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Naming and Framing

What’s your story related to the Roundhouse?

What do you want people to remember about the Roundhouse

Meaningful Placemaking

Based on the history of the Roundhouse, what values should the future of the site embrace?

How can we move forward with the site transformation?

What role should the site play in the future for the local community and the city at large? How should the future site look and feel?

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My hope for this building is simple, i wish for it to be renovated, i would love to see it turned into a health center, park, rec center, education or anything to benefit the community, as well as architectural reformation, put some color in there! Take the fence down! Plant trees and ideally use part of the site for some much needed residential and mixed use development, towers ideally but ones that respect the structure. Its a painful symbol for brutality and racism, and i think we need to harness that and turn it into something everyone can love

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Children's Village, next door, is one of the few childcare centers that actually represents the demographics of the city and it does a great job taking care of our children. Give the non-profit a 50-year lease.

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I’m more hopeful that the building will not be demolished. It would be a great loss to the architectural fabric of Philadelphia to lose this Brutalist icon.

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Was pleasantly surprised by meaningful placemaking process and that the city seems to follow through with it.

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The city could maximize sales price by selling to a developer for high end condo and a hotel. Will the city be wiling to sacrifice on price in order to accommodate a desirable use such as affordable housing and public spaces?

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A potential museum could be considered, at least for part of it. The parking lot could be sold to a private developer to help pay for Roundhouse renovation.

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I really like the idea of open space linked to Chinatown

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It is an interesting location and should help the Chinatown community. It should not be a homeless shelter or an addiction center. It should incorporate a museum showing its past history

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The roundhouse is my favorite building in Philadelphia. Despite the difficult memories surrounding it, I would like to see it developed as a place to build community near the least used of William Penn’s four original squares.

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Personally, i would love the space to be used for multiple utilities. it's a huge building. why not the next bok bar? retail, open space, community centers etc.

i live across the street and don't want the area to be another government day activities only building. the area is desolate at night. that's why i was thinking of bok building ... pull people in with coffee, museum, community centers during the day ... maybe restaurant at night

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We probably wouldn't be here if not for the architecture. The proposed uses seem to allow for the possibility of preserving the architecture to a large degree.

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The south part of the site offers ample room to build affordable housing, community center, and street level retail. The area between the affordable housing and the existing building could be public space. The site could be landscaped and pedestrian friendly. Indeed this could be a catalyst for invigorating the Franklin Square - Chinatown East neghborhood

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I like the idea of a safe, welcoming space - including greenery - because it benefits the entire community

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The fact that there is a wait list of about 14 years on the CLOSED HUD/Section 8/811 Housing (closed for about that long, no less) is disgraceful.  I've been on SSDI since 2002, and had to create a GoFundMe to afford a move to yet another "normal" rental.

I've tried every resource to try and get help and I understand others are less fortunate than I, but come on!  People are moving to tiny towns to get Section 8 vouchers and then moving back.  I was told by someone in the system my best bet was to become homeless and go into the shelters for six months.

I moved to Philly for art college in '83 and I can't do this any more.  The developers have won.  You have my beloved city.  I'd say where I'm moving, that has open lists, but they'd buy up homes and drive out families, the fragile and freaks like me!

So, homes for those of us who need and want them, along with some triage services.  Maybe turn that parking lot into an urban farm of some sort, with vertical growing, which would be great therapy for residents and some locals?

Well, there are loads of great ideas on here, so whatever happens, I'm sure it will be wonderful! Best wishes to all. x

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DO NOT SELL IT. CITY OWNED= SERVING THE CITY AND ITS COMMUNITIES. PRIVATELY OWNED= SERVING PROFITS TO FEW. Cities are being torn about by private priorities and development instead of investing in community-led initiatives and reclamation of public space.

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A museum/gallery for contemporary and modern art

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A museum/gallery for contemporary and modern art

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New York has MoMA, London has Tate Modern, Los Angeles has The Broad, but Philly seems to be missing a modern, contemporary art museum/gallery.

Philly has one of the greatest art collections in the world due to the Philadelphia Museum of Art and the Barnes Foundation. We also have the Penn Museum, which houses priceless artifacts from ancient civilizations. Sure, we have the ICA in University City, but it's far too small to be a full-on museum/gallery for tourists. And being that the Roundhouse Building is a prime example of Brutalist architecture, it is a work of art on its own.

We need a museum/gallery for contemporary/modern art in Philadelphia. It's the missing piece.

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Use for young kids involved in criminal activities, not as a form of imprisonment but place where they can have a second chance plus for ex-offenders that can stay to help mentor these kids. This city needs help and when looking at the news it's mainly black kids that's pulling the trigger and dying at an alarming rate. So this place can be a solution to do good for criminal justice, it can save life's before and after prison. To all candidates running for Mayor use this platform for criminal justice to help the black community, let history show this place was intended for good not hate

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This place has so many horrid memories for many. Several family members have passed through this space. The stories I’ve heard from so many, family, friends and what I’ve read on this thread are not one to be remembered happily.

Hopefully, this place will no longer ring the tunes of injustice. But one representative of healing, peace, productivity, unity and light.

It would be great to have a room dedicated for ANY COMMUNITY, to have a voice. Not just the chosen few.

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how about turning the Roundhouse into an indoor garden area for the adjacent communities? the space can utilize hydroponic and aquaponic systems to grow produce.

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Preserve the building for mixed-income housing

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Preserve the building for mixed-income housing

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Philadelphia needs more housing and this could be a great opportunity to transform a unique building into mixed-income housing for an area that has excellent transit links (especially with the forthcoming reopening of the Franklin Square PATCO station).

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Visual example of a community ed space in greek amphitheater format. 

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How can we move forward with the site transformation?

Since there is a basement in the Roundhouse, use it to create an open ground level with a submerged greek amphitheater that can be used for conferences, community meetings, etc.

Additional ideas: 1) Another building can be created in the parking lot. 2) Do underground parking or no parking at all. 3) Remove the outer wall - it makes no sense.

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My friend was wrongfully arrested for exercising her free speech rights in another state and the Philadelphia police partnered with that municipality's law enforcement officials to arrest her in her own home in front of her young children. She was taken to the Roundhouse where people gathered to call for her release, which took almost 24 hours. This building has been used to brutally repress people, particularly Black and Brown people. It should be developed in a way that supports communities most harmed by the PPD. This includes immigrant, BIPOC, and LGBTQ communities. For this to be possible, the City should allow for the property to be disposed for a nominal fee so that uses like affordable housing, community spaces, and other non-"market-friendly" uses are possible.

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National Museum of American Police Brutality.. 

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National Museum of American Police Brutality.. 

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I think the roundhouse presents the perfect opportunity, place and location to illustrate where and how police corruption, brutality, systemic racism and so many things come together in one piece of architecture. I see an immersive museum guiding visitors from the interrogation rooms that explain how a false confession is elicited up through the commissioners office upstairs into a meeting discussing how to "handle" a BLM protest and how protests and scandals are discussed at the table. Think of it like the museum of the American revolution, but reframing American history around exploring systemic white supremacy in the very building where so much of it came together and was perpetuated. There's no way to build yet another condo building and have people live there, it's best to turn this scar into a place of healing, and put on display all of the painful history that is Philadelphia and it's problematic police department through its entire history and as the place where military style policing was invented and to show where it has gotten us. In the middle of the east coast it would serve as a potent teaching tool for school children and as a place for police recruits from all over the country to visit and learn a critical perspective about the business they are entering, and how to approach it in a balanced and professional manner.

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Use the building to house homeless people provide showers, clean clothes and medical attention plus security for the homeless.

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A shelter could be nice. They have something like this over at 8th and Girard when there is housing and programs for people in recovery. There is all this concern about the homeless and this is a vast building large enough to accommodate a lot to help people. We should pray on that.

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Maybe make it a free art space with classes? And have a free gallery specifically exhibiting art done by poc artists?
Instead of erasing it's history, we can acknowledge it was something bad and turn it into somewhere safe and good for local artists, musicians, dancers, and artisans.

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The building could be used for basic City services and community outreach and learning center for basic life skills training. It could used as a rehab center for people seriously wanting to get off the streets and/or drugs. An in-house 30 day program  to help wean off substances, to teach interview skills and dress for a job interview.  To teach how to manage money and budget.  How to pay bills. How to apply for an apartment and other basic life skills.
After years of what the Roundhouse was it can transform into a place where well Rounded people can be released back into our society.

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It should be a police museum. Every other big city has one. It would be an easy transition.

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This is a part of the city that is highly impacted by the expressway. It should be redeveloped with a mix of uses like residential, commercial, and open space.

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It could be used to home section 8 and the homeless population that are living on Kensington avenue . I think it would be great and it can bring the poor and the rich together.

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I actually don’t know much about the Roundhouse, but this seems like a wonderful opportunity to create an inviting, welcoming, and transformative space for people who may be experiencing homelessness.

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In the roundhouse.

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I feel it should be used for the homeless as a shelter and medical, maybe life skills all in one for the drug addicts. Our avenues are filled with addicts and filth. Where there was once a thriving community of stores of all kinds are now filled with crime filth and suffering addicts sleeping on our city pavements. It  is a crisis to say the least. Our streets are unsafe for babies, children, mothers, father's ,and our elderly. Do something useful with it we do not need another museum.

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HOUSE THE HOMELESS

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Sell it to highest bidder, with no restraints.

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I just wish the news media would stop pointing out the fact that, apparently from the sky, the roundhouse resembles a pair of handcuffs.  No one sees it from this perspective.

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In the same issue of the Inquirer, there is a story of the Roundhouse and a story on housing youth at the DHS offices. How perfect it would be to create a wonderful space for these kids along with arts and educational enrichment for all of Philadelphia’s youth. A win win.

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We should use this opportunity to create something positive in this space. Expand PAL and other youth-focused activities that will provide safe spaces for kids who might otherwise find trouble in the streets. Athletics, art, theater, music, after school groups... anything to allow officers, police department staff, and community volunteers to interact with young people to form positive bonds that will encourage good relations and set examples for our future citizens.

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Something for our many kids who are homeless and/or stranded in DHS (article in today’s Sunday INQUIRER) —let Philadelphia lead another pathbreaking program for our most vulnerable— what about a city-run children’s center and shelter with educational programs and job training in renewable energy?

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Not every transaction the city is involved in needs to have a broader socio-political meaning. The land is worth millions of dollars and the city would be better served having that money in it's bank account than a short term political win.

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Given that every time I look at the Roundhouse I think about the people who I love that have been harmed by our systems of control, I don't know if I can ever look at it differently. The most important people to actively seek out for this process are folks who have been harmed by/in that space (currently/formerly incarcerated folks) and folks who stand to be majorly impacted by its redevelopment (nearby residents in Chinatown). Actively engage trusted neighbors and organizations who can actually get the input that you seek, don't just hope that people will see a survey, especially considering barriers like technology, language, literacy, trust in the system, etc.

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Devote it to promote public health. With the closure of 500 S Broad, the city health center and Health Department can use the space and bring the Police Citizens Oversight, community anti-violence programs together.

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Please don’t demolish the building it’s a piece of history you should be turned into a police museum or community services

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Give the parcel back to Chinatown -- let the PCDC decide to demolish or reuse. Image courtesy of Temple University Libraries, Special Collections Research Center

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Use the Roundhouse to create Philadephia's first bus depot for all bus lines - greyhound, megabus, flix, etc etc.

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Brutalism is often about public space and public benefit, see the countless examples of public housing constructed in the style. Saving and repurposing this building for something meaningful, that reckons with its history as a center for policing, would be useful and impactful. Perhaps an anti-violence center, a community art forum, or something like the eastern state penitentiary that is tied to learning about police brutality and history while showcasing better ways forward.

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The current firehouse at 10th and Cherry

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Relocate Chinatown's Fire House to the Roundhouse

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Relocate Chinatown's Fire House to the Roundhouse

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I want to bring up something that hasn't been broached before. While the actual Roundhouse holds importance on the Race Street side, the parking lot in the back has enormous potential to relocate a City service pressed for space. This is the Fire Department's Engine 20 "House of Dragons" firehouse at 10th and Cherry Streets.

The current firehouse's location is a known deficiency. With the level of traffic congestion experienced on 10th St and throughout Chinatown, firefighters must weave around narrow lanes and stopped cars, delaying service and heightening the risk of collisions through a pedestrian-heavy area. In addition, residents are all too aware of the constant noise and blaring of horns throughout the day.

Moving the firehouse to 8th and Cherry Streets solves much of these issues. With wider streets on 7th/8th/Race/Cherry Streets, fire trucks will be held up far less often, reducing the need to honk horns. There is far quicker access to I-676 as well. Firefighters parking on the sidewalk due to constrained space will also be solved. And not more needs to be said about how a modernized facility helps everyone with better fire service.

It doesn't just have to be a firehouse. There are numerous examples of fire stations co-located with housing that the team could look at, with one example in nearby Wilmington, DE.
https://www.housingfinance.com/developments/development-combines-seniors-housing-and-fire-station_o

When PCDC gives tours of Chinatown, they note that the City has often foisted unwanted city services in our neighborhood without careful consideration of how it affects residents and businesses. Even with PFD firefighters as a beneficial resource and community partner, the facility itself could use a better location. Now with the relocation of Police District 6, the relocation of Engine 20 should to the Roundhouse site needs to be included in the master plan. The site at 10th and Cherry could then be conveyed to a responsible developer to transform this parcel in the heart of Chinatown into a community asset with retail and affordable housing. Thank you!

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Would love to see the Roundhouse and its open space be redeveloped to benefit the Chinatown community. Chinatown is a hub for Asian-Americans around the city, but there aren't any free, public spaces where friends can meet up without having to buy something. More housing, businesses, and public space at the Roundhouse would also help connect Chinatown with Franklin Square, the only playground in the area.

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This is a beautiful building that isn't Brutalist but Brutalized. Its prior owners, the Philadelphia Police Department, twisted it into a monster and forced it into a site of racist abuse. Independent of its history, it's a delicate building: sensuous, flowing, vulnerable, and accessible. Let's find a new owner that can recognize those unique qualities and propose a use that most celebrates its original intents.

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The roundhouse is a really stunning building that should be preserved. Get rid of the wall around it, add some green space, and redevelop the surface lot behind it. I feel like it wouldn't work well for apartments but could be a very cool art space

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I have been teaching in art academies in the city and used to take the students to see the roundhouse as an example of a public building built at a time when architecture has a social and not only commercial function. It is therefore a relic of a social mission that now we look at very differently. I would therefore suggest it to be a contemporary art museum - showcasing local talent and historical work from Philly's vast and rich recent art history.

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Highest and Best Use Is Affordable Housing with Ground Floor Retail 

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Highest and Best Use Is Affordable Housing with Ground Floor Retail 

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Location location location. This block sized parcel sits at the crossroads of Old City, Center City and Chinatown. It is within blocks of an MFL stop, the BSL Spur and soon to be a new PATCO stop. Development pressure from the newly proposed 76ers arena and other projects threaten the affordability and character of the area. Why not redevelop this parcel to be large scale affordable housing built around extremely good access to public transit and all the amenities of the area. Build in such away that reintegrates the parcel into the grid, instead of being a virtual fortress. Have ground floor retail that will be made available to local business owners and will offer goods and services to the surrounding community. This is a huge piece of public land in a highly desirable area, it should be used for the needs of the public.

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We've seen too many buildings demolished lately just because they can be. We can save the building and memorialize and acknowledge that this was a place where people of all races, ethnicities and religious beliefs were imprisoned. With the current rethinking around diverting people from going to jail in the first place, we will need reminders for the next generations to show them how regressive their ancestors were, caging humans like animals. A public exhibit in a renovated building can help us do that. That kind of public exhibit can easily be a condition of selling the building through an RFP. Other than that, the future of the site should be welcoming and inclusive (so no six-foot-tall or eight-foot-tall walls or fences on the perimeter). And there is no reason why a street wall (whether using landscaping, building, etc.), can't be re-established along 7th Street, Cherry Street and 8th Street.

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Way too many Black/Brown people have suffered at the hands of the police in there. There's no "reframing" its use when there's still Black/Brown people in Philly still suffering from police brutality. It's a reminder of the blatant racism in Philly by the cops and should be demo'd. There's other brutalist designs worth saving or making mixed use. Not this 1.

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Affordable Housing + Small Businesses + Health Services

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Affordable Housing + Small Businesses + Health Services

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DO NOT add another hotel or museum to this area. I think full demolition would be too costly - a repurposing of the space with partial reconstructions, especially on the ground floor would suffice. Definitely affordable housing on the upper floors of the building. Some potential services to add to this space on the ground floor and 1st-3rd floors: library, health center (like primary care or urgent care clinics), social work services for immigrants and low-income folks, playground, outdoor gym for senior citizens, green space, community garden, urban farm, rooftop green space and play space.

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Philadelphia Police Administration Building during construction, ca. 1961 © Lawrence S. Williams Inc., Estonian Museum of Architecture

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On the Relevance of the Philadelphia Police Administration Building, and Its Future

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On the Relevance of the Philadelphia Police Administration Building, and Its Future

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In terms of architecture, engineering and construction, it is a world-class building, and it would be a shame if it were lost permanently (demolished or substantially rebuilt).

I hope that the several stakeholders, especially the city and the local Philadelphia communities, can find a solution that will save the building in a way that will clearly acknowledge the injustice caused by the brutality of police in the past.

The building was designed with optimistic and progressive ideas in mind. It was only the arrival of Frank Rizzo and his policies that changed everything for the worse.

Therefore I firmly believe that the building should not be considered responsible for the terrible crimes of Rizzo and the systemic violence and corruption he favored and implemented.

Just like Rizzo and his regime brutalized the victims, he brutalized the building and its architecture.

The Future
A building once used for causing injustice could now become a place that serves justice.

The best scenario, in my opinion, would be the building's rebirth as a community building, in one form or another, and primarily used by the same communities that have suffered there the most in the past.

Should the City of Philadelphia be interested, I'm happy to further explain the building's international relevance, and provide the City additional information on its architecture, structure, and construction.

Best wishes,
Carl-Dag Lige, architectural historian
Tallinn, Estonia

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A recent radio program discussed the lack of access to decent temporary housing in urban areas, and Philadelphia is a prime example of this. While I applaud the noble efforts of great organizations such as Project H.O.M.E., more needs to be done. Furthermore, there is a large parking lot to the south of the roundhouse, which could be used to develop additional housing and services that would help people in need in a humane and dignified way.

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The Roundhouse has always been a dead zone. Parking lots and blast walls when walking up 6th or 7th the Roundhouse has always made Frankling Square feel more disconnected from Center City. The site needs to be engaging with businesses and housing so that it connects Frankin Square to the city rather than isolating it.

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The structure's design has both its supporters and detractors, but its form is so extraordinary it would be a shame to demolish it. Preserve the Roundhouse, absolutely, but get rid of the wall surrounding it, as well as the parking lot. The lot should be turned into either green space or some type of public plaza -- can always use more of those.

As far as future uses, I echo what many say here about converting to a museum. I'm skeptical about devoting the entire space to a police brutality memorial, or something along those lines, but feel it should be a permanent exhibit within. Definitely want to see a new museum that fills the void of the deceased Philadelphia History Museum.

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With the new subway entrance across the street, more housing would be appropriate.  But affordable housing, thanks.

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Let’s creating more housing in the area and expand the African American museum. Put a park, we should demolish the roundhouse

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Demolish and put the new Sixers arena on the site. It is a better site for the Sixers than 11th and Market. The site is better equipped to handle the construction and traffic for the new Sixers arena.

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To help with the lives that have been ruined or wrongly affected, this place should be turned into low income housing or a homeless shelter that includes a community center, free showers, and programs to help the addicts or the homeless get back on their feet.

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Sell it for as much as possible, then collect whatever tax revenues come, all to fund city services.

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The city should sell it and some developer should build apartments and retail on it. I mean this is a city, not a the college quad. Buildings serve a purpose and then they don’t so someone builds something new. We don’t need to “thoughtfully memorialize the stories” or whatever. Get over yourselves.

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Sell to the highest bidder for redevelopment

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Sell to the highest bidder for redevelopment

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Get the money back for the tax payers and use it for more trash bins, this city is so dirty. Any other more complicated answer just leads to so much grift.

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Partner with an organization like Eastern State Penitentiary to become a cultural institution/memorial/museum. Something that can discuss the dual sided nature of the history of the building.  That doesn't just erase the history of the place and that enables people to learn, contemplate, and advocate.

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With all of the quick and shoddy development going on all over the City, we need to preserve unique and beautiful pieces of architecture like this one. Depave the large swaths of concrete and asphalt from around it's perimeter and add valuable green space and tree canopy to the site. Let the green space connect into Franklin Square. Instead of erasing the painful history, let's make this building and site something good - give back to the City, in an economic, environmental, and social way. This is an important opportunity, let's not tear down to the lowest bidder like usual.

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This building could be used for great things!  A safe place for kids 10-17 to learn life skills or learn a new trade. When I was in school we had sewing, metal shop, wood shop, cooking, etc. Schools do not have these programs anymore. Kids need to learn these things.  It could be used for tutoring and also have maybe a tech lab. We need to invest in our kids, so the future will be better. The more our kids are taken care of, the more we teach them and help them grow, the less likely they will end up on the streets, or criminals or drug addicts.  Why don't we see that investing in our kids will lead to less crime and homelessness in the future.

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I was born in 1959 at Metropolitan Hospital which was at the site where the "Round House" stands today. So I think it should be repurposed to a medical center for the folks with little or no insurance, which could be funded by all the drug companies. It should help all the emergency rooms filled with people who need medical care not EMERGENCY CARE. I would also like to see the space used for disabled housing. I have MS and luckily I have a home that can accommodate my disability, but there are so many that are not as blessed as I am. There is very few places that a disabled person can call home especially if they are not seniors. Apartments with elevators and accessible bathrooms and accessible kitchens would be a real game changer for those in need of a place to live safely and comfortable. If you asked me ten years ago I would have said make it a fun place to eat and play, but now it has hit me that there are people like me who need some assistance just to live safely and comfortable. Ok I have said my peace and all I can do is hope that my ideas will be considered. I have a cousin who was a police officer in Philadelphia and was lucky to be able to retire and not killed or injured in the line of duty. I am sure he has many memories being at the Round House. I wonder what present and former police officers would want to see happen? Thanks for listening.

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The city should not sell the space
Keep it and provide funds to organizations that represent Phillies communities and who have the skills  to runs different spaces.
Imagine the Bok building but instead of individual interests the city transforms the space into a combo of the following:
- urban arts center with free wall spaces and trainings using healing centered pedagogies
- socially engaged arts for healing space ie. mural arts porch light programs and hub spaces with dbh
- workforce development centered programs for returning citizens (ie. monkey and elephant cafe, Mural Arts guild, more)
- low cost space for cultural community organizations for offices and public programs
- artist studio spaces and performing spaces ( the parking lot could be regularly used for outdoor productions and installations)
- low income housing? This would be lovely, but that neighborhood does not have a lot of housing or engaged neighborhood residents. I will be curious to learn of what neighboring resident feedback you receive. If it is a pleasant neighborhood to live in not just commute to work in? It is positioned in a somewhat isolated area.

I bet the city could more efficiently own a space like this if managed by a local org through a contract with them or a city department that already has capacity to do it and capacity to raise funds to truly transform the space while developing the longer term business model for it to net zero.