Meantime, an Urban Design Experiment from ISA, Activates Market East This Spring

Contact

Sara Griffin (ISA), 917.656.6348, saragriffin@is-architects.com

Leo Manning (Center City District), 215.440.5500, pr@centercityphila.org

Philadelphia, PA — April 23, 2026 — Meantime, a Philadelphia-based nonprofit initiative founded by innovative architecture and design studio ISA, will activate vacant storefronts along one of the city’s most significant urban corridors, Market East in Center City, in partnership with the City of Philadelphia, Center City District, the Fashion District and a joint venture between Harris Blitzer Sports and Entertainment (HBSE) and Comcast. Funded with a $1.85 million grant from the City of Philadelphia, Meantime on Market highlights the power of temporary use to catalyze long-term transformation. These projects demonstrate how experimentation, collaboration, and local entrepreneurship can shape the future of Philadelphia’s commercial and cultural landscape.

“Philadelphians deserve progress they can see,” said Mayor Cherelle L. Parker. “We are delivering on our promise of new energy, new business activity, and new momentum on Market East right now while we continue the long-term work of reviving this historic corridor. This is about creating opportunity, supporting local entrepreneurs, and showing the world the very best of Philadelphia.”

Meantime’s work centers on increasing face-to-face interactions, embracing a more analog approach to city building through a dynamic mix of programming and experiences led by local businesses, artists, and cultural producers from across Philadelphia. From beloved food institutions and independent cafés to immersive installations and community-driven concepts, these projects temporarily expand into highly visible storefronts—reaching new audiences while reflecting the breadth of the city’s creative and entrepreneurial ecosystems.

“Meantime is about creating the conditions for possibility,” said Brian Phillips, founder of Meantime and principal of ISA. “By working with local businesses to activate a highly trafficked corridor of Market East that is a site of enormous possibility, we’re testing ideas, supporting local talent, and strengthening connections across the city.  At the same time, we’re bringing the vibrancy of Philly’s neighborhoods into the heart of the commercial core, putting what makes the city distinct on full display.”

At a time when the City is actively engaging about the future of the corridor, Meantime invites the public to participate in new possibilities for Market East in real time.

Along the south side of the 900 block of Market Street in properties owned by Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment (HBSE) and Comcast, retailers will include:

• Almost Famous (922 Market Street) will present its third Meantime activation, featuring upcycled clothing, vintage pieces, and live artistic interventions. The space will host artists working on-site, panel discussions, and music events, reflecting the brand’s Black-owned, women-centered ethos as it continues to operate without a permanent home.
• Art Philly (932-934 Market Street) will create a hub for creative exchange, convening artists, storytellers, and community members with Jos Duncan-Asé’s Love Lab, an initiative from Love Now Media, a Philadelphia-based multimedia production company focused on empathy-centered journalism and storytelling.
• Clubfriends Radio & Records (926 Market Street), founded by Alexa Colas, will expand its 2025 DesignPhiladelphia installation, I Turned My Living Room Into a Record Store, into an ongoing, immersive experience. The project will serve as a platform for public programming developed in partnership with the Free Library’s Music Department and Curator of Exhibitions to tell stories specific to Philadelphia, fostering connection through music, design, and shared cultural experience.
• Rarify (924 Market Street), a Philadelphia-based platform and gallery dedicated to collectible design and material culture, will present an exhibition celebrating the region’s rich design legacy. Spanning architecture, industrial design, furniture, interiors, and craft, the exhibition highlights Philadelphia and Pennsylvania’s enduring influence on the nation’s cultural and creative identity over the past 250 years.
• Siddiq’s Water Ice (938 Market Street), a beloved West Philadelphia staple, will debut in Center City for the first time, bringing a neighborhood favorite to new audiences and expanding its presence into one of Philadelphia’s busiest commercial corridors.
• Two Persons Coffee (920 Market Street), the popular café based in the Bok Building, will also pop up in Center City, extending its community-driven ethos and thoughtfully crafted offerings to a new neighborhood.

“We are thrilled to open our space to these incredible small businesses that will make Philadelphia’s downtown vibrant this summer,” said David Gould, Chief Corporate Affairs Officer for HBSE. “This is an opportunity not only to activate this stretch of East Market Street, but to showcase how renewed energy and foot traffic can impact a single block. None of this would be possible without the collaboration with Center City District, Meantime, and our partners at Comcast.”

In addition, a retailer will be added on the 900 block of Market Street in the Fashion District.

“We are honored to partner with Mayor Parker, Center City District and the many organizations working together to re-energize Market Street East,” said Ryan Williams, General Manager of Fashion District Philadelphia. “As the first site to unveil one of these new art installations, Fashion District Philadelphia is proud to help welcome residents and visitors with a vibrant expression of creativity that reflects the spirit of Philadelphia and the momentum building across this corridor”

Created in coordination with Meantime on Market, Penn Praxis at the University of Pennsylvania also produced a zine exploring Market East’s commercial history and its evolving role in the life of the city, which will be available for free at the sites.

“Market East was established well over a century ago as Philadelphia’s high street. Today, thanks to Mayor Parker’s leadership, a group of public and private sector experts are working together on its future,” said CCD President and CEO Prema Katari Gupta. “These retail pop ups show what’s possible when partners come together and invest in this corridor. Thank you to Mayor Parker, Councilmember Squilla, and the stakeholders whose shared vision made this possible.”

Concurrently, Meantime will activate across University City, anchored by the University of Pennsylvania, foregrounding interdisciplinary exchange and community connection, bringing academic resources into dialogue with grassroots creativity.

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Center City District, partner to property owners and downtown stakeholders, is the steward and advocate for a clean, safe and thriving Center City Philadelphia. Find us at www.centercityphila.org.

Meantime is a nonprofit initiative that emerged from Interface Studio Architects (ISA), a Philadelphia-based architecture and research practice engaged with urban systems. Founded by ISA principal Brian Phillips to activate vacant storefronts across the city, Meantime is inspired by the importance of face-to-face interactions across cultures and communities, encouraging and incubating an analog approach to city building in an increasingly digitally connected world. Partnering with artists, entrepreneurs, and creatives on participatory pop-ups, Meantime strengthens neighborhood streets and supports local economies by transforming underutilized spaces into platforms for commerce, cultural programming, and community exchange.

Founded in response to the surge of vacancies following the COVID-19 shutdowns, Meantime began as a design-driven effort to develop tools for activating vacant spaces. Since its first iteration in 2023, the organization has evolved into a coalition of landlords, city agencies, real estate professionals, and community stakeholders working together to reimagine the future of neighborhood streets.

Programming has included reopening a movie house vacant for more than 60 years, partnering with local students to envision neighborhood futures, and contributing to national conversations about urban innovation, including at SXSW. By promoting flexibility, experimentation, and collaboration, Meantime advances a broader cultural shift in how cities value and program their commercial corridors—reinforcing the idea that vibrant streets are essential to civic life and everyday urban experience.