The 23-acre property adjacent to Penn's campus accommodates, in state-of-the-art facilities, researchers, entrepreneurs, and industry partners solving real world problems and translating inventiveness into viable ventures. By grouping facilities for innovation, technological development, and artistic production/exhibition, Penn envisions a multifaceted workshop for harnessing and commercializing the tremendous creative potential in the region.
The Pennovation Works is anchored by the Pennovation Center, a business incubator that provides lab space and acts as a hub for collaboration and the exchange of ideas for innovators from all disciplines.
A Strategic Site
The Pennovation Works is a highly visible site that is well connected to the region, Center City, and University City. Recent investments in open space trails have connected the site to the Schuylkill River with dedicated public access and riverside amenities. Penn, the Philadelphia Industrial Development Corporation (PIDC), and the City, along with public agencies, are joining efforts to improve the pedestrian and traffic connections to the site, reposition properties in the surrounding areas, and create improved vehicular and pedestrian access to the neighborhood and University City.
The Pennovation Works framework plan aligns with the PIDC's vision to revitalize the 500-acre Lower Schuylkill River district into a regional Innovation District.
Early implementation efforts are underway to establish a distinctive Innovation District Gateway at 34th and Grays Ferry Avenue. New investment and PIDC master planning will drive the transformation into a mixed-use area featuring cutting-edge innovation, the next generation of entrepreneurs, and expanded university-based research commercialization.
Businesses that are located at Pennovation Works are eligible to receive significant state and local tax benefits including abatement of Business Privilege Tax, Net Profit Tax and Real Estate Tax.
A Flexible Framework
Design Goals
- University
- River/ River Trails
- City/Neighborhoods
- "Innovation District"
- Mixed-use Innovation
- Cultural Hub
- Events-based Spaces
- Industrial Character
- Working Landscapes
- Flex-Loft Workspaces
Development Principles
- University Research
- Technology Transfer
- Design/Arts Innovation
- Institutions
- Corporations
- Research Entities
Site History
Pennovation Works, 1700 — 2017
The Pennovation Works is a 21st century hub for innovation and industry. Beginning with the creation of the Pennovation Center – a building redesigned and adapted from a 20th century paint factory – the Pennovation Works consists of facilities existing for the purpose of turning ideas into economic opportunities for the surrounding area and neighborhoods. Interestingly, when you take a look at the site’s colorful history, you see that it’s been an incubator for industry and innovation in the Philadelphia area for over 200 years.
![Pennovation Works site aerial view, circa 1940. [photo credit: Library Company of Philadelphia]](/sites/default/files/inline-images/pennovation_works_site_aerial_view.jpg)
Beginning in 1690, the current Pennovation Works site was host to the Lower Ferry crossing of the Schuylkill River, which served as the southern entrance to Philadelphia throughout the 18th century. In the mid-1700s, ferry operator George Gray began to develop the area surrounding the crossing, opening a tavern and designing a garden to attract patrons to the area, with waterfalls, grottoes, and greenhouses. On the west bank of the Schuylkill River, Gray’s Garden became important to the local horticultural movement, which included celebrated gardens at the Woodlands and Bartram’s Gardens on the west side of the Schuylkill (opposite the Pennovation Works site), and seed manufacturers on the east bank of the river, just a few blocks from the site.
From 1865 to 1917, Harrison Brothers operated an industrial chemicals and paint manufacturing company on the site, relocating their headquarters from their original hub in Kensington. Harrison Brothers were leaders in the development of the chemical processes, and with contemporary innovations in the production of the tin cans, the company could make and distribute ready-mixed paint for the first time to average citizens. (Before these innovations, individual batches of paint needed to be mixed with new pigments each time, without the option to package or sell in large batches.) By the late 19th century, the company was one of the top color manufacturers in the United States, employing over 400 workers at its 30-acre Grays Ferry site. Harrison Brothers expanded the site to include facilities for their employees like a restaurant and athletic field, as well as their own power plant and the first private telegraph line in the country.
In 1917 the prominent E.I. DuPont & Nemours company purchased Harrison Brothers and Co., and the Grays Ferry site became home to DuPont’s new paint and finishes department. Throughout the second half of the 20th century, the site - and in particular the current Pennovation Center structure - was a facility for both production and chemical research, and was responsible for many innovations in the field. Successful products developed on the site include Duco lacquer, a quick-drying automotive paint that was durable and revolutionized auto production by dramatically reducing the paint’s drying time. While manufacturing ceased there in the 1980s, DuPont continued with research there until 2009. During the Harrison Brothers and DuPont Company eras, at least 11 patents are believed to originate from research conducted at this site.
In 2010, the University of Pennsylvania purchased the site and worked closely with the Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Environmental Protection in order to clean up and protect the site and its surrounding areas. As the Schuylkill River has its revival with the Bartram’s Mile and extension of the Trail, this industrial riverfront is again establishing itself as a place of connection and progress, where ideas go to work.
Resources
Getting There
Pennovation Works is located at the intersection of the 34th Street and Grays Ferry Avenue.
(3401 Grays Ferry Avenue). View on Google Maps
Parking
Limited parking is available on the site.
Public Transportation
SEPTA bus routes 12, 49, and 64 service the site.
Penn Transit
Penn Transit Services offers an on-demand transport service to Pennovation Works for all Penn community members holding a valid PennCard or Pennovation ID. Two guests are invited.
Call 215.898.RIDE (7433). Use Option 3.
Visit the Penn Transportation and Parking website for more Penn transport information.
Groups of larger than 10 people should arrange for Charter Service.
Bike Share
Nearby Indego bike share stations are located at 3499 Civic Center Blvd., 246 S. 40th Street, and 598 S. 43rd Street.
Walking Escort Service
Penn offers a Walking Escort Service which can be requested by calling 215-898-WALK (9255).
