with it. Sharing notes and making some initial sketches
has illuminated the potential for congregations to
benefit from city planning and community development
programs.
It is clear that effective policy will be guided by a
process of triage that focuses help for congregations
based on their individual strengths and critical roles in
Philadelphia neighborhoods. Knowing what these are
will help to more effectively make the case for assistance.
To determine what information is available to aid with
planning, Partners is working with the Preservation
Alliance for Greater Philadelphia and the Philadelphia
Historical Commission to compile data that can tell us
about congregations’ strengths and the condition of their
buildings. The Philadelphia City Planning Commission
is providing geographic information on neighborhood
features, such as commercial corridors and Main
Streets, to see how congregations might fit within these
initiatives.
Partners is also in communication with groups such
as the Public Health Management Corporation’s
Community Health Data Base, and The Reinvestment
Fund, which collects extensive data trends on housing
values, to help track congregations’ positive effects on
this variable. Their analysis may also help us to see which
congregations diminish crime in their neighborhoods.
The work that Partners is doing in concert with city
agencies will go toward developing a process that
helps policymakers address the issue of sacred places
at risk. While the challenge of addressing closures
over the next few years will be daunting, it need not be
overwhelming, and it will ultimately help preserve these
vital neighborhood resources.
Philadelphia Regional Fund for
Sacred Places Advisory Committee
The Reverend Dr.
Roy G. Almquist
Charles B. Casper, Esq.
Lary Ceisler
Helen Cunningham
The Reverend Yvette B. Davis
Scott Doyle
James Flaherty
Melissa Jest
Emanuel Kelly, FAIA
James Kise, AIA
Catherine Lynch
Dr. Roger Moss
Michael Stern
Monica Taylor
The Reverend Mark Tyler
Geraldine Wang
Eric Wilden
David Winkowski
Sacred Places • Summer 2011 • 8