America’s big birthday year is coming. Will Philadelphia be ready? | Editorial
How the city performs in the face of a series of high-profile events in 2026 will likely define its image for decades to come.
The many international visitors in town for the FIFA Club World Cup made themselves at home within the city’s exuberant sports culture, culminating with a July 4 finals match at the Linc. Their lively presence was a reminder of what next year will bring several times over.
The city is set to host several March Madness games and World Cup matches. It will also welcome the MLB All-Star Game, the PGA Championship at nearby Aronimink Golf Club, and anniversary festivities for the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps.
These events and more will take place within the largest yearlong celebration of all: America’s 250th birthday — the greatest nation in the world, born right here in Philadelphia.
Beyond the immediate economic impact, how the city performs will likely define its civic reputation for visitors from around the world for decades to come. The question then is: Is Philly ready to make a good first impression?
To judge by prior celebrations, the city has a mixed record. After the stunning Centennial Exposition of 1876, Philadelphia became known as a forward-looking city where big ideas were put into practice. However, the sesquicentennial of 1926 helped reinforce the city’s reputation as “corrupt and contented,” as festivities were conducted with the interests of party bosses in mind, not the public.
When the nation’s 200th anniversary rolled around, then-Mayor Frank Rizzo shooed potential visitors away from Philadelphia’s bicentennial celebrations because of fears of violent protests. City residents had already started taking the hint — Rizzo’s warning came amid what would ultimately become an exodus of roughly a quarter million residents during the 1970s.
Fifty years later, officials have taken a more welcoming posture, as Greater Philadelphia is expected to significantly improve on the more than 43 million people who visited the region in 2024. And while optimism abounds, so do the warning signs.
Residents are more confident than in recent years that the city is on the right track. Under Mayor Cherelle L. Parker, homicides and shootings have declined dramatically. Quality-of-life issues like graffiti have seen a significant change. Center City, where many visitors will spend the bulk of their time, has become one of the most dynamic downtown areas in the country.
Then there’s the Atwater Kent.
After being closed in 2018 under Mayor Jim Kenney, who said the city could no longer afford to maintain its trove of eclectic heirlooms, Philadelphia’s former history museum at 15 S. Seventh St. now stands as a memorial to blight. Its prized artifacts — 130,000 items — were turned over to Drexel University, which is also facing financial difficulties.
Instead of greeting guests with a closed and blighted museum, imagine if the city and local philanthropic groups like the William Penn Foundation invested in our city’s history, reopening the collection in time for next year’s anniversary.
Of course, visitors would still need to get to a reopened Atwater Kent, and the region could be without adequate mass transit next year — an inexplicable possibility given the expected tourism influx.
With the state budget still outstanding and transit funding for agencies across the commonwealth still unresolved, SEPTA is poised to institute a series of brutal service cuts. They include a 9 p.m. curfew for train service, which would begin at the start of next year. This would be a catastrophe for Pennsylvania.
It is essential that the city’s elected representatives in Harrisburg make clear to the three men leading the budget negotiations — Gov. Josh Shapiro, Senate Majority Leader Joe Pittman, and House Majority Leader Matt Bradford — that they cannot support a spending plan that does not adequately fund transit across the commonwealth.
While State Sens. Sharif Street and Nikil Saval and State Reps. Malcolm Kenyatta and Martina White have publicly committed to only supporting a budget that supports SEPTA, most others have not. Given the stakes for not just 2026 but Philadelphia’s future, this must change. Philadelphia’s legislators must return from Harrisburg with transit funding.
The promise of 2026 is grand, and the stakes of being on the world stage are clear. It is up to elected officials whether the city will bask in the spotlight or be blinded by its glare.