New Construction Endangering Some Beloved Philly Art
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) - The mural arts program has turned many of Philadelphia's buildings into works of art. But when new buildings go up, sometimes the old ones disappear, and so does the mural.
The sounds of construction mean progress, but they can also mean the end of one of the city's renowned murals.
Jane Golden, of the city's Mural Arts Program, says it's sad when murals are obstructed or torn down as a result of development:
"But we urge developers to contact the mural arts program if they are going to be taking away a work of art because it's a city asset, it's a city treasure."
That's what happened when Hanover Construction started its apartments and retail project at Broad and Callowhill, which will eliminate the Girl Scouts mural.
"We immediately called the Girl Scouts, we called the artist, and as it turns out, we're cooking up some new projects with that developer," Golden tells KYW Newsradio.
She says she was surprised by the demise of a mural at 15th and Parrish a while back.
"Somebody I know went by there, and saw that the building had been torn down. So that's the kind of thing we don't like to hear because then there's outrage in the community."
Golden says the goal is to make sure that when art goes away, it goes away "well."
