A pair of piers — Pier 38 and 40 — have been revitalized in an effort to bring new jobs, and more people, to the Delaware River waterfront. NBC10’s Yukare Nakayama has the story.
Pier 38 and 40 on the Delaware Riverfront got a facelift, and it's now on full display.
Tuesday morning, city leaders and developers got together for a ribbon cutting of the new Columbus Boulevard and Delaware River redevelopment. The piers are now home to a Cubesmart self-storage facility and available real estate.
"So today marks the beginning of the transformation of the of these two monuments from another age into new uses that are relevant today," Executive Director of Philadelphia City Council Paul Steinke said during the ribbon-cutting ceremony.
The historic buildings, once very important ports, had been untouched for decades.
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City developers are hoping the makeover brings in jobs and people to the pier, while locals say it was about time the old buildings were put to use.
"That’s been sitting there since I was a kid. It's been separated with 95 by itself, and it really, I mean, unless you go there or drive there yourself, you're never going to walk over there. So this opens it up and brings it all together," said resident John Giordano.
“I think any improvement to a city is good because you have tourists and a lot of people coming, and it draws attention," resident Carla Scipio added.
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It's one of many projects underway to redevelop the Delaware Waterfront. In 2023, construction began on the I-95 Central Access Philadelphia Project to improve pedestrian and multi-model connections between Center City and the waterfront.
On Monday, it was announced that there had been active conversations about a sale between the owners of Graffiti Pier and the Delaware River Waterfront Corporation.
“DWRC is committed to a public space happening on that area in some version of that pier that is viable in the future and really creating a nice and accessible space," President of the Delaware River Waterfront Corporation Joe Forkin said.
NBC10 was told that what will become of the other half of Pier 40 is yet to be determined.
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