In Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, long-anticipated renovation of LOVE Park was celebrated on February 10, 2016 with a ceremonial groundbreaking.
“It’s a Center City park, but it’s a lot more than that. It’s a place for all citizens, all citizens, from all over the city to come and gather, to protest, to celebrate, to come in times of trouble and in times of joy. It has that special place in the life of the city,” said Managing Director Mike DiBerardinis to the small crowd stuffed into the Fairmount Park Welcome Center. “It really is a significant public space and it deserves the attention and the resources that we’re putting into it now.”
The impetus for the park project was actually born from the need to peel back the park to waterproof the leaky garage roof below. That presented an opportunity to rethink the mid-century plaza on top and make the garage ADA accessible.
That opportunity also prompted public conversations about what LOVE Park should become, including a proposal from Council President Darrell Clarke for a heavy presence of revenue-generating uses.