Fueled by the City Beautiful Movement at the turn of the 20th century and inspired by Paris’ Champs Elysees, the Benjamin Franklin Parkway was originally designed as a grand cultural boulevard, connecting City Hall to the Philadelphia Museum of Art. However, lack of subsequent critical development along the parkway and the advent of the automobile left this vision altered and unfinished. OLIN collaborated with stakeholders, architects, planners, and traffic engineers to propose solutions to decrease vehicular congestion, improve the pedestrian street experience, and renovate the major open spaces along the Parkway, including Philadelphia landmarks Logan Square, JFK Plaza, and Eakins Oval. The plan provides guidelines to enhance the parkway as a cultural boulevard and recommends strategies for future development and management.
