PART I ABOUT THE FUNDACIĂ“N METRĂ“POLI
3 PROYECTO CITIES 3.7 SELECTED PROYECTO CITIES FINDINGS
3.7.1 PHILADELPHIA
3.7.2 BOSTON
City Reinventing Itself
Knowledge City
The city of Philadelphia relies on a long tradition of innovative planning. After a long decline since the second world war the city took decisive measures to modernise itself and become competitive in the knowledge society. A key strategy was to foster the creative industries to achieve a high living standard. Building on its concentration of universities and a rts institutions i t mobilised scientific and historic research to revitalise the city and undertake strategic projects, such as the Avenue of the Arts, the regeneration of the historic centre, t he refurbishment of t he historic dockyards and the reuse of the New Delaware harbour area. The prominence attributed to the arts provides an international reference.
Metropolitan Boston is recognised as one of the most important research and technology hubs in the world. The presence of top universities Harvard and MIT in particular - and their entrepreneurial spirit beyond basic research has led to the clustering of technology companies along 'Route 128'.The city has been very successful in retaining the talent it attracts due in part to the quality of universities and of the urban life it offers. Industrial conversion, new t echnologies, highly qualified citizens, far sighted political, economic and urban development and planning have given rise to an attractive, modern and dynamic city. The experience o f Bo ston's t ransformation f rom a n o ld industrial town to a City of Knowledge is an important international reference.
Philadelphia
Boston
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