The idea for the Avenue of the States began as way to welcome visitors to South Philly for the Republican National Convention in 2000.
And, while the name hasn’t stuck like that of its neighbor to the north, the Avenue of the Arts, state flags still fly from the decorative lampposts between Oregon and Washington avenues in warmer weather, and some business owners still meet to discuss ways to improve southern South Broad Street.
And they’re not stopping there.
Members of the Avenue of the States Association have proposed a special-services district — funded property-tax increases to businesses on the street — that would oversee cleanups, help enforce zoning laws and address other issues that affect the merchants.
The membership is paying the Atlantic Group, a consulting firm, $25,000 from a state grant to put together a plan, according to association president Patricia Gilberti. The Atlantic Group has facilitated the formation of special-services districts in Manayunk, Chestnut Hill, Center City and, recently, on East Passyunk Avenue.
Councilman Frank DiCicco, who started the Broad Street Beautification Committee, was the force behind the creation of the Avenue of the States prior to the convention. Four years ago he secured $500,000 from the city and state, plus another $1.8 million through the office of U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum for various streetscape projects, like installing new lights and dressing up Broad Street’s major intersections.
Gilberti, who works in DiCicco’s councilmanic office, has continued the mission to improve the street’s appearance.
The association organized monthly cleanups between March and November with the help of the Citizens Alliance for Better Neighborhoods, which hauled away the trash. Still, it has been an uphill battle.
"[Broad Street] was really looking good," Gilberti said, "but it really doesn’t make a dent. By the time you get done, the trash is there again."
The association also has attempted to control the signs hung by businesses along the Avenue of the States, but has had only limited success, Gilberti said.
In addition, the members have tried to arrange for trash to be collected more frequently from the public receptacles — which Gilberti said are "abused ridiculously" by residents who use them to dispose of everything from household garbage to furniture.
The merchants who favor a special-services district believe money and time are needed to solve these problems.
"The city does what it can, but they just can’t keep up with it," Gilberti said.
The district would affect only business owners on the street, including people who own buildings and rent them to merchants and those who own multifamily dwellings. Each owner would have the opportunity to vote for or against the proposed district following a series of public meetings, which Gilberti said will be scheduled in the coming months.
If the district is approved, DiCicco would introduce legislation in the fall at the earliest, Gilberti said.
The current proposal is to levy a 20-percent increase in property taxes to the businesses. That would be enough to hire a full-time executive director to run the district, said Gilberti. Those who fail to pay could face a lien against their property.
Broad Street residents would be exempt from the 20-percent assessment, as would the businesses between Snyder Avenue and McKean Street, which are covered already by the East Passyunk Business Improvement District. DiCicco, along with Councilman Jim Kenney and state Sen. Vince Fumo, also was involved in the formation of that district.
EPBID officially began operations in May. Its full-time executive director, Robert Ravelli, earns a $55,000-per-year salary. While that district is addressing streetscape issues, its larger goal is to market the avenue as a place to shop.
Gilberti said the Avenue of the States district would focus less on promotion and more on improving the appearance of the street for thousands of travelers and pedestrians who traverse the thoroughfare every day.
"If we don’t control the zoning and the signage, it could become another North Broad Street — just not tasteful at all."
