PHA tried resolving the issue by increasing security, repeatedly boarding up buildings and blocking access to the site, among other interventions. None of it seemed to work, leading to the emergency declaration.
“For too long, these vacant buildings have posed serious safety risks to surrounding residents and the broader community,” Parker said in a statement. “This action clears the way to remove those hazards and replace them with new housing, new opportunity, and new investment.”
Bartram Village comprises 44 aging brick buildings dating back to the 1940s. The property along Lindbergh Boulevard has been vacant since 2025, and is slated to be demolished in July. (Emma Lee/WHYY)
What’s next for Bartram Village?
City Councilmember Jamie Gauthier, whose district includes the site, said she is thrilled the property is now poised for redevelopment, adding that the project will help guard against rapid gentrification.
“It’s us putting a stake in the ground that, no matter how these neighborhoods continue to change and grow, that working class people are going to still be able to live here, and live here in the best way,” Gauthier said.
But she also questions why it took so long for the mayor to sign the declaration. The cost of the repairs at Bartram’s Garden is estimated at nearly $500,000. Vandals stole copper wiring, and damaged lighting and the trail that runs through the public park.
The bill is the city’s responsibility.
“Every day that this condition was allowed to continue was a day that we were just incurring more and more damage,” Gauthier said. She said she started pushing for the emergency declaration in February, adding that the site’s project team also lobbied for it.
The announcement came as work on the first phase of the project nears completion.
On a vacant lot just south of Bartram Village, PHA is building 64 units of mixed-income rental housing. Another 514 units will replace the demolished properties. The plan, backed by a $50 million federal grant, also involves scattered sites and homeownership opportunities, bringing the total number of units to 688.
Residents relocated from Bartram Village will have a right to return to the site.