South Philly refinery re-do features trucking, despite calls for carbon-free development

This project in South Philadelphia has become with many community advocates at odds with it and what they are seeking. The company responsible for these redevelopments have released details on how it will impact e-commerce and logistics. As reported by Whyy, there was a virtual meeting where ”officials with Hilco Redevelopment Partner (HRP) shared a rough rendering of the redevelopment planned for the southern portion of the site east of the Schuylkill River”.

The land has 17 large lots, totaling over 10 million square feet of building space and services by over 2,400 loading docks. The HRP Vice President of Development Kurt Carter said the types of operations that could fill these buildings include “last mile delivery facilities, regional logistics hubs, and freezer-cooler buildings, due to the site’s proximity to the nearby port and airport and to a large Mid-Atlantic population center”.

The United South/Southwest Coalition for Healthy Communities had a different idea of a redevelopment vision – “an alliance of more than 20 community groups, including community development organizations like … civic associations, faith groups, and park friends’ groups”. This Coalition was developed with the purpose of negotiating a community benefits agreement with the HRP and it would be a legally binding document containing different provisions in relation to environmental health, employment, community assets and anti-displacement”. The community members feel like they know their community best and need to have their voices and needs heard from that perspective. Click here to read the full story.