By BERNIE WEISENFELD
Courier-Post Staff
The Delaware River is lined with potential for economic development, riverboat gambling and commercial shipping, government officials said during a Waterfront tour Tuesday.
They cited the industrial-maritime promise of the Philadelphia Naval Base and the abandoned Publicker distillery on the South Philadelphia riverfront, as well as the planned tourism growth of Penns Landing and the Camden Waterfront.
The river "appears to be at another crucial point in its history," said David Carney, chairman of the Penjerdel Corp., a non-profit group that promotes economic development in Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware. Penjerdel hosted Tuesday's cruise aboard the Spirit of Philadelphia to brief about 200 area business executives about the Delaware's possibilities.
"This river is one of the city's greatest strengths as we seek to economically develop," Philadelphia Mayor Ed Rendell said.
Among the developments the Delaware could land as soon as 1996 is riverboat gambling, said the mayor. Floating casinos "have too much of an upside for Philadelphia and Pennsylvania to ignore," Rendell said. Five boats would create 8,000 jobs and generate $25 million in taxes for the city, Rendell said.
But riverboat gambling is not a cure-all, the Philadelphia mayor and other officials said.
Riverboat gaming "is not going to cure every problem of any city. It is, however, a catalyst," said Edward Ellers, chief operating officer of President Riverboat Casinos, which has a riverfront property option for a casino boat dock.
Another concern is the Naval Base, scheduled to close in late next year after overhaul of the USS Kennedy aircraft carrier is finished.
At 1,300 acres, "it is the largest land reuse question the city has faced in 40 years," said William Hankowsky, president of the Philadelphia Industrial Development Corp.
Over 100 companies have shown interest in leasing base property, said Hankowsky. One, Westinghouse Corp., has signed a lease. Ten others, he added, are on the verge of signing agreements.
The base's 600 buildings contain 9 million square feet of space, Hankowsky said.
In addition to manufacturing, warehousing and office users, the city is seeking a private shipbuilding or repair firm to occupy the base, Hankowsky said.
Also planning to reuse Philadelphia waterfront property is the port's top cargo handler, Thomas Holt Sr. His Gloucester City firm wants to build a $250 million multi-use ship terminal at the abandoned Publicker distillery under the Walt Whitman Bridge.
In addition to berthing cargo ships, "it will house what I'd like to believe will be a premier cruise terminal, as well as a 700-room hotel," said Holt. The project still requires U.S. Army Corps of Engineer and federal environmental approvals, but Holt predicted construction will be underway in a year.
Finally, speakers hailed what was described only as "project X" ... a still-unspecified family entertainment-recreation complex at Penn's Landing. The Delaware River Port Authority has backed the plan with $5 million in "seed money."
"We don't know quite what it is yet, but we're searching the world to find out," said Penn's Landing Corp. chairman Stanhope Browne.
