Philadelphia Flower Show says so long to FDR Park for 2023

The Philadelphia Flower Show is ditching Franklin Delano Roosevelt Park for its old home indoors next year.

Driving the news: The Pennsylvania Horticultural Society (PHS) announced plans Tuesday to move the show back to the Pennsylvania Convention Center for 2023, when the event will be held in March rather than in June.

• The move comes days after PHS wrapped up this year's Flower Show.

Flashback: The show, which draws thousands of guests every year, was held outdoors in the South Philly park in June for the past two years.

• But prior to the pandemic, the show had been held in March inside the convention center since 1996.

What they're saying: Sam Lemheney, chief of shows at PHS, said the group never intended to hold the show at FDR Park permanently.

• Plus: The outdoor show in South Philly presented a series of logistical challenges, like providing bathrooms and electricity, Lemheney said.
• "We always felt like we would go back to the convention center and it's time," he told Axios of the 2023 show, which will run March 4-12.

Councilmember Kenyatta Johnson, whose 2nd District includes FDR Park, credited the show with exposing tens of thousands of people to the park and South Philly during the past two years.

What's next: Lemheney teased that holding an outdoor show in the future was not off the table.

• "We'll be thinking about, Can we possibly do two shows in the future? Can we have an outdoor show as well as an indoor show? So we're exploring all options right now," he said.