WHEREAS, The 44th & Aspen Redevelopment Area is a 125-acre section of West Philadelphia spanning portions of the Mill Creek and Belmont neighborhoods. The precise boundaries of the Redevelopment Area are Lancaster Avenue, Belmont Avenue, Pennsgrove Street, 42nd Street, Haverford Avenue, 44th Street, Fairmount Avenue and 47th Stree;, and
WHEREAS, The 44th & Aspen Redevelopment Area was created to facilitate the redevelopment of the Mill Creek housing complex and the revitalization of the surrounding residential area. The Mill Creek public housing replacement was funded with a $35 million HOPE VI grant from the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development; leveraged by $20.7 million in other public resources and $37.9 million in private funding to create a total investment of $94M; and
WHEREAS, An initial analysis of the area in the Mill Creek Extension, the proposed extended boundary, meets the criteria established by the Pennsylvania Urban Redevelopment Law with a total of 341 vacant parcels, including 236 vacant lots and 105 blighted, vacant buildings; and
WHEREAS, The Philadelphia Housing Authority has the written support of the Office of Housing and Neighborhood Preservation to redevelop the Mill Creek Extension area, including support for the acquisition of 341 vacant parcels; now therefore
BE IT RESOLVED, BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF PHILADLEPHIA, That the Redevelopment Authority of Philadelphia is authorized to extend the 44th & Aspen Urban Renewal Area and to amend the Redevelopment Proposal and the Urban Renewal Plan to include the land bounded by 44th Street to the west, 40th & Lancaster to the east, Lancaster Avenue to the north and Haverford Avenue to the South, commonly referred to as the Mill Creek Extension Area.
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