Residents urged to give
input to Frankford Creek plan

By Diane Villano
Times Staff Writer

The Historical Society of Frankford will host a neighborhood meeting on March 29 to discuss the Frankford Creek Greenway Master Plan.
The society is at 1507 Orthodox St. The meeting, which begins at 6 p.m., seeks the community’s input on what they’d like to see along Frankford Creek to help guide the master plan.
Janet Bernstein, secretary of the historical society and a member of the plan committee, said one aim is to refine the vision for the master plan.
"People along the creek have very mixed feelings," she said. "They’d like to see an attractive park and walkways, but they are also worried about it being used badly, especially since it goes behind their back yards."
The Frankford Creek project was an outgrowth of the state-funded Tookany-Tacony Creek conservation plan. According to Bernstein, the Frankford Creek and the Tookany-Tacony Creek are one and the same.
"The name changes to the Frankford Creek at Castor Avenue," Bernstein said.
The Frankford Creek Greenway project will focus on the Frankford Creek corridor, from Castor Avenue and the Juniata Golf Course, southeast to the Delaware River. The greenway would provide residents with access to the creek and the Delaware River, in addition to enhancing opportunities for recreation and renewal in the lower reaches of the creek, according to Philadelphia Water Department engineer and environmental planner Laureen Boles.
More specific project goals include cleaning up the creek; protecting open space along the creek to reflect its history; helping to revitalize adjacent neighborhoods; creating trail links to local transportation and points of interest; providing safe and accessible opportunities for active living; and promoting environmental awareness, education and stewardship.
In December, consultants from Greenways Inc., which was hired by the water department in 2006, met with some community members at the Historical Society of Frankford to map out historic parts of Frankford Creek.
According to society president Debbie Klak, the group discussed the importance of the creek during each period in history, from the days when the Lenni-Lenape hunted, farmed and fished there, to the time of the Revolutionary War and the Industrial Revolution.
Greenways Inc., which is in Durham, N.C., drafted the framework for the Frankford Creek Master Plan, completing it in 2005. The firm also is the designer of the North Delaware Greenway Plan.
According to Boles, the water department engineer, hiring Greenways will ensure that the Frankford Creek Greenway project is well-coordinated. ••
Reporter Diane Villano can be reached at 215-354-3036 or dvillano@phillynews.com