Maplewood Mall
Re-invigorating a historic community commercial corridor.
Location: Philadelphia, PA
Client: Philadelphia Parks and Recreation, Philadelphia Streets Department
Size: 1 acre
Project status: Completed 2021.
Project team: Ground Reconsidered, WRA (Project Prime)
Maplewood Mall is located in Philadelphia’s Central Germantown Business District. Bookended by two public plazas, the mall is lined by two and three-story buildings with ground floor storefronts. The mall was created from Maplewood Avenue in the 1970s by converting the original roadway into the curb-less pedestrian-scale street it is today. No major physical improvements had been made since its inception, and the mall’s infrastructure was in poor condition. The goal of the reconstruction was to improve the physical condition of the mall and utilize a community-driven design for the roadway and public plazas that supports the needs of both business owners as well as residents, while re-invigorating this once-vibrant community hub.
Through a series of public meetings and presentations, Ground Reconsidered and the project’s prime consultant worked with the community to develop a vision for the site. We employed our design experience to implement low-maintenance infrastructure and put together placemaking strategies to ensure project success.
