The Italian Marketplace | Picture courtesy of NakedPhilly.com

 
Why is this significant?

For a city like Philadelphia, where most of its neighborhoods are built around local commercial corridors (or Main Streets), this is a big deal; and it’s a super big deal for the revitalization of the Italian Market.

Back in March, I wrote a post titled “Why does the world’s cheesesteak mecca not support local businesses?” Some of you may have read it and just shrugged it off, but I’m positive that others read it and somewhat agreed. Hey, maybe even the business owners along the IM read it.

Philadelphia’s Italian Market has been classified as “America’s Oldest Outdoor Market.” That’s a pretty bold statement considering almost every major city in the US has some kind of historic (or modern) outdoor marketplace where you can pick up food, goods, etc.

Now, it’s really starting to look like this commercial corridor is seeing the bigger picture. “How do we improve the entire Italian Market, and not just our individual businesses?” Well, you can start by developing an suitable anchor project at the IM’s most prominent intersection (9th & Washington).

This project is definitely a big step in the right direction (all aesthetics aside).