The New LOVE Park

With Dilworth Park, Sister Cities Park, and the Parkway transforming the way we look at Center City's public spaces, and the city finally coming to terms with the fact that grass is easier to mow than concrete is to clean, our most iconic park (and probably our most photographed location) is looking a bit like a stale turn in the middle of a lush lawn.

That's going to change soon, and based on the renderings just released by Hargreaves Associates and KieranTimberlake, it's pretty much as good as it gets.

For starters, an equally dramatic fountain has become interactive. Okay, not quite as dramatic. Don't worry, it won't be launching your children 100 feet in the air. But looking at the throngs of kids (and I'll admit it, sometimes myself) who take a dip in Swann Fountain on oppressively hot summer days, when the public pools are just tepid ponds of ball soup, the designers saw a need and addressed it. 

Borrowing from the less traditional Dilworth Park and Sister Cities Park fountains, you'll be free to frolic in LOVE Park. But there's more to the park than its fountain and famous Robert Indiana LOVE sculpture, and since the plaza's existence its potential has been withheld by its overwhelming boundaries. 

Concrete barriers separate flower beds and trees from more concrete. What seemed to be an attempt to create an engaging experience became an awkward space to maneuver. People came to take pictures, then quickly left. The unused spaces, though cumbersome for pedestrians proved majestic for skateboarders and trick bikers. But now that they have a proper forum, the spectacle is over, and we're left with black scars and cracked tiles. 

The proposed renovations prove that less is more and makes an incidental tourist attraction and local destination for leisure. The concrete boundaries are removed, plants and trees become accessible, and the labyrinth of walkways have made way for open space. It's inviting.

Of course what's really unique about this proposal, especially considering our city's knee jerk inclination to start over, is that some of its best attributes remain. Obviously, we're not moving Indiana's sculpture. But the fountain also remains centered with the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the Parkway, and City hall, keeping the astounding vistas from the Northwest and Southeast in tact. 

And while some may wonder why, the UFO isn't going anywhere. Now before you clutch your pearls and gasp "Heavens to Mergatroyd," the pavilion will be getting a much needed facelift and a green roof. With new glass and a colorful lighting motif, the Southwest corner of LOVE Park might look like the landing pad from Close Encounters of the Third Kind, and it's going to be awesome.

#phillyjesus

It seems like the arrest of Philadelphia's Michael Grant, a.k.a. #phillyjesus, has gone viral. Gee,
who knew that would happen?

I'm not really a fan of religion. It doesn't jive with my hippie upbringing. What I am a fan of is a man who managed to recover from two of the most horribly addictive substances - heroin and crack cocaine - and attempts to inspire others to do the same. How he got there isn't relevant. 

While the city's most unfortunate have been lining the streets in growing numbers, as the weather gets colder and less hospitable, so, it seems have our civil servants. Despite those who panhandle for change by holding doors, those who walk through train cars in military fatigues asking for money, Grant entertains and occasionally inspires. 

According to Grant, who frequently poses with visitors, he doesn't ask for money but he does accept "tips." After a free skate at Dilworth Park's new rink, Grant went to the aptly named LOVE Park to do what he does: spread his notion of the gospel and pose for pictures. 

This apparently enraged one Philadelphia police officer, one who, as Grant claims, has had it out for him since his days of crime and drug abuse. Grant was arrested for disorderly conduct and failure to disperse after refusing to leave the park. Handcuffed and escorted to the officer's patrol car, Grant served less than two hours behind bars. 

It's hard to imagine a reasonable arrest, even if what he does is technically illegal. Actors are routinely fined in Hollywood and New York City for illegally impersonating trademarked characters in exchange for "tips." But Jesus Christ isn't a trademark nor is Philadelphia a Hollywood overrun with Batguy and Elmert.

Attorney Charles Gibbs has decided to represent Grant. While Gibbs has made no bones about grandstanding, already using the on-the-nose word, "crucified," I doubt Grant actually faces any enforceable charges.

What's perhaps most offensive is the police officer's tactic. In an era in which one can go from a nobody to an accidental anti-celebrity with the click of a phone, I don't understand why police officers aren't better versed in handling potentially newsworthy situations with the utmost professionalism. 

I'm certainly not saying individuals like Grant should be given a free pass for illegal activity, but when that same activity is ignored in countless others soliciting throughout the city, step back and think, "is it worth it?"

Kenney's LOVE Park

Between bringing drag queens to the Mummers Parade, massive legislation that could make Philadelphia the nation's most LGBT friendly city, and his attempt to minimize the penalty for marijuana possession, it might seem that Councilman Jim Kenney couldn't get any cooler.

You'd be wrong.

This deserves recognition.

With Councilman Clarke's wild pitch for seven restaurants within a newly landscaped LOVE park, and every rational Philadelphian's anxiety over a Sbarro on the park, or worse, seven For Rent signs, Councilman Kenney has recognized the park's historic place in the annals of skater lore.

I'll admit, I was never a skater despite growing up in the 80s and 90s. With my flannels and Nash board, I was a poser at best. But I'm very familiar with the history behind Paine's Park, and the long road and blind optimism that led to its reality. Despite LOVE Park's reputation amongst skaters, Paine's Park deserves every ounce of that reputation and then some.

Still, just a few short years after Ed Bacon skated across LOVE Park it deserves its recognition. Kenney's pitch to reserve a portion of the park for skate boards might be far fetched, but considering the reverence for the space amongst skaters it's a unique proposal, much more innovative that an inward facing food court.

Councilman Clarke's LOVE Park

Councilman Darrell Clarke is perhaps best known for his district's acres of inexplicably vacant land and surface parking lots. He has a knack for getting re-elected largely by pitting wars between yuppies pushing lofty condos into his turf and blocks of subsidized residents.

He's a dick. But in American politics, being a dick wins elections.

Why is Philadelphia's favorite building, the Divine Lorraine, still vacant? Ask Clarke. But despite being a thorn in the ass of every private developer who wants a piece of his domain, his latest proposal is a complete departure from the man's effort to keep his neighborhoods looking like the opening scene from Trading Places.

Or so it would seem.

Clarke's LOVE Park

With a Chicago company's recent bid for the LOVE Park parking garage, renovation of the park above is still up in the air. Adorned with the city's Christmas Village, the park is a wonderful place. But eleven months out of the year, LOVE Park is a hobo camp dotted with European tourists wondering what that smell is.

It's Philadelphia, Björn. That smell is Philadelphia.

Clarke's plan wouldn't just clean up the park, it would turn the park's management over to his arch nemesis: Private Investors. Clarke sees a LOVE Park, with its lavish fountain and Robert Indiana's iconic LOVE sculpture, surrounded by seven indoor and outdoor restaurants, cafes, and bars.

It's a fantastic vision. With numerous Parkway improvements in place and a reborn Dilworth Plaza on the horizon, LOVE Park is really the last piece in the Renaissance between City Hall and the Philadelphia Museum of Art. It's a great idea, but in Clarke's hands, will we see it?

Clarke is the heir apparent to the Mayor's office. In an all but one-party town like Philadelphia, primary elections determine our mayor. And since only seven people with half a brain bother to vote in those primaries, our city's Democratic party essentially appoints the victor. The Republican party on the other hand doesn't bother sending a worthy adversary to the arbitrary debates. I mean why send your A-game to a fight just to stamp "loser" on their resume?

However, the Philadelphia that has kept Clarke in office since 1999 isn't the same Philadelphia it was a decade and a half ago, particularly in Center City, Northern Liberties, South Philadelphia, and University City. The city is growing, and those moving to the city are educated, informed, and some even know the difference between a Philadelphia Republican and Ted Cruz.

Clarke's plan, if it ever comes to fruition, is certainly exciting. But the plan itself is Poli Sci 101. It's a sophomoric effort to grab some publicity outside his depressed and struggling part of town, an effort that many new voters can smell as easily as that weird poop smell coming up from the cracks between the unglued tiles of LOVE Park.

We likely won't see seven restaurants gracing LOVE Park within the next year and the mayoral election is less than two years away. If Clarke can glide this high into the Mayor's office, will he return to his worn ways and abandon his experiment, or will he cater to the broader scope of the whole city and fulfill the obligations he's laying out?

LOVE

Just when you thought the holidays were over, one of the most notorious (depending on whether you're single or not) sneaks up and bites you in the ass.

Honoring the martyrdom of Saint Valentine, this weekend will be spent securing last minute reservations at the Olive Garden, scouring the shelves of CVS for the lone remaining Whitman's Sampler, and undoubtedly sending hundreds of bitter, awkward, or simply lazy e-cards.

What's certain is that on Monday, JFK Plaza will be transformed into a sea of red, with huddled lovers posing in the cold in front of Robert Indiana's famed LOVE sculpture.

Indiana's famous sculpture first found itself at the plaza as part of Philadelphia's United States Bicentennial celebration. Although removed two years later, Philadelphia Art Commissioner Euguene Dixon, Jr. was urged by popular demand to return the sculpture as a permanent fixture in what is now commonly referred to as LOVE Park.

Although LOVE Park is probably one of the most widely known locations for the famous sculpture, it wasn't the first and certainly not the only. Robert Indiana's first LOVE was shown on a Christmas card created for New York's Museum of Modern Art in 1964. The first three-dimensional LOVE sculpture was exhibited in New York City in 1970. It was moved to the Indianapolis Museum of Art five years later and has been on display there ever since.

Three years before it was first placed in Philadelphia's JFK Plaza, it appeared on an 8 cent stamp in 1973, perhaps one of the most iconic images ever to be produced by the United States Post Office.

The sculpture has been reproduced in Chinese, Hebrew, Italian, and Spanish. With its presence around the globe, Philadelphia is proudly home to two. Another LOVE sculpture can be found on the University of Pennsylvania's campus.

The image has been the source of parodies, many political. Advocates, both for and against the Obama campaign, used the image substituting the original "LOVE" with the words "HOPE" and "NOPE". Stickers from the campaigns can still be found around the city.

Dilworth Plaza a Go

I'm glad to see this is actually moving forward, and while I don't think it's the best design or the best use of $50M, I don't think it's all bad. I doubt anyone will be regretting this decision 5 or 10 years from now. However architecture and cleanliness won't be the biggest hurdle, tacking the homeless will. I think Love Park and Dilworth Plaza became the dilapidated Hooverville's that they are because they were surrounded by nothing for years, not because they are simply public spaces.

It may be silly to think that buzz words like "cafe" actually mean anything, but an element of street level commerce will excite people. It won't draw the residents from their fortresses at the Ritz or the Phoenix anymore than Barnes and Noble pulls them out of 10 Rittenhouse Square, but it will grab the commuters who'd rather grab a coffee and a muffin street-side instead of in the SEPTA catacombs.

It's true City Hall itself wasn't designed to be a public space but it doesn't mean the surrounding area can never succeed as one. If that were the case we might as well put the Arcade Building and Broad Street Station back on top of Dilworth Plaza because any other project would be doomed from the start.

Many Negadelphians would assume that any public project is inevitably doomed. But the truth of the matter is that this space is surrounded by new development and renovated public spaces. The Convention Center is going to be pulling people north of Market Street, new museums are pulling tourists across Broad Street, and all of them will be passing through the most important piece of Philadelphia's architectural portfolio.

It's stubborn to propose that this space isn't due some attention, and it's naive to assume that no one will enjoy it. We don't all get in our cars and hop on 676 at 5pm to run from urbanity as fast as we can. Some of the less cranky commuters might stick around if our most important public spaces didn't smell so bad.

Dilworth Plaza Makeover to Start - Philly.com