New NE Philly trail connects people to woods, water & neighbors

AS SOON AS the new, million-dollar Poquessing Creek Trail opened in the Far Northeast this winter, Jack McCarthy was out hiking it with his granddaughter, Gia McCusker, 8.

"The trail is a bucolic, serene place to go from Parkwood, where I live," McCarthy said.

"Parkwood is all rowhouses," he said. "I can walk five minutes and be on this trail that leads through this nice woods and along this beautiful stream.

"And it connects to Benjamin Rush State Park's trails," McCarthy said, "so you can basically walk or bike from Parkwood all the way to the state park."

The new 1.5-mile trail begins behind Junod Playground, on Dunks Ferry Road near Mechanicsville, then crosses the Philadelphia Industrial Development Corp. and the Origlio Beverage easements before entering Poquessing Valley Park.

Rob Armstrong, preservation and capital projects manager for the city's Department of Parks & Recreation, said, "We've been working on this trail for years with the City Planning Commission. It's really exciting because you're in the middle of this Philadelphia renaissance."

That renaissance, said Michael DiBerardinis, deputy mayor for environmental and community resources, is the result of connecting Philadelphians to woodlands and waterways through a massive network of trails.

DiBerardinis said he first embraced that connection during his six years "traveling the state endlessly" as Secretary of the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, when he was the caretaker of 130,000 acres of public land.

Now the steward of Philadelphia's 10,000 green acres, DiBerardinis said he sees access to water and woods as a key to economic development.

"Philly is remaking itself through this recapturing of its public open space," DiBerardinis said.

To make his point, DiBerardinis said that in Fishtown, where he lives, "they used to say that the only thing Delaware Avenue was good for was if you wanted to induce labor in a late pregnancy and get to the finish line.

"You could hardly drive on Delaware Avenue 20 years ago without taking your car's life in your hands," he said.

Revitalized and renamed Columbus Boulevard, the former Delaware Avenue is now the gateway to a reborn riverfront of recreation and residences.

DiBerardinis sees the growing citywide network of trails as the key to Philadelphia's resurgence.

Armstrong agreed. "New trails like Poquessing Creek are allowing people to connect to water and to nature and to their neighbors," he said.

"I'm walking or riding my bike and I see you on the trail, walking your dog every day," Armstrong said. "I say 'hello.' Suddenly, I'm making connections."