PIDC is Philadelphia’s city-wide, public-private economic development corporation. As a nonprofit founded in 1958 as a partnership of the City of Philadelphia and the Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce, PIDC’s mission is to spur investment, support business growth, and foster developments that creates, revitalize neighborhoods, and drive growth to every corner of Philadelphia. PAID owns and manages commercial and industrial real estate throughout the City, including approximately 40 acres that will become the Lower Schuylkill Innovation Campus (LSIC) in the Kingsessing neighborhood in Southwest Philadelphia. The property located at 4910 Botanic Avenue was acquired by PAID from the City of Philadelphia on 10/16/2020. PAID intends subdivide the property for the realignment of a portion of the Schuylkill River Trail to the riverfront, the construction of a visitor center for neighboring Bartram’s Garden, and the LSIC development, which will be an industrial use. Environmental Phase I and Phase II studies were performed on the property in 2020 and 2022, respectively. As a result of those studies, it was determined that groundwater beneath the site had concentrations of lead exceeding current residential and/or industrial standards at various monitoring wells located throughout the site. Because groundwater is not used on site or in the surrounding area, it is PAID’s intent to seek site-specific standards in order to obtain a release of environmental liability from the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protections (PADEP) through the Act 2 Land Recycling Program (Act 2). The services requested include any and all tasks necessary to obtain Act 2 protections.
