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A central goal of Penn’s partnership with the West Philadelphia
community has been improving the most basic measures of urban life
– ensuring that neighborhood streets are both clean and safe.
By 1996, crime and blight in some areas surrounding the Penn campus
reached levels that were unacceptable to the University City community.
In response, Penn took the initiative in bringing together a coalition
of families, community groups, businesses and other local institutions
to support visible improvements such as street lighting and tree
planting, increased police presence and neighborhood safety ambassadors.
The impact has been significant:
- Overall crime dropped 36 percent in the past five years, with
auto theft down 74 percent, robbery down 62 percent and assaults
down 54 percent.
- Streets in University City are well lit at night and pedestrians
walk home in safety.
- Home fronts have been improved with new paint and new greenery.
- Entire blocks have been reclaimed by new and longtime residents.
- Demand for houses in the neighborhood has soared.
Key Programs:
A New Civic Partnership…the University
City District
A key vehicle for neighborhood improvement has been the University
City District, or UCD – a public-private partnership that
Penn helped found in 1997 together with community groups, local
businesses, government and other partner institutions such as Drexel
University.
The UCD’s operating budget comes from voluntary five-year
contributions from its member institutions, including Penn, Amtrak,
Children's Seashore House, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia,
Drexel University, U.S. Postal Service, University City Community
Council, University City Science Center, University of the Sciences,
Veteran's Affairs Medical Center and West Philadelphia Partnership
as well as from businesses, residential and commercial property
owners and community organizations.
In the past four years, the University City District’s logo
has become a familiar symbol of a range of efforts to improve the
neighborhood’s quality of life. Its core services include:
- Safety Ambassadors: The UCD’s 40 Safety Ambassadors are
distinctively uniformed, unarmed officers who patrol University
City streets to help local residents and visitors, while serving
as a highly visible deterrent to crime. The UCD headquarters also
houses a Philadelphia Police Department Substation, staffed by
25 city police officers. Safety Ambassadors work cooperatively
with Penn and Philadelphia police to share information on crime
patterns, and develop joint deployment plans.
- Public Space Maintenance: The UCD provides a team of uniformed
cleaning personnel who regularly clean sidewalks and work to eliminate
graffiti in University City. All 25 employees of the UCD’s
Public Space Maintenance program are former unemployed recipients
of public assistance. Most are themselves West Philadelphians
who received job training through the UCD program and are now
working fulltime with benefits, to improve the community’s
quality of life.
- LUCY -- Loop Through University City -- Bus: In partnership
with the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA),
the UCD has established a new minibus service that connects major
institutions in West Philadelphia, including Amtrak 30th Street
Station, Penn, Drexel, and other major locations. As an adjunct
to the extensive network of SEPTA buses, trolleys and subways
that serve West Philadelphia, the LUCY bus has made local travel
even more convenient for those who are living, working or simply
visiting University City.
- Capital Programs and Planning: The UCD manages a variety of
projects to improve the physical environment of University City.
These capital investments include a variety of visible improvements
in lighting, landscaping, directional signs, building murals and
banners. For example, the UCD has created a new, user-friendly
system of pedestrian signs strategically placed throughout the
area marking the routes to major institutions and buildings. The
UCD has also recently created a partnership with the Philadelphia
Recreation Department to improve the management of Clark Park,
the central park space for the University City community.
- Marketing and Public Information: The University City District
provides marketing and promotional initiatives designed to enhance
the image of University City as a clean, safe and attractive environment
in which to live, work and visit. UCD co-sponsors a weekly farmers’
market, and sponsors monthly events designed to highlight the
arts, unique restaurants and international culture in University
City.
For more information on the UCD’s many programs, go to: http://www.UCityphila.org.
New Street Lighting…UCBrite
In 1996 Penn and the West Philadelphia Partnership started a community
lighting program called UC Brite. Under UCBrite, the University
worked together with community members to light the neighborhood
house by house, block by block. Specifically, Penn reimbursed homeowners
and landlords in University City for 50 percent of the cost of both
lighting fixtures and installation charges. Using local electricians,
UC Brite helped homeowners install more than 2,500 sidewalk and
house lights at 1,200 properties. As a result, 123 square blocks
in University City are safer and more welcoming at night. The program
is now managed by the University City District.
Planting Improved Streetscapes…UCGreen
This community-based project has brought Penn students, faculty
and staff together with public schools and neighborhoods to enhance
the physical environment in University City through planting new
trees and greenery. So far, UCGreen has:
- helped renew 25 neighborhood blocks;
- planted more than 400 trees and more than 10,000 flower bulbs;
- created three children’s gardens and four public gardens.
UCGreen has focused on vacant lots, distressed parks and residential
blocks. One example is the Lea School Garden. Through UC Green,
what was once a 1,600 square foot concrete courtyard at a local
public elementary school has become a thriving outdoor learning
environment of plants, bushes, trees and flowers, a shallow pond
and seeding area, a trellis and murals depicting the four seasons..
The children helped design the garden together with a professional
architect while engaging in hands-on science activities with the
support of Penn faculty and students.
More recently, in November 2001, UC Green organized Penn and local
volunteers to plant 150 trees in memory of the victims of the September
11 attacks along the main thoroughfare Chestnut Street, from 31st
to 40th streets.
For more information, call Esaul Sanchez, UCGreen director, at 215-573-4684.
Penn and Public Safety
Since 1996, Penn has taken broad steps to combat crime not only
on campus, but also in adjacent areas of University City. The Penn
Police Department:
- Hired 19 new officers
- Revamped its detective unit, bringing in four seasoned veterans
from the Philadelphia Police Department.
The University of Pennsylvania and its partners in West Philadelphia
have worked successfully to increase public safety in the area.
In 1999 the University of Pennsylvania Department of Public Safety
opened a new headquarters building on 40th and Chestnut Streets
in West Philadelphia. The Philadelphia Police Department opened
a new substation in West Philadelphia at the UCD headquarters.
Penn’s investment in West Philadelphia improvement reaches
across hundreds of square blocks. It begins along the 40th Street
commercial corridor that links the western edge of campus with the
rest of University City. Over the past five years, Penn invested
$12.7 million in new sidewalks, trees, lighting, bike racks and
trash receptacles on 40th Street, along with developing major new
retail tenants such as a premium freshgrocer and multiplex movie
theater.
The success of widespread streetscape and safety enhancements has
been built on active partnerships between the university and local
residents. These include:
For more information on the sharp decline in crime in West Philadelphia,
go to http://www.upenn.edu/police/dps.htm
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