President’s Message for April: Staying on Course for a More Sustainable Philadelphia

By Danielle DiLeo Kim, AIA
President, AIA Philadelphia

April in Philadelphia is a season of renewal—blossoming trees, birds nesting, spring cleanups, tree plantings and celebrations like Passover and Easter. It’s also a time when we reflect on our responsibilities as stewards of the places we live, work and play.

Sustainability, after all, isn’t just about the environment—it’s about making Philadelphia a thriving, inclusive and resilient city. That means investing in healthy neighborhoods, equitable public spaces and a strong public transit system that connects all of us.

Last week, I stumbled across an article in Archinect titled “What does it take for an entire city to achieve LEED certification?” Curious, I clicked. To my surprise, Philadelphia was featured front and center. As of September 23, 2024, our city earned LEED Cities Platinum certification, scoring 92 out of a possible 110 points across nine sustainability categories. Who knew?

According to the U.S. Green Building Council, this certification reflects Philadelphia’s “innovative approach to conservation, restoration, and resilience planning,” including our focus on compact, mixed-use, and transit-oriented development, as well as investments in multimodal and clean transportation. [Source]

That’s a big win. But it’s not a cue to rest on our laurels. We still have a long way to go—especially when it comes to equity and public health. One sobering metric: we scored low on “Quality of Life.” Philadelphia remains the poorest big city in the U.S., and far too many of our residents—especially children—live and learn in asthma-inducing conditions. In fact, Philadelphia was recently ranked the 5th most challenging city to live with asthma by the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America in 2024. [Source] 

On a more positive note, we scored highest in the Transportation and Land Use category. But that, too, is under threat.

As you may know, SEPTA is facing a severe financial crisis. With pandemic relief funds running out, the agency is staring down a massive budget shortfall. The proposed cuts are drastic:

• A 20% reduction in service
• Elimination of 50 bus routes
• A 30% fare hike, making Philly’s fare among the highest in the nation
• The shutdown of five Regional Rail lines shared with Amtrak
• And a 9 PM curfew for subway and rail service

A recent Impact Analysis by Econsult Solutions for the Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce outlined the devastating long-term consequences:

• $19.9 billion in lost residential property value
• 76,700 regional jobs lost
• $6 billion drop in regional earnings
• $674 million annual tax revenue loss affecting schools and municipalities

This is not just a transit issue—it’s a regional economic crisis in the making. For example, a 9 PM curfew for subway and Regional Rail riders would disrupt access to jobs across the region, particularly for essential workers in healthcare, public safety, transit and utility services. Thereby further impacting quality of life. Disinvestment in SEPTA jeopardizes our competitiveness and threatens to deepen the inequalities we are working so hard to fix. 

AIA Philadelphia’s Advocacy Committee is taking action. We’re reaching out to city, state and federal leaders with a clear message: the proposed cuts are unacceptable. Sustainable, equitable transit is not optional—it’s essential to our future.

If we want Philadelphia to be the safest, cleanest, greenest, and most economically vibrant big city in America, we must protect and invest in the public systems that keep us connected.

Let’s stay on course—and keep pushing for progress.