Isaacson and Saval secure $72,000 in funding for Vision Plan Initiative
Rep. Mary Isaacson December 20, 2022 | 11:05 AM
State Rep. Mary Isaacson, along with state Sen. Nikil Saval, were instrumental in securing funding for the Fishtown-Kensington Business Improvement District’s Vision Plan Initiative.
A grant for $72,750 was awarded to the Fishtown Kensington Area Business Improvement District to complete the project.
“I am committed to bringing funding home to the district that will enhance the safety and quality of life of my constituents,” Isaacson said. “This award will go a long way to improve a vital transportation hub while also creating spaces for art and connection, highlighting local artists and vendors.”
The legislators aid the program seeks to rejuvenate Front Street and Girard Avenue by activating and beautifying a transportation hub to illuminate, connect, and make this busy intersection safer and more accessible to the thousands who pass by daily.
The upgrades also will include space under the Market-Frankford Line, which will be a combined space that merges art with community services.
“Public transit and spaces that are safe, accessible and beautiful are core to upholding Philadelphians' right to freedom of movement,” Saval said. “This grant is an investment in the lives and livelihoods of the thousands of neighbors who pass through this space every day. I'm proud to add my efforts with those of the community.”
“We will be utilizing open spaces under the El Stop to merge art and constituent service,” said Marc D. Collazzo, executive director of the Fishtown Kensington Area Business Improvement District. “This, coupled with our previously funded pedestrian plaza project at Front Street and Cecil B. Moore Avenue, highlights our district’s goal to bring about the change we want to see in our commercial corridor.”
“We thank Senator Nikil Saval and Representative Mary Isaacson, as well as their dedicated staffs, for the zealous advocacy for us to obtain this generous award, as well as for continued support of the Fishtown/Kensington neighborhoods,” Collazzo continued.
The funding is part of the Keystone Communities Program, which is designed to encourage partnerships between public and private sectors to support local initiatives that promote growth and stability in neighborhoods, plus seeks to improve quality of life issues in neighborhoods throughout Pennsylvania.