On a windy spring Sunday morning, city officials and local volunteers gathered at the 10th Street Plaza atop the Vine Street Expressway to set up the latest in a series of Chinatown Stitch pop-up events aimed at getting community feedback on the revitalization project.
First, a little background: The Vine Street Expressway has a contentious and traumatic history. First imagined in the 1940s, begun in the ‘60s and completed in the ‘90s, it had a practical effect of severing Philly into two parts — north and south. And in many ways, it cleaved apart the historic Chinatown neighborhood.
There were attempts over the years to stop it, but they were overcome. Those who protested the development were in large part ignored. The scars of that history were evident in the proposed development of the Sixers’ arena along Market Street last year.
Now, as the city plans the next chapter in development — the $160 million “capping” of I-676 between 10th and 13th streets — one goal is to restore and reunite the neighborhood, and it is making sure to solicit community feedback on their needs, challenges and desires.
Pop-ups are one of the ways project leaders are reaching out and gathering feedback.
They are part of Phase 2 of public engagement during the Concept Development and Design stage of the project.
So, on weekdays and weekends through May 15, these officials and volunteers will conduct outreach at a different public location in the neighborhood. Those on hand to answer your questions will include representatives from the city’s Office of Transportation and Infrastructure Systems (OTIS), the Philadelphia Chinatown Development Corporation (PCDC), Connect the Dots, and local volunteers.
“We’re going to have, in the first week of May, an open house-style meeting, but I think we get a more limited number of people than just showing up where people are and trying to grab them in their own neighborhood and talk to them,” said Christopher Puchalsky, director of Policy & Strategic Initiatives at OTIS. “The purpose of the pop-up is to meet a wider audience that maybe is not as tuned in, but we still want to hear what they have to say and get their input.”
Construction on the ‘Chinatown Stitch’ is expected to begin in spring 2027 and be completed by fall 2029.
3 models
There are three options or themes on which the community can weigh in, inspired by different elements of the Chinatown community, said Rosa Zedek, a designer at OJB Landscape Architecture, a consulting firm leading the park design. She was present on Sunday to explain the three concepts.
- The first theme focuses on the celebratory nature of Chinatown, its festivals and gatherings. It features a large central plaza, playground and spaces designed for getting together.
- The second theme centers around families, especially intergenerational ones, with more green spaces, a large central lawn and a more park-like atmosphere.
- The third theme draws inspiration from traditional Chinese gardens, emphasizing greenery and shaded areas to create a park that feels like a true garden space, based on community feedback.
These three themes are illustrated and explained in English and Mandarin at the pop-up booth. “We’re trying to have Mandarin [at the events] and, to the extent we can, Cantonese speakers so that we can speak the language of the people in this community,” Puchalsky said.
On the day Billy Penn visited the pop-up at 10th Street Plaza, there were at least three Mandarin speakers present.
“I want to be part of something big and impactful,” said Chloe Wu, a volunteer at the pop-up event and a student majoring in advertising at Temple University. “After building this park, we’ll bring more people together. Everybody’s going to come here and they’re going to chill out, have some fun. There are less people coming into Chinatown and I think it’s a really good idea to bring the park for the community.”
Wu was there to help communicate the project details in the two Chinese languages: Mandarin and Fujianese.
While the neighborhood primarily has a Chinese population, on the north side there are also many people from Latin America, including Honduras, Nicaragua and Mexico, explained Angel Ballestero, a Spanish speaker and Outreach and Community Engagement Assistant at Connect the Dots, who was also present.
“Most of them arrived here in the ‘90s. So, this [the Vine Street Expressway] was already here, and for them it’s not about ‘recovering something’ because they didn’t know the neighborhood before.” he said. “But when we tell them they can have a say, that there could be a small soccer field, green areas, picnic tables to have coffee or play dominoes, they get excited, because they also live and work in this area.”
Ballestero said that he will be at all the pop-ups to gather opinions, including those from the Spanish-speaking community.
Many of the neighbors who stopped by Sunday morning to learn more and share their feedback responded with curiosity and enthusiasm about the project, which would be built on the very streets where the table was set up.
“We have a ton of support for this project. People are excited. They want it yesterday,” Puchalsky said.
“The people in this community have been suffering from the ill effects of the expressway for the last 40 years and they definitely want change. So, that’s very encouraging,” he said. “It’s a little too early to tell which themes are standing out, but we’re having good engagement.”
Darren Tom, a neighbor who often brings his young son to the 10th Street Plaza and approached the booth out of curiosity, didn’t know about the project. However, he is excited about the idea of having more family spaces, and prefers the second, family-centered theme. “It would be nice to have a nice space for the Chinatown community to really bring everyone together,” he said.
Others, like Kenji Fong, a King of Prussia resident who visits the neighborhood at least one or two times per week, knew about the project beforehand and approached to give his opinion.
“I feel that it would heavily benefit the community. It would create more infrastructure-related jobs for people to build the structure of it and then, eventually the landscaping. I think the long-term effects would have very positive ramifications,” he said. “For example, I saw that there were two design alternatives that basically allow a series of bars and restaurants to be built. We could see a rise of small businesses coming to fruition, so that’s something I support.”
Other neighbors, like Ray Scheinfeld, a member of the Bicycle Coalition of Greater Philadelphia and a co-organizer of the Ride of Silence, attended the event with a different focus. “I want to make sure that people can have a place to relax, and I want to make sure especially that it makes traffic, people walking, pedestrians, bicyclists, safe in the area.”
The pop-ups will continue until mid-May. You can find the upcoming dates and locations, or share your feedback by completing an online survey, on the Chinatown Stitch project’s website.
The in-person open house is scheduled for Wednesday, May 7, at Holy Redeemer Church from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. For those unable to attend in person, a virtual Open House will be held on Thursday, May 8, at 6 p.m.
