Preservation vs. development in Philly

Guest; Harris Steinberg, Paul Steinke, Leo Addimando

Philadelphia has a lot of old buildings–68% of them were built before 1945–but only two percent of them have a historic designation. That’s half the average of most large cities. So why aren’t we preserving more of our city’s historical structures? And how do we meet the needs of a crowded, modern city while maintaining its historic character? This hour, we look at the tension between preservation and development in Philadelphia and discuss how the Mayor’s task force on historic preservation is tackling the problem. We’ll also talk about how, and who, should decide which buildings are worthy of saving. Marty’s guests are HARRIS STEINBERG, chair of the Mayor’s task force and executive director of the Lindy Institute for Urban Innovation, PAUL STEINKE, executive director of the Preservation Alliance of Greater Philadelphia, and LEO ADDIMANDO, managing partner and co-founder of Alterra Property Group.