“This community never gave up the fight for ways to mitigate the expressway,” said John Chin, executive director of the Philadelphia Chinatown Development Corp.
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The Vine Street Expressway at Broad Street in Philadelphia, Pa. on Wednesday, March 8, 2023. The city plans to cap the Vine Street Expressway to reconnect Chinatown, from Broad Street to Eighth Street. Monica Herndon / Staff Photographer
By Jeff Gammage, Philadelphia Inquirer Mar 8, 2023
They’re calling it the Chinatown Stitch, a modest name for a massive construction project that would reconnect the north and south sides of the neighborhood by physically capping the below-ground Vine Street Expressway.
City officials and neighborhood leaders said Wednesday that they’re newly hopeful that, finally, it can be done. If all goes as planned — and that’s a big if — groundbreaking could come in 2028.
Related news stories:
Philly wants to stitch together Chinatown (WHYY)
Philly Studying the Capping of I-676 (NBC 10 TV)
Philly to explore capping Vine Street Expressway (Philly Voice)
Businesses fear Sixers arena would ‘destroy’ Chinatown (WHYY)
“This community never gave up the fight for ways to mitigate the expressway,” John Chin, executive director of the Philadelphia Chinatown Development Corp., said at a media briefing.
A website has been launched to gather ideas and opinions from area residents, and the first community-engagement meeting is set for April 26.
The study area would be from Broad Street to Eighth Street.
A cap would reduce noise, create green space, and become a platform for the construction of homes and businesses. Officials had no estimate of the total cost but said that capping a single city block could be $25 million to $30 million.
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