In Memoriam: Edmund N. Bacon

Edmund N. Bacon, Philadelphia’s renowned city planner, died on October 14, 2005, at age 95. As Executive Director of the Philadelphia City Planning Commission from 1949-1970, Bacon’s visions spurred some of that era’s largest urban redevelopment projects, including Penn Center, Market East, and Society Hill. Bacon was an emblem of the urban renewal era - his portrait appeared on the cover of Time magazine in 1964 - but his vision proved far more humane and durable than that of most planners of that time. The following are excerpts from the remarks delivered by Gregory Heller, President of The Ed Bacon Foundation, at Bacon’s memorial service.

Over the past several years, I have had the remarkable opportunity to spend a significant amount of time with Ed. I am deeply honored to have been able to call him my friend, mentor, and inspiration. Despite our vast difference in years, Ed showed an extraordinary respect for my ideas and judgment. Indeed, he often valued the opinions of young people more than those of people far older and more experienced.

Perhaps this is because, as a young man, Ed himself was involved in a civic reform movement, led by a group of Young Turks. Perhaps it is because he continually proved his older critics wrong, transforming his visions - often regarded by others as impractical dreams - into the built reality of the city that now stands around us.

On one occasion, Ed told me, “Most people see the future in one of two ways: as something that will happen tomorrow, or as something so far in the distance that there is no sense worrying about it. Most people do not see the future as something that we make.”

On another occasion, he said, “In order to do my planning I had to escape into the future and shut the door so there was nobody around to tell me it couldn’t be done. The first inevitable fact about life is that the future will be the contemporary reality. The second fact is that the future will be as we make it, for better or for worse.”

Ed always believed in the future, and now it is up to us to do the same. He taught us not to simply criticize the present, but rather to work to make our future real. He taught us not to grow up too fast, not to abandon our ideals, and never to say our visions are impossible. Nothing would have made Ed happier than to know that the greatest impact of his legacy is yet to come.