’ at night). You can even suggest your own category.

If you admire a business that has demonstrated care and uniqueness in how it presents itself to its customers and the public, then this could be your opportunity to increase exposure for that business, a design or construction firm, or your own business. The nominated projects will be reviewed by a jury composed of economic development and design professionals. The winning projects will then be on display as part of DesignPhiladelphia, the citywide event that showcases the role design has played in Philadelphia. Submissions are being accepted through September 22*, 2010. To get a copy of the application form, click here.

Although it may be too late to redesign a storefront in time for the contest, the Philadelphia Department of Commerce’s Storefront Improvement Program will still reimburse you for up to 50% of the cost of beautifying an eligible storefront. The City wants to encourage storefront improvements to make Philadelphia better for business owners, residents, shoppers and visitors.

For more information about the SIP program or the Storefront Challenge, contact Karen Fegely at 214-683-2025 or email hidden; JavaScript is required.

*Good news! The deadline has now been extended from the 15th to the 22nd of September.

The Collaborative is partnering with the City of Philadelphia Mural Arts Program on a pilot program that coordinates architectural and landscape improvements with public art on commercial corridors in Philadelphia.

The partnership brings together design professionals and artists in a creative and collaborative effort to holistically address issues facing commercial corridors.  Through the Collaborative’s rStore program, our volunteers will work with muralists to integrate proposed building improvements and surrounding landscaping plans with public murals. This pilot effort will address two sites in Philadelphia, one on East Passyunk Avenue in South Philly and another on Ridge Avenue in Roxborough. “Part of evolving is forming good and new partnerships,” said Jane Golden, Mural Arts Executive Director.

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An idea from the Collaborative’s Infill Philadelphia: Industrial Sites Temporary Reuse Design Charrette has got legs and is on the move! The charrette brought together a diverse group, including designers, artists, community groups, and developer and Philadelphia native David Belt, the keynote speaker, to consider ways to enliven vacant sites through temporary installations.

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The design teams presented preliminary concepts at a mid review. Photo by Mark Garvin.

How do you repurpose a complicated old manufacturing complex or activate an isolated industrial plot?  Can housing and light industry share the same site?

These types of challenging issues are being addressed by the Infill Philadelphia: Industrial Sites initiative, which recently received national recognition with funding through the Urban Land Institute’s Foundation (ULI) community action grant program.  ULI Foundation is helping support all phases of the initiative which is bringing together designers, policy makers, funders and community organizations to address community revitalization through infill development.   ULI is a global nonprofit research and education organization that represents members across the spectrum of land use and real estate development disciplines. Its mission is to provide leadership in the responsible use of land and in creating and sustaining thriving communities worldwide.
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Drawings of conceptual designs from past rStore projects.

The Collaborative is working with six community development corporations this year to promote storeowner investment in building façade improvements through its new rStore program.

“Façade improvements like new awnings, lighting, security grills or windows may seem like small projects, but they can have a significant influence,” says Emily Stromberg, Community Design Collaborative Project Associate who is managing the rStore program.

rStore is a special type of service grant that provides design consultations targeted directly to storeowners on neighborhood commercial corridors. The Collaborative has partnered with the City of Philadelphia Commerce Department on rStore to help invigorate commercial districts and increase the accessibility of quality design.

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In the most recent real estate boom many former industrial buildings were converted to loft housing or demolished to make way for big box retail projects, but our shifting economy and the current administration’s focus on green industry is encouraging the reuse of our industrial landmarks for new manufacturing opportunities.  The Community Design Collaborative will partner with the Philadelphia Industrial Development Corporation on the next phase of Infill Philadelphia, an initiative created by the Collaborative to promote workable solutions for revitalizing urban neighborhoods through innovative design.

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