Revitalizing TaconyA revitalization effort through historic design

OverviewThe Tacony Community Development Corporation has lead the revitalization effort in the Tacony neighborhood of Philadelphia

The historic preservation based approach focuses on revitalizing our commercial main street, Torresdale Avenue, through better design, street enhancements, and resident engagement

Tacony sits along the Delaware River and is one of Philadelphia's historic riverwards

This presentation documents the new storefronts and enhancements we’ve help create over the past two years

Computer Guy

Computer Guy computer concierge service occupies one of the oldest and most historic buildings along the Torresdale Avenue Commercial corridor. Because of its prominence the CDC worked directly with the shop owner to design a new fresh art deco style sign. This sign provides a cool and calming blue light to the avenue in the evening and gives a little taste of South Beach Miami to Tacony

Bull’s Eye Darts

Bull’s Eye Darts is a dart and gaming shop that excels at giving excellent customer service through online and in store

transactions. Their storefront redesign included a new paint job, glass window decal, security grates, and awning

F.M Mart’s storefront improvement provides a great example of what was old being new again. The store occupies the old Woolworth’s boutique shop, a shop that served as a hallmark

destination in Tacony for many years. F.M Mart’s project captures the old essence of Woolworths with huge open and inviting windows, and a awing that replicates its predecessor. By going back to a classic design, particularly with its awning, F.M Mart has vastly improved

its overall appearance making it more attractive to new customers.

F.M Mart

Wellen’s Lingerie and Hosiery

If we had to pick a winner (which we never will) of our recent storefront improvements Wellen’s would definitely be in the running. Wellen’s new storefront has created the boutique feel that was

desperately needed for the store to survive and thrive. The cool new stylish awning with large windows to display wares and clothing are brought together by impressive back lighting making

Wellens a new stand out along Torresdale Avenue

Denofa’s Italian Deli

This family ran Italian Deli completed one of the most extensive storefront redesigns on the Avenue. In matter of weeks it changed from a tired deli with a bland coat of white paint over its bricks to a gorgeous redesign including new paint and accents throughout the first and second story front. The redesign culminates in a new sign to serve as its centerpiece. The only way this could have happened is through our partnership with the community design collaborative, who provided technical assistance on this project.

Café Expresso

Café Expresso sits off our major corridor on Princeton Street. This is one of our newest shops that will provide old classic

Italian style coffee and light fare. The shop owner took an empty store and added, a awning, new windows, seating, café

machines, and kitchen wares to accommodate his customers.

Smith’s Hardware

Smith’s Hardware used a minimal amount of treatment but to great effect. A fresh new awning improved doors and windows make the entire storefront pop out from its next door neighbors

Joseph Sannutti Funeral was our first local business to utilize the storefront improvement program through our organization. Already home to a well maintained brock façade the Sannutti Funeral Home focused its efforts on improved lighting to highlight their buildings architectural features. The lighting produces a large effect for avenue as this corner property lights up both sides.

Joseph Sannutti Funeral Home

These three businesses all got behind our idea of revitalizing a neighborhood through design. Because of their cooperation we were able to have 3 consecutive shops do the storefront improvement program. This section now showcases our concept, improved storefronts with clean and inviting exteriors boost business, Tacony’s image, and has spurred interested in our store front program and Tacony as a whole.

Marie Huff Hairdressing, East Coast Dental Lab, and Kavanagh’s Tobacco & Wholesale

Athenian used our help to take the front of their shop from worn out 1970’s gold motif to a full redesign on the outside complemented it with a new menu branding effort . Centered around true blue as their primary color it uses white as an accent for the exterior and black as the accent for its new menus and website. In addition to the new awning Athenian got new tile for the front of the shop and a new door and windows

Athenian Diner

Conclusion

Through effective design and business outreach the Tacony CDC is now spurring

investment throughout our corridor and

community. Although there is a long way to go Tacony now serves

as an example of design leading the revitalization of an

entire community one storefront at a time