The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation is funding a project to restore Bartram’s Mile Fishing Pier on the Schuylkill River in Philadelphia as part of the national focus on restoring aging infrastructure across the U.S.

In southwest Philadelphia, a local nonprofit identified an old industrial pier along the Schuylkill River as an opportunity for not only infrastructure restoration, but to also encourage outdoor recreation, education, and fishing.

The Schuylkill River Development Corporation is in the process of updating the pier along Bartram’s Mile Trail, a one-mile stretch of the 128-mile Schuylkill River Trail.

This project will build a new amenity within the trail system while serving as a destination for members of the community to reconnect with the river. The pier is expected to be completed by September.

When SRDC completed their feasibility study and community engagement in 2015, the findings indicated community members wanted a place to fish, experience the river, and sightsee. Given these results, they decided to pursue restoration of an old industrial pier.

“The whole idea was to enhance this trail on the west side of the river that runs down into neighborhoods who are historically underserved by open space,” said Joe Syrnick, president and CEO of the Schuylkill River Development Corporation.

SRDC received funding for the design and construction of the new pier through grants from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation.

“We would love to say how thankful we are to the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation,” Syrnick said. “This is a great amenity for the community and the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation was in it from the beginning. We can’t do it without people like them and are so appreciative of their support.”

Beyond the advantages the new pier will offer for community members, the project also has several environmental benefits. As a part of the construction, SRDC restored the shoreline to make the pier ADA accessible — this had the co-benefit of creating a resilient shoreline that prevents erosion and manages stormwater runoff.

The project’s location connects the pier to a larger, existing greenway project. The new pier will help attract new visitors to the greenway, providing the opportunity to stop, take in the views, and fish from the pier.

For more information on each of the NFWF funding programs, visit the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation website.

(Photo: Before restoration.)

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[Posted: September 8, 2022]

9/12/2022