PHILADELPHIA | Lowrise/General Developments Thread

[summersm343]

Developer gets permit for residential building at Society Hill Acme site

The Acme Markets store near Fifth and Spruce Streets in Society Hill will close when its lease expires in about two years, according to Philadelphia developer Alterra Property Group, which plans to develop a residential building at the supermarket site.

Leo Addimando, Alterra managing partner, said in an email Tuesday that negotiations to extend the grocery store's lease foundered late last year, prompting the developer to move forward with its plan for an apartment or condominium building on the property.

A conditional zoning permit issued last week allows for the market building's demolition and the construction of a 53-foot-high structure with 65 dwelling units on its second through fifth floors, a well as 43 underground parking spaces.

Current plans call for "fresh food market retail" on the building's ground floor, Addimando said.

Read more here:
http://www.philly.com/philly/busines...Acme-site.html

[McBane]

"The community is outraged by the size of this project," Loesch said, adding that she did not believe the development, as proposed, could accommodate a full-service grocer such as the existing market.

If anyone should be outraged, it should be us! 53 feet is pretty weak. Seriously, though talk about first world problems.

[Redddog]

Originally Posted by McBane

If anyone should be outraged, it should be us! 53 feet is pretty weak. Seriously, though talk about first world problems.

I'm pissed about the Acme. It was crappy and all but the closest grocer by far if you're in Old City. Sounds like it's replacement isn't going to be a real grocery.

[TempleGuy1000]

Originally Posted by McBane

If anyone should be outraged, it should be us! 53 feet is pretty weak. Seriously, though talk about first world problems.

Philadelphia Magazine published an excellent article about the Nimbyism of Society Hill.

Society Hill is Closed - As Philly changes, why does the city’s wealthiest neighborhood stay the same?

Coming into Society Hill from any direction is a quieting experience. Standing in Lawrence Court on a warm night, you can hear nothing but the swell of cicadas, and seeing another human being on one of the greenways after dark can feel like crossing paths with a ghost.

The sensation is a peculiar one for a Center City neighborhood. Historic buildings line the streets of Old City, Washington Square West and Queen Village, but those places tolerate and even encourage a certain amount of bustle, as downtown neighborhoods usually do.

Downtown neighborhoods usually change as well. In recent years, virtually the whole of Center City has grown denser and more varied. Streetscapes have transformed overnight. The long-dead blocks of Chestnut Street east of Broad are rapidly being built out, apartments are springing from vacant lots, and young people are crowding in as though the whole city is advertising half-priced mimosas at Sunday brunch.

Not Society Hill, though. The biggest building boom in recent history has left the neighborhood virtually untouched, except for a few ultra-luxury condos on the outskirts. Culturally and demographically, too, Society Hill has become a place apart from the rest of Center City, despite its position close to its heart. Since 1990, while the city as a whole has gotten younger, the retirement-age population in Society Hill has doubled. Its ratio of homeowners to renters is roughly twice that of Center City as a whole. If Center City is a tape playing in fast-forward, Society Hill is stuck on pause.

[summersm343]

22nd & South - 29 apartments/ground floor Wawa - 5 floors





Read more here:
http://www.ocfrealty.com/naked-phill...ng-omega-pizza

[TempleGuy1000]

Originally Posted by Groundhog

More Lincoln Square updates taken yesterday (from 15th Street). Lot's of digging.

This really is a massive development. A few projects have been announced, but most haven't come to fruition along Washington. it is nice to see a development get announced and go right to work, especially at the corner there.

I just wished their was more of a coordinated effort in what kind of avenue Washington should be. While the Lincoln Square development is a good development, I don't feel as positively about the one at 23rd:

New construction of a five (5) story self storage facility (group s-1) with first floor parking and loading spaces, rental office and elevator lobby, floors 2-5 as 774 individual storage units as per approved plans. building to be fully sprinklered.

Also PHL is getting an upgrade

Philadelphia Airport Is Getting An Amex Centurion Lounge

As of now, American Express has lounges in Dallas, Houston, Las Vegas, Miami, New York, San Francisco, and Seattle. We’ve heard that Amex has the intention of increasing the footprint of these lounges, though obviously this isn’t something that happens overnight.

Not only is building new lounges costly, but finding the real estate necessary to build these lounges is a challenge. There has been a lot of speculation about what airports are next to get Centurion Lounges, and I’m happy to share some further info about this. Per the airport proposal that was privately shared with me, there’s an Amex Centurion Lounge coming to Philadelphia Airport!

Here’s what we know so far:

The lounge will be located in Terminal A West (international departures) on the mezzanine level, directly above the current British Airways lounge
The lounge will be 5,500 square feet
The lounge will feature six bathrooms and one shower room
The lounge will have a sit down bar, food buffet, self-serve drink bar, a standard mix of lounge seating ranging from large lounge chairs to workbenches to bar top workspaces; there will also be a small room for phone calls
The lounge won’t have much in the way of views — one side of the lounge will face out over the departures drop off point, while the other side of the lounge will have an interior view of the departures hall

[Groundhog]

Originally Posted by TempleGuy1000

I just wished their was more of a coordinated effort in what kind of avenue Washington should be. While the Lincoln Square development is a good development, I don't feel as positively about the one at 23rd

Yeah, that's the result of the city dragging its feet on rezoning South Philly. A few anti-gentrification NIMBY groups are holding the whole thing up. It's really an embarrassment how tough it is to get logical developments built down there right now due to the city. That shelf storage building on 23rd is being built by right, it's a step backwards.

[1487]

This zoning hearing pertains to the long vacant 14 floor building on Broad north of Erie Ave. Probably the tallest building on Broad north of Temple Hospital. Hopefully this actually happens- huge eyesore.

3701 N BROAD ST
Map
Appeal #:
29666
Scheduled Time:
2:00 PM
Appeal Type:
ZONING VARIANCE
Permit #:
739887[+]
Appeal Grounds:
PERMIT FOR THE LOT ADJUSTMENT TO CREATE TWO (2) LOTS (PARCEL "A" AND "B" ON PLAN) FROM FIVE (5) EXISTING LOTS (3701-03 (PREMISES "A", "B", "C", "D") AND 3707 N BROAD STREET.). FOR THE ERECTION OF ONE STAIR TOWER ADDITION. (SIZE AND LOCATION AS SHOWN ON THE PLAN). FOR USE AS A SUNDRIES, PHARMACEUTICALS, AND CONVIENANCE SALES ON THE 1ST FLOOR, OFFICE OF BUSINESS AND PROFESSIONAL ON THE 2ND AND 3RD FLOORS EIGHTY TWO (82) - FAMILY HOUSEHOLD LIVING ON 4TH TO 14TH FLOORS WITH 30 BICYCLE PARKING SPACES ON THE BASEMENT IN AN EXISTING ATTACHED STRUCURE ON PROPOSED NEW LOT "B". PROPOSED NEW LOT "A TO REMAIN VACANT. (SIZE AND LOCATION AS SHOWN ON THE KEY PLAN).

[Scottydont]

Originally Posted by 1487

This zoning hearing pertains to the long vacant 14 floor building on Broad north of Erie Ave. Probably the tallest building on Broad north of Temple Hospital. Hopefully this actually happens- huge eyesore.

Isn't that whole area a bit of an eyesore?

[1487]

Originally Posted by Scottydont

Isn't that whole area a bit of an eyesore?

this is the largest non temple building in the area and just south of here you have Shriners hospital, Temple Hospital, the relatively new Temple medical school admin building and the dental school. This isn't the toniest area in town, but it's got more going on than much of North Broad. There is also development of rental units happening on the west side of broad catering towards students. this building is the most significant blight north of Lehigh Ave

[Nova08]

Originally Posted by TempleGuy1000

Also PHL is getting an upgrade

Philadelphia Airport Is Getting An Amex Centurion Lounge

The Centurion Lounge is a big plus for PHL. There are not that many of them and they provide a superior level of offerings over many existing lounges. That said, work at PHL is notoriously slow.

[Urbanity]

Originally Posted by Scottydont

Isn't that whole area a bit of an eyesore?

The Beury Project
Work should begin shortly on the Beury building on North Broad. The plan during the first phase is to turn the Art Deco building (it originally served as the National Bank of North Philadelphia) into seven floors of senior affordable housing with 62 one-bedroom units and four floors of non-profit office space, according to the State of North Broad annual report. A second phase will include the construction of an annex, with 10,000 square feet of retail, 100,000 square feet of commercial space, and up to 80 residential units.
--From CurbedPhilly's recent post on 21 adaptive reuse projects in Philadelphia

[Baconboy007]

Originally Posted by Urbanity

The Beury Project
into seven floors of senior affordable housing with 62 one-bedroom units

Senior housing, knowing this buildings nickname this is a great marketing opportunity for viagra.

[Larry King]

I'd typically be skeptical but the group that owns Buery seems well capitalized. They've been buying and renovating massive industrial properties in Kensington under the name shift capital, they bought a vacant lot from me too

[Jayfar]

Originally Posted by Groundhog

Yeah, that's the result of the city dragging its feet on rezoning South Philly. A few anti-gentrification NIMBY groups are holding the whole thing up. It's really an embarrassment how tough it is to get logical developments built down there right now due to the city. That shelf storage building on 23rd is being built by right, it's a step backwards.

Not the City per se, as the Planning Commission has had their part of the remapping completed for a long time, but in South Philly west of Broad, Councilman Kenyatta Johnson likes things very much the way they are, with most everything requiring a variance and his seal of approval. He's made it pretty clear he's in no hurry to introduce the required bill to implement remapping.

[McBane]

Midtown II restaurant site sells to buyer with plans for new high-end eatery

More good news east of Broad as the momentum from 13th St continues to move east. What really grabbed my attention was this nugget:

Weller identified the new owner, who wished to remain otherwise anonymous, as being in the restaurant business. The owner may redevelop the site with residential units over the planned new eatery, he said. The property was marketed as being able to accommodate 76 two-bedroom apartments under the area's zoning guidelines.

Based on the article, it doesn't seem like we'll see a demolition and a new apartment building rise here but even a nice cleanup of the exterior and perhaps a two floor addition on the building's east side to match the west side of the building would make a big difference. https://www.google.com/maps/@39.9492...8i6656!6m1!1e1

[summersm343]

Philly takes control of industrial business' riverfront property for cycling/walking trail

City officials have seized control of a strip of waterfront land from a North Delaware Avenue industrial business for part of a planned bike and walking trail along the Delaware River from Fishtown to South Philadelphia.

Through condemnation, Philadelphia authorities took title to an easement behind Henry Stewart Co., a wire rope business, between Marlborough and Shackamaxon streets, city spokesman Paul Chrystie said Wednesday.

The acquisition puts an unbroken strip of riverside property connecting Penn Treaty Park with SugarHouse Casino under city control, Chrystie said.

Assuming the condemnation is not challenged in court, construction of the trail section can begin once the weather permits, he said.

The segment is part of a 3.3-mile trail planned by the Delaware River Waterfront Corp. that would extend from Penn Treaty Park, at East Columbia Avenue, to the north end of the Pier 70 shopping center at Tasker Street.

Read more here:
http://www.philly.com/philly/busines...ing-trail.html

[Hrytsyu]

[QUOTE=TempleGuy1000;7681260]This really is a massive development. A few projects have been announced, but most haven't come to fruition along Washington. it is nice to see a development get announced and go right to work, especially at the corner there.

I just wished their was more of a coordinated effort in what kind of avenue Washington should be. While the Lincoln Square development is a good development, I don't feel as positively about the one at 23rd:






I noticed the same 23xx block structure, the other day. I must state that it is actually constructed better than, for instance, the new 5 level residential buildings at Broad and Callowhill.

The storage structure is all steel and appears there will be concrete pours on the corrugated decking ; a generally fire-resistant structure. The Callowhill residences are constructed of match sticks. I find it appalling the storage structure is designed to better conserve the welfare of its contents than the residential building.

Perhaps someday the storage structure will be converted to apartments as market forces apply pressure.

[summersm343]

Shaping A New Urban Crossroads At 33rd And Chestnut

Great article from Hidden City about the change at 33rd and Chestnut:
http://hiddencityphila.org/2017/01/s...-and-chestnut/

[McBane]

Originally Posted by summersm343

Shaping A New Urban Crossroads At 33rd And Chestnut

Great article from Hidden City about the change at 33rd and Chestnut:
http://hiddencityphila.org/2017/01/s...-and-chestnut/

What a change. I used the Googlemaps streetview "time machine" feature. The difference between 2007 and 2016 is 180 degrees. Wow! https://www.google.com/maps/@39.9541...8i6656!6m1!1e1