Framing the Future of the Roundhouse - Connect The Dots
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Framing the Future of the Roundhouse

 

Client:

Department of Planning and Development, Philadelphia City Planning Commission (PCPC)
Philadelphia Industrial Development Corporation (PIDC)

Executive Summary:

As the City of Philadelphia planned to sell the former Philadelphia Police Headquarters, known as the Roundhouse, the City sought to enable community voices to guide the redevelopment process in an unprecedented engagement process prior to the release of the RFP.

CTD was selected to lead this process and designed a multifaceted, trauma-informed engagement campaign employing a wide varity of innovative engagement tactics. Key findings and corresponding recommendations resulting from the insights gathered were presented and will inform the future Request for Proposal that the City of Philadelphia will put out for potential developers of the site in 2023.

Purpose and Scope:

The Philadelphia Department of Planning and Development together with the Philadelphia Industrial Development Corporation (PIDC) sought a community engagement consultant to lead a city-wide engagement campaign, ‘Framing the Future of the Roundhouse.’ The purpose of the project was to inform the redevelopment of the site located at 7th and Race Streets in Philadelphia’s Center City of the former Police Administration Headquarters, more commonly known as the Roundhouse Building.

The Philadelphia Police department vacated the Roundhouse in 2022 and the City is planning to sell the site to a redevelopment team through a competitive process. Before going out to tender, the city hoped to gain a deeper understanding of Philadelphians’ relationship with the Roundhouse building and its history.  The city was looking for guidance on what kind of future the site should have and balance the need for economic development with the principles, concerns, goals, and guidance from the public.

Service Performed:

Phase 1

  • Phase Zero
  • Naming and Framing
  • Meaningful Placemaking

Phase 2

  • Large Public Events
  • Pop-Up Events with Youth Ambassadors
  • Arts based Engagement Tactics
  • Online Surveys

Phase 3

  • Mid-Way Checkpoint
  • Virtual Shareback Event

The project started with a “Phase Zero” phase, which allowed the Engagement Team to set the foundations of the project, both internally and with the community. Engagement Advisory and Youth Ambassadors groups were established, while three targeted focus groups were conducted to learn more about how to reach different audiences supplemented by desktop research the site history and its relationship with the public. Leveraging these initial learnings, we designed the Engagement Strategy, a multilayered and multilingual mix of tactics to spread the word, collect stories, and share-back with communities.

The project started with a “Phase Zero” phase, which allowed the Engagement Team to set the foundations of the project, both internally and with the community. Engagement Advisory and Youth Ambassadors groups were established, while three targeted focus groups were conducted to learn more about how to reach different audiences supplemented by desktop research the site history and its relationship with the public. Leveraging these initial learnings, we designed the Engagement Strategy, a multilayered and multilingual mix of tactics to spread the word, collect stories, and share-back with communities.

In early August 2022, the Engagement Phase commenced with one of two large public events, followed by 12 pop-up events across the city, half of which were led by the project’s Youth Ambassadors Group. Our team simultaneously enabled more than 10 layers of engagement across three different languages (English, Chinese, and Spanish) – to allow the Engagement Team to reach different audiences, meeting people where they are.

A significant portion of our innovative engagement tactics were arts-based. From a mural activity (currently exhibited on the 4th floor of the City Hall) to lanterns and drawings, we opened spaces for people across a whole spectrum of age ranges and skill sets to participate. Meanwhile, for those who felt more comfortable sharing online, we enabled a multimedia virtual space where the public was able to share anonymously, together with a survey and calendar of events. The space was hosted on the project website -at RoundhouseFutures.com – and allows everyone interested to post either through writing, sharing a photo, recording audio, or dropping a link.

The engagement strategy included a midway check-in point to reflect on the process and allow for pivoting if necessary. That moment happened in early October 2022 before the second half of the engagement process. Key learnings were reflected in the incorporation of Mandarin, Cantonese and Spanish interpreters throughout all of the events, as well as through the development of one-on-one relationships with Chinatown leaders to better reach the local neighborhood – mainly through members of our Engagement Advisory Group.

The final phase of engagement was a virtual share-back event where the entire engagement process and its rationale was reviewed through a conversation on the topic of Meaningful Placemaking – led by one of the project team members, Mindy Fullilove – a social psychiatrist and professor of urban policy. This event together with our monthly newsletter allowed us to remain in contact with and be accountable with the public throughout the whole project.

Project Outcomes:

The public engagement process worked to set the stage for the next life of the Roundhouse, working to build a bridge from the past into a more inclusive future. More than 6,300 engagement interactions were reached across the city. The final report included key findings on the questions that guided the study, and recommendations were presented to inform the RFP that the City of Philadelphia will put out for the redevelopment of the site. This process is expected to happen during 2023.