Remembering a Philadelphia Original

May 8, 2009

Bruce Springsteen is an original. At 59 years old, he has nothing left to prove to the music world. He has won 19 Grammys, two Golden Globe awards, and an Academy Award. And yet, he continues to write and play music with the passion and enthusiasm of a budding rocker. Springsteen shows are epic: concert venues have curfews, and he regularly pays fines to play overtime. Quite simply, the Boss is worth the price of admission.

He did not disappoint on April 29, when Springsteen rocked the Spectrum stage in South Philadelphia. True to form, the show lasted nearly three hours, satisfying a crowd that had come both to celebrate his music and pay homage one last time to the venue than had housed 32 Springsteen shows over the course of his decorated music career. The concert was Springsteen's last at the Spectrum, with the 42 year-old building scheduled to be torn down this fall to make way for PhillyLive!, a state-of-the-art dining and retail entertainment complex. The Spectrum will be replaced by a boutique hotel.  

But in many respects, the Spectrum is irreplaceable. Over time, the revered arena has become known as "America's Showplace." But before it was America's Showplace, it was Philadelphia's showplace, the host of two NBA World Championships, two Stanley Cup Championships, thousands of concerts, one Academy Award-winning movie, and arguably the greatest college basketball game of all time. Like Springsteen, the Spectrum is an original. Philadelphia's original. And it will soon be gone.

 PhillyLive! rendering (right)

Springsteen must have perceived the gravity of the moment: "Is this a house of rock?" he asked during one of his songs. "They're tearing it down, but we're going to build it back up tonight." Later in the show, Springsteen also paid homage to Harry Kalas, the long-time Phillies' broadcaster and "voice" for the region who had passed away in April at the age of 73. In many ways, these tributes were irrelevant to the music - I have enjoyed Springsteen concerts in nondescript venues with no emotional value in other cities all across the country. But the tributes evoked strangely strong emotions for a native Philadelphian and caused me to reflect on what our region was losing.

As regional icons like the Spectrum are torn down and Harry Kalas pass away, it is important to remember their impact on Greater Philadelphia's regional identity. The Economy League's research to support its ongoing World Class Greater Philadelphia initiative has identified three characteristics that drive world class regions: prosperous, sustainable, and authentic. Kalas' voice brought Phillies baseball to the region for nearly 40 years, and was recently named one of the 50 best sports announcers of all-time. The Spectrum is a distinctive piece of civic infrastructure. Both have given Philadelphia an undeniable aura of authenticity. As functional assets, both can be replaced. But in so doing, the region will lose an element of authenticity, a piece of its identity, and in fact a small part of what makes it a world class play to live, work, and play.

Thankfully, Greater Philadelphia has a variety of world class assets to fill the void: the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the Barnes Foundation, the Academy of Music, Fairmount Park, several National Historic Parks, Bartram's Garden, and much more. No other region in the world has them. Still, they cannot be taken for granted. The loss of one underscores the importance of protecting those that remain. Together, these assets support the region's authenticity and serve as its foundation for a world class future.

To be sure, PhillyLive! will feature attractive entertainment amenities. But the Spectrum was an original, authentic regional destination that will be impossible to replicate. Courtesy of a world class musician, Greater Philadelphia had one more night to celebrate its own world class showplace. It was a perfect match.

-- Erik Johanson, Project Manager