Stamper Square: Where's the Cafe?

There is much to admire about H2L2's design for Stamper Square - which is no doubt the reason the Nutter Admin-istration was so decisive in backing the project for the failed NewMarket site. But surely one of the most appealing elements is the proposal to add a new leg to Society Hill's historic greenway. The winding pathway would meander along the north side of the hotel-and-condo project, gently conveying the city's boulevardiers between Second and Front Streets and, rewarding them en route with a charming, tucked-away outdoor cafe. (Look closely at the indentation in the rendering)

So why, we must ask, was all evidence of the cafe erased like a photo of Joe Stalin from the drawings that received final approval from the Planning Commission last week?

For the answer, you have to go to Joe Jacovini, one of Philadelphia's most powerful lawyers. Besides his day job as chairman of the well known firm Dilworth Paxson (where he was Vince Fumo's boss), Jacovini is also a long-time Pine Street resident, whose double-wide, townhouse garden backs onto the New Market weedy and forlorn lot (see photo by PhillySkyline's Brad Maule).

Unlike some Society Hill residents, Jacovini did not oppose redevel-opment of the old NewMarket site. But he strenuously objected to the presence of a cafe behind his house - so strenuously that developer Marc Stein ultimately figured it was preferable to cut his losses and to scratch the amenity from the project, rendering Stamper Square's design much less interesting. Obviously, someone like Jacovini has the legal wherewithal to tie up the project in court for the next century or so. But Stein's pragmatic concession strikes me as an extreme response.

Alan Greenberger, the planning commission's vice chairman, and soon-to-be executive director, was taken aback to learn that Stein had actually promised Jacovini a deed restriction that would bar an outdoor cafe on the Stamper Square site forever and ever. Recognizing that outdoor cafes have almost single-handedly energized Center City's once sleepy streets, Greenberger and the commission refused to sanction the deed restriction. But they did acknowledge that Stein was free to work out a private - and presumably more temporal - agreement with Jacovini. Still they're appalled by the outcome. "It's a terrible way to do this," conceeds Greenberger.

It's more than terrible, actually. It's dumb. Jacovini is afraid that the cafe, which would be located 115 feet from his garden wall, will create a never ending din that will make it impossible for him to enjoy his garden. He also told me during a very pleasant telephone conversation that he's even more worried about the security issue once there is a public walkway open 24/7 right behind his six-foot-high garden wall.

These are very real and legitimate concerns, as anyone who lives in a Philadelphia rowhouse knows. But deleting the cafe from the plans isn't the answer. Good design is the answer. And I suspect H2L2 would have no trouble drawing a solution.

Incidentally, if security is Jacovini's main worry, he'd be a lot better off having a patio full of chattering people with a good view of that walkway. While the proposed Starwoods Hotel will certainly have plenty of electronic cameras monitoring its perimeter, nothing beats Jane Jacobs' classic eyes-on-the-street security.

As for the potential of noise traveling 115 feet - okay, it's possible. But noise can easily be buffered by building a higher wall. Under the city's code, garden walls can't be any taller than six feet. But I suspect the city would enthusiastically endorse a variance in exchange for allowing the cafe. A higher wall that is impossible to scale would also solve the security issue. Jacovini has good reason to be extra cautious; he lived through the rise and fall of NewMarket, and watched the original tony complex decline into a low-rent joint. Starwoods may promise to be a first-class neighbor, but who knows what kind of owner might replace it in the future.

Jacovini told me he might soften on the cafe idea if Stamper's wall were 30-feet - the height of NewMarket's old north facade. That's a little excessive, if you ask me. He could probably get excellent results with a wall that's 12 to 15 feet high. But if the man wants 30 feet - give him 30 feet. As Robert Frost observed many men are convinced that, "Good fences make good neighbors."

So, build the wall. And let the rest of us enjoy our coffee.