Ambler Campus, Temple University

Community and Regional Planning students honored with awards from the Pennsylvania Chapter of the Pennsylvania Planning Association

Numerous Temple University Ambler
students were recognized for their hard
work at the Southeast Section of the Pennsylvania Chapter of the Pennsylvania Planning Association's (APAPA) annual
dinner held at the Ambler Theater.

Taking first place was a paper, submitted by
a 12-member team from the Department of Community and regional Planning’s Spring

2010 studio entitled “Stormwater Management Plan for the Village of Arts and Humanities” ($1,200.00).

The first place team consisted of: Elizabeth Allen, Jeanette Blize, Garrett Byma, Frances Getty, Gavin Hontz, Harry Wilson, Kyle Guie, Melissa Kim, Mark Spiers, Donna Fabry,

Richard Murphy, and Sequoia Rock, with Community and Regional Planning Associate Professor M. Richard Nalbandian as Project Advisor.

Second place also went to a paper, submitted by Community and Regional Planning graduate Melissa Kim entitled “Planning for the Immigrant City” ($500.00).

Fourteen papers were submitted, the most ever in this program’s fifth year. Both the Section’s education committee and review team were energized by the entrant papers and themes, with competition being keen.

The purpose of the Stormwater Management Plan for the Village of the Arts and Humanities was to present a general physical stormwater management plan for the Village of Arts and Humanities in North Philadelphia, in cooperation with the Philadelphia Water Department’s (PWD) Office of Watersheds.

The plan serves as a guide for future implementation of PWD’s Green City, Clean Waters report applied to the study area, or Context Area, bounded by Broad Street, 5th Street, Allegheny Avenue and Diamond Street (see map on next page).

The study recommendations were guided by the Community Development Plan created by the Shared Prosperity Planning Initiative in 2005, a coalition of more than two dozen neighborhood and civic organizations including our client, The Village of Arts and Humanities (Village). However, the primary focus of the recommendations was based on an effort to meet PWD guidelines to capture one inch of stormwater runoff from land owned by the Village.

The Village owns 56 properties within the Context Area, including 48 located within the Village “Heart” neighborhood. It also manages 76 other properties, 70 of which are owned by the Philadelphia Housing Authority. Having a significant presence as both land owner and property manager within the study area, the Village is poised to implement as many stormwater management practices (SMPs) on its properties as possible.

By incorporating SMPs on its properties, the Village will reduce the amount of runoff being contributed to Philadelphia’s overburdened stormwater system. Further, adopting the use of SMPs will benefit the Village financially, by offseting a new PWD rate increase that will affect all property owners within the City. The increase, set to take effect in the Summer of 2010, will be based on the existing amount of impervious surface area.

The report pays particular attention to the Village Heart neighborhood within the Context Area, where the majority of the Village’s properties are located. The Village Heart is bounded by 10th and 11th Streets, Germantown Avenue, and Cumberland and Huntingdon Streets (see Map 1, page 3 of the study). In addition to stormwater management and open space issues, the report also focuses on opportunities to establish or expand on urban agriculture in the area whenever possible.

The study and the students’ recommendations include: