So Piazza was Bart + Italian modern, this is Bart’s take on French-stereotypes… what’s next? Bart’s take on Bosnia? Bart’s take on the slums of Rio De Janiero? Bart’s Aleut-inspired Eskimo papoose hotel?

Favela at Ortlieb’s does have a unique sound to it…

this is prob the worst designs i have ever seen in my life, why build a tiny street on a roof of a building, why not outline the casino (which doesn’t need natural light) with retail development to activate the street. People complain about the gallery but this is going to be the gallery on a roof. What’s the point of a park if you can’t get to it and it has no active retail around. A good urban spaces have a variety of development on all sides. and the smallest open green space is next to the building.
Why not make the building offices and create a public amenity at the back ie. times square with retail around it.

The rooftop retail section is HORRENDOUS. I am fully against this project on this measure alone. Talk about inhibiting retail growth opportunities along Broad St. This project would surely do that with its inward retail approach. Are retailers not edging away from malls because people are demanding street level retail? Awful.

You forgot to mention Bart’s “Tower Place” launching in December at 1400 Spring Garden – and yes the press conference was swanky, and amazing…a proud moment for philadelphia.

Good article, i am torn on this as well. It has such a high percentage chance to become the gallery 2.0. In vegas and AC they force inside stores (and fake city streets) with high end retail 1. because they want to keep people in the building to gamble, and 2. because they are not in actual old world North East urban cities with streets these shops could go in. Why raise walnut street 10 stories in the sky if you can have it at the pedestrian level, I would like a nice open, integrated entertainment complex with shops that mix to the street and turn this area around outside (as opposed to in a box). This will no doubt hurt the actual gallery and market east turnaround (PREIT finalized the last piece earlier this year and finally streamlined the ownership) to be announced later this year. It will hurt it by stealing the same target stores and kind of building a newer version of it.

Granted, this idea could be a huge, glowing success, but there is the very real possibility that it could become a disaster. Why would we risk this as a city and on an area that has, in large part, already come back from blight and is on the right path to success.

Doesn’t sound like we can get away from a second casino license, I just do not know this should be it.

Retail on a roof when this area is screaming for vibrant sidewalk life makes me want to bang the architect’s head against the wall. We all know why developers want this… there is an air of exclusivity about a rooftop and one has to pass through all that gambling temptation (just play a game or two, wink, wink) to get to stores at the top. Regardless, this botched rooftop strategy alone should give City Hall a pause. When has an urban mall really functioned well in Philadelphia? Even the Shops at Liberty Place mall has major design flaws and vacancy problems.

If you want to make it exclusive put a high-end spa tantamount to an adult waterpark at the top of this thing. Put glass saunas with city views, Jacuzzi pools and hamams up there. Have all sorts of herbal and facial treatments, massages, hydrotherapy, etc… and offer amazing views of the city in the process. You have a connected hotel for overnight stays and a swanky French-themed casino below it. Upscale the place by insisting on jacket-only, no jeans at the table games. Brand the aforementioned spa as part of this high-end Monegasque – Monte Carlo theme, not Provençal. We don’t need retail held hostage on a roof… we need something more unique.

This is an innovative idea, without a doubt. But…
1) This section of the City does not need a casino, let alone Center City at all – let alone, in this specific neighborhood.
2) Job creation… what about Green jobs or Clean jobs? If the casino aspect is taken out, this project wil still create construction jobs, accomodation (hotel) jobs as well as retail and restaurants.
3) See Sugarhouse…
4) Casino right near Masterman as well as multiple other high schools? Let’s consider the state of the school district – violence within the schools – will putting a casino smack in the middle be a good image for the kids? Will it promote safety or cause “casino goers” less safety? How exactly will it affect the community and/or inner city kids?
5) Crime and violence – homelessness – poverty – struggle – North Broad Street….
Now, if Bart wants to go ahead and create a mixed-use development, with retail stores, mom and pop grocery stores, restaurants and condos/apts – sure, why not. We welcome the idea. A casino is not the best idea for the neighborhood, let alone Center City. Put it in the Navy Yard… that makes more sense to me. There are way too many ripple effects, that can be very negative for the project’s outcome. I know he is “staking hsi reptuation” on this project – but why not do something good? Why not do something that the constituents and the neighborhood needs? You want to invest in something Bart? How about create affordable housing? How about using your skills to truly improve the neighborhood and address the social and economic concerns of residents?

Retail on Rooftop = better/false sense of security, this is North Broad Street after all. Bart did mention it would be an all or nothing project. No phases like Sugarhouse.

There are a litany of reasons why I am 100% opposed to the project. Here are three:

1. Ethically, I am very against the expansion of casinos into cities. Casinos serve as a way for cities and states to generate additional revenue at the expense of lower-income families. With our government seemingly incapable of spending money in an effective manner (i.e., the land-grab in Point Breeze), I do not know why we want to put more money into the coffers.

2. Steven Starr’s and Marc Vetri’s decisions to put new restaurants on North Broad suggest that the area is progressing. Other developments, such as the Divine Lorraine, also indicate that there is interest in this area. So, even without this mega-project, the area seems to be turning a corner and attracting new ideas and investment.

3. I don’t know who frequents casinos. I presume Philadelphia wants to attract the highly-educated, professional crowd to the city. Is this demographic going to visit a casino? I have never been to a casino in the city, nor have my friends thought about going there. Is the purpose of the casino to attract tourists or people here on business?

How do I get involved in trying to oppose this project?

Creating more compulsive gamblers out of people who never would have started is a Lousy idea for a crime ridden city.

awesomeawesomeawesome shops on top so dont get robbed, a thinking man!

why not let other developers create the retail surrounding it? the raised village looks amazing – it is more for the customers of the casino, and gives people a reason to come to philadelphia. if we want to be viewed as an international city we need developments like this, and more outside of the box thinking. people are going to travel from china to philadelphia, to go to a cafe and boutique

you sound like an idiot – philadelphia is so behind the times, and most philadelphians are as well. I’m glad bart is thinking outside of the box, and giving philadelphia something that doesn’t already exist.

Retail corridors work best when it lines both sides of the street. For example, look how it falls apart on the west side of Rittenhouse where the church occupies the the corner of W. Rittenhouse Sq and Walnut St, despite there being a litany of people that frequent the park and the bustling retail on the east side of the park.
Retail really should be the street if this development has any hope of positively contributing to the redevelopment of North Broad.
Also, as an entertainment complex, doesn’t a movie theater seem like a good option for this?

Comments are not showing up!

I’m ALL for Philly’s growth and change but please: don’t turn this city into Vegas, Disneyland or AC…!!!

PS: the last rendering (rooftop stores) is SUPER SCARY – and I’m from France! If I want to see Euro stuff, I go to Europe.

Then you’ll join me in my proposition for a subterranean retail mall. I’ve already begun digging my pit at the northeast corner of 15th and Lehigh. I am ahead of my time. I will may even hit gold.

I think casinos are stupid. I think it’s stupid that the state gives so few licenses that are so expensive which means we have a few concentrated large casinos. I think there should be as many gambling licenses and liquor licenses and they should be regulated similarly.

In any case, the issue here shouldn’t be whether or not it’s a casino it should be the land use: should they have air rights over 15th? the site’s zoned industrial–how should it be rezoned? should they be able to use the city land near the I-676 interchange? how much street frontage should they have to have? etc. If the design fits well then whether or not the commercial use is a casino or not shouldn’t be a huge deal. But if it’s a bunker, albeit framed by glass, then it should not be allowed.

The Chinese will go to Paris if they want France and already are. If they want Disney they’ll go to Florida. Let’s just be authentically Philadelphia… you know the birthplace of American democracy, culinary hotspot, burgeoning artistic haven… not fake retail on a roof.

Exactement!! Philadelphie n’est pas Epcot Center!

With Darrell Clarke making the opening presentation at the unveiling and saying “Jobs Jobs Jobs” you know the City is in full support of this. It was a great event that night at the unveiling. I love Bart’s “Go for it” mentality.

No, Jeff, you’re the dimwit and sound like a typical YOkel who’s never really traveled outside this region. You clearly don’t understand why people travel to world class cities. Or why developers build resorts and casinos. They’re put in places like Las Vegas because IT WAS A DESERT with nothing there. We’re an historically important US city and that’s why people come here. This cheesy, faux-French, big-box “resort” is kind of ridiculous. Provence (there’s no “The” in front of it) is an agricultural region. If you’re going to create a faux-European slots parlor, at least call it something that makes sense, like Monte Carlo…
phunnyphilly.wordpress.com

That’s what you think…phunnyphilly.wordpress.com/2012/10/27/bart-blatsteins-schlepcot-centers/

Just what we need the equivalent of another Convention Center. Tell him to take this project to Las Vegas and pitch it. This isn’t compatible with the culture in Philadelphia in any way. Let’s not have another Piazza please.

No one is forcing anyone to gamble. It is a totally false premise that a casino encourages people to gamble away their salary. People prone to that kind of behavior already do it on internet poker and scratch-and-win tickets. This is America, land of the free — if you can’t play responsibly then get help or suffer from your own irresponsibility and let the other 99% of people have fun and grow this city.

[...] already given you the specifics on two of these projects- The Provence, from Tower Investments, at the former Inquirer Building, and Live! Hotel and Casino on the site of a Holiday Inn that’s immediately to the north of [...]

[...] revitalization is anchored by Bart Blatstein’s redevelopment of the State and Inquirer buildings, and plans to renovate the Divine Lorraine, one of the city’s iconic yet abandoned and [...]