Philadelphia officials are offering to fast-track permits for big employers with complex development plans as part of a campaign to entice companies to invest in and hire workers at former industrial sites near the Schuylkill and Delaware rivers. Mayor Cherelle L. Parker and City Council President Kenyatta Johnson convened port, shipbuilding and real estate leaders for a tour of “Lower South” Philadelphia sites that have recently attracted significant investments. They rolled out a program called PHL PRIME — Project Review and Infrastructure Made Easy — and a short online application to move some applicants to the head of the line. “Our job is to make your lives easier,” Johnson told the group before a four-vehicle caravan carried city officials and company leaders to nearby sites that are the focus of new and projected private and public investment.
Source: Philadelphia Inquirer; 4/6/2026