Honoring and congratulating PIDC, Philadelphia's public-private economic development corporation, on driving 25 years of job growth at the Navy Yard, and recognizing March 31-April 6 as Navy Yard Week in the City of Philadelphia.

Honoring and congratulating PIDC, Philadelphia’s public-private economic development corporation, on driving 25 years of job growth at the Navy Yard, and recognizing March 31-April 6 as Navy Yard Week in the City of Philadelphia. WHEREAS, The Philadelphia Naval Shipyard was established as the nation’s first dedicated shipbuilding facility in 1868 by the U.S. Navy on League Island, at the southern tip of the City of Philadelphia; and WHEREAS, The Philadelphia Naval Shipyard drove innovation for 128 years, producing the most technologically advanced ships and defense technology, as well as the nation’s first naval aircraft production facility; and WHEREAS, The Philadelphia Naval Shipyard employed tens of thousands of skilled Philadelphians throughout its 128 years of operation, delivering ships and technology that supported U.S. troops around the world through numerous global conflicts, with peak production in World War II when 40,000 Navy Yard workers built 53 ships with record speed and repaired over 1,200 ships to support our nation’s defenses when we needed it most; and WHEREAS, The Philadelphia Naval Shipyard was closed in 1996 under the federal Base Realignment and Closure Act, resulting in the loss of 10,000 jobs and a vacant site that is roughly the size of Center City; and WHEREAS, PIDC acquired the 1,200-acre site in 2000, on behalf of the City of Philadelphia, with the goal of restoring family-sustaining jobs and economic activity; and WHEREAS, PIDC, in partnership w…