Luminous, lively Philly | Bart’s ‘lavish’ casino party | talking Textizen | Queen Lane limbo | Julian Abele Park update | accepting North Philly change

Happy Monday, streeters. Today promises to be as lovely as the weekend was, so let’s start off today’s Buzz on a positive note:

To writer Beth Kephart, Philadelphia has emerged from its grim slump, as an iridescent city of light and energy that fills her with pride and hope. In the Inquirer’s Currents section this weekend, Kephart rattles off the city’s unexpected successes. She wrote, “More than its icons, bigger than its tagline, our Quaker City has acquired something like a European glow; it has become, despite its notorious, impudent self, decorously hospitable.”

Developer Bart Blatstein will (re)reveal his plans to turn the former Inquirer and Daily News building into a casino/resort/entertainment complex at a “lavish” party Wednesday evening, reports PhillyDeals. Blatstein first outlined his grand plans this spring, but plans to show off his more detailed $700 million development proposal prior to submitting them to the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board before their November 15 deadline.

The Planning Commission’s Clinton Randall sees the great connective potential of tools like Textizen to solicit broad public input on planning and policy ideas. Randall discussed the Planning Commission’s early usage of Textizen, the Code for America-developed tool, with PlanPhilly’s JoAnn Greco. Expect to see more Textizen questions in SEPTA ad spaces as district planning continues to roll out.

The Housing Authority’s planned Queen Lane project in Germantown remains on hold, awaiting more archaeological study of the historic Potter’s Field on the site, reports Amy Z. Quinn for PlanPhilly/NewsWorks. Next up, archaeological digs will investigate three areas of interest identified this summer in a ground-penetrating radar study. PHA, and the Department of Housing and Urban Development, intends to leave the Potter’s Field undisturbed, but the trouble is identifying the boundaries of the historical archaeological resource. Paul Lehmann, regional environmental officer for HUD said, “This Potter’s Field could be much bigger than we thought.”

Naked Philly reports that the paths at Julian Abele Park at 22nd and Carpenter streets have been almost completely installed and park construction is moving along nicely.

Victoria Trower grew up in the shadow of Temple University and reflects on the change she’s seen to her neighborhood since childhood, writing in Metropolis. As with life, neighborhood change can be hard to adjust to and accept, but Trower writes, “The changing landscape of my hood made me realize life with its sweet shortness and transitions is beautiful.”

 

 

The Buzz is Eyes on the Street’s morning news digest. Have a tip? Send it along. 

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