Love Park in Philadelphia is more than just a carbon copy of a statue. It’s a standing reminder of the affection of our city. The terminal end of our beloved Benjamin Franklin Parkway — Love Park attracts thousands of visitors annually as one of the most recognizable places in our city.
Long before Love Park became a reality in the 1960s — it had been in the works for Philadelphia. Originally part of the 1932 Edmund Bacon’s New Plan for Philadelphia — Love Park would not become a reality until 1965.
Constructed as park of an underground parking facility — Love Park was dedicated in 1967 for former US President John F. Kennedy and included its iconic fountain in the center. As America approached the bi-centennial celebration of 1976 — a replica of Robert Indiana’s Love Sculpture was erected in the park (the original 1970 piece of art resides in the Indianapolis Museum of Art.) It was former 76ers owner and Chaiman of the Philadelphia Art Commission Fitz Eugene Dixon Jr. who was able to obtain the sculpture and have it returned to Love Park in 1978.
Despite Philadelphia’s efforts to curtail the activity — Love Park became famous in the 1980s for skateboarding. During the period from 1990–2000, Love Park was one of the top skateboarding locations in the US. In 2001 and 2002 — Philadelphia accelerated its ban on skateboarding but also hosted the X-Games — leading to widespread outrage. Mayor Jim Kenney would temporarily lift the ban in 2016 — right before the initial demolition. In a tribute to the Park’s international fame — the City of Malmo in Sweden declared that they had located some of the original granite utilized in the construction of Love Park in 1965 and would replicate the original design in a space to open in 2024.
Between 2016–2018 the Park underwent an almost total renovation — introducing space for recreational games, a new fountain, as well as a more complete view of the surrounding area.
This weekend — Love Park will get a view of a different kind of affection amid it’s towering red-dyed fountain of Love when the Eagles Parade goes right down Broad Street. In the middle of the day on Valentine’s Day.
Michael Thomas Leibrandt is member of the York Road Historical Society and lives and works in Abington Township.
