OPDC chose as its executive director John Robin from Pittsburgh , where he had garnered much praise for his redevelopment skills. OPDC was designated a consultant to the Redevelopment Authority with regard to Society Hill's redevelopment. Robin was the principal author of the marketing plan. For the properties with buildings to be saved and "developed" by individuals, a one- or two-step process began. Step one was something new in urban redevelopment. A representative of the Redevelopment Authority approached the owner of each such property, whether that owner was occupying the residence, renting it to tenants or simply leaving it vacant. The proposition put to each owner was to restore the house in accordance with the master plan, or else to sell it to the Redevelopment Authority at a fair market value. If an owner wanted to restore, the basic requirements were that the façade be restored completely in accordance with the master plan requirements, with approval of the owner's specific plan by the Philadelphia Historical Commission. In addition the interior had to be brought up to code standards. Free advice as to the architectural requirements for the façade was made available to each owner. As the program evolved some long-time owners with limited means were also offered low-interest financing for the cost of restoration. In general the policy was to encourage owners to fix up and retain ownership. If the owner could not or would not restore his or her property, and if agreement could not be reached on the value for the Authority to purchase, then the Authority resorted to step two: condemnation proceedings to acquire the property. OPDC then offered the purchased and condemned properties at market value to newcomers who would agree to restore. Such newcomers were vetted by a committee of OPDC as to the requisite financial ability and restoration sophistication. The Redevelopment Authority was responsible for marketing of vacant lots; final plans for these new residences required approval by the Authority's Design Review Committee. In order to achieve population stability, the general rule in all these transactions was to insist on owner occupancy by a single family.
In 1963 Jack Robin left OPDC for the Ford Foundation. His successor, William Rafsky, had earlier been brought to Philadelphia to join the administrative team of the first reform mayor, Joseph Clark. It was Rafsky who refined Robin's concepts and administered their mechanisms in a superb fashion.
Copyright © 2007 Stanhope S. Browne. All rights reserved.
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