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West Whiteland Township Explores Strategies for a More Connected Crossroads
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Now Open for Applications! ULI Philadelphia 2021 Awards for Excellence
February 11, 2021
Overview: The Urban Land Institute (ULI) has set the standard in recognizing outstanding and transformational land use developments, best practices and creative visioning. ULI Philadelphia will honor the projects within the region with our 2021 Awards for Excellence. Winning projects represent the highest standards of achievement in the development industry and advance the ULI mission to shape the future of the built environment for transformative impact in communities worldwide. The Awards recognize both development projects and programs. Among projects, the Awards recognize a wide variety of product types, including office, residential, retail, industrial, hotel, mixed use, planned community, open space, and more. Programs are initiatives, processes, or policies that guide or enhance development.
Why Apply: All submissions are reviewed by a national jury of industry leaders described below. Finalists and winners are heavily recognized in ULI Philadelphia communications as well as the Annual Awards event, which will be held virtually on June 16. ULI Awards for Excellence celebrate the mission and lift up high performing projects in the field.
Who Can Apply: ULI members and non-members are invited to submit applications; regardless of membership status, you will be asked to create or log into your ULI profile to start an application. Private sector, public sector, and nonprofit projects are all eligible as well as all project types and sizes and land use policy initiatives. Projects must fall within the ULI Philadelphia footprint, which includes the Philadelphia metro, Central Pennsylvania, Lehigh Valley, Southern New Jersey and the state of Delaware (full list of counties listed in the application). Each application will be evaluated by a panel of highly experienced ULI members who are leaders in the industry from across the country.
Review Process: Jurors will evaluate proposals based solely on information provided in the application itself. The jury is a national group generally unfamiliar with the Philadelphia region and site visits are not part of the review process. Please keep this in mind when completing your application, providing neighborhood context and providing images.
Awards will be given to projects that reflect the following selection priorities. Jury discretion will determine final number of winners. Application deadline is Friday, March 12, 2021*. Click here for more information on the 2019 winners!
*Application fees: $300 (private); $150 (public or nonprofit). Please note that these fees apply to the type of company or organization submitting the application, not the type of project completed. If you are a public or non-profit organization experiencing financial hardship, please reach out to Kelly Cary, [email protected].
CLICK HERE FOR A PREVIEW OF THE APPLICATION. See below for a list of the selection priorities and eligibility requirements. Applications are not considered complete until payment has been processed. Deadline is March 12, 2021.
General Questions? Contact Kelly Cary, [email protected].
2019 Award Winner: MaKen Studios North and South by Shift Capital
Eligibility
- Projects must be operating and financially viable. Application for public and nonprofit projects described in selection priorities.
- Projects must have been substantially completed between January 1, 2016 – January 1, 2021. “Substantially completed” means a single-phase project must be finished, occupied, and in operation; for multiple-phase projects, the first phase must be finished, occupied, and in operation.
- Projects previously submitted can be resubmitted, even if selected as finalists in previous years.
2019 Award Winner: 3675 Market Street by Wexford Science & Technology
Selection Priorities
I. Leadership in Development: Achieves excellence and creativity in planning, design, site utilization, construction, financing, marketing and/or partnerships.
II. Equitable Development & Community Impact: Demonstrates an equitable approach to development and provides positive social impact by responding to community needs, addressing neighborhood revitalization goals or demonstrating relevance to the contemporary and future needs of the community. This may include social, economic or health impact assessments; community engagement; health, social and racial equity goals; access to open space; leveraged opportunities and anticipating unintended outcomes.
III. Resilience and Sustainability: Demonstrates a resilient approach to development and promotes environmental sustainability and stewardship. Environmental sustainability includes but is not limited to energy, water and health building performance; smart growth; transit-oriented development; green infrastructure; green building; alternative transportation; and carbon emissions. Resilient development includes how the projects addresses physical climate vulnerabilities through design, infrastructure strategies, community resilience and adaptability to future climate events or community needs.
IV. Market Acceptance: Broadly accepted in the marketplace, including success in occupancy, leasing, sales, utilization rates, return on investment (ROI), anchor/key tenants, stimulation of economic growth, etc. For public sector/nonprofit projects this means demonstrating a reasonable use of financial resources.
Other Recognized Areas of Excellence (optional): Responses to these questions are optional and may not apply to all projects submitted. Jurors may recognize projects that fit these criteria but will not judge every project on these criteria unless applicable.
V. Small-Scale Development: Projects that are under 100,000 square feet (9,290 square meters). (yes or no question)
VI. Innovative Development: Innovative and adaptive projects, policies or programs that reflect leadership. The submitter will need to respond to additional questions specific to this priority.
VII. Open Space: Projects predominantly outdoors and is open to the public, including parks, plazas, squares, memorials, trails, and other non-traditional open space formats. The submitter will need to respond to additional questions specific to this priority.