Permits have been issued for the construction of a three-story, three-unit multi-family building at 2218 North Marshall Street in North Philadelphia East. The structure will replace a vacant lot on the west side of the block between West Susquehanna Avenue and Germantown Avenue. The building will rise from an 853-square-foot footprint and will contain 2,591 square feet of interior space, which translates to an average of around 864 square feet per apartment. The project will feature full sprinkling and a roof deck, which will offer sweeping views in most directions, as the structure will stand largely unobstructed (at least for the time being).
Permits list Point Breeze Holdings LLC as the owner, Christopher Menna as the design professional, and JPL Construction Inc. as the contractor. Construction costs are estimated at $180,000.
2218 North Marshall Street. Credit: Google Maps
The structure will rise from a vacant lot that spans most of the southern half of the city block. The lot is one of many in the formerly dense and bustling neighborhood. Depopulation and extensive demolitions during the postwar period have created an an uncanny, liminal yet seemingly timeless atmosphere which we covered in detail in our recent Grandeur and Desolation feature.
North Marshall Street, with 2218 North Marshall Street on the right. Looking southwest. Credit: Google Maps
North Marshall Street, with 2218 North Marshall Street on the left. Looking north. Credit: Google Maps
Our regular readers are probably used to seeing the feature mentioned on just about daily basis during the recent couple of weeks. In the feature, we talked about how four minor multi-family buildings recently proposed at nearby North 7h Street (at 2509, 2411, 2419, and 2509 North 7th Street) are likely the first signs of an incoming surge of new development in the area. True to our expectations, over the course of the next few days we covered additional multi-family developments planned at 2413, 2415, and 2431-33 North 7th Street. Yesterday we wrote about another project slated to rise at at 2239 Germantown Avenue, just up the block from the latest proposal at 2218 North Marshall Street.
Several more small multi-family buildings have already been constructed in the surrounding area in the past couple of years. However, this trickle of development will likely change into a flood, with the din of hammers and construction equipment filling the currently quiet streets for the first time since their heyday in the prewar era. Given the area’s ample development-ready land, 15-minute walking proximity to Temple University and both the Market-Frankford Line and the Broad Street Line, as well as the Temple University Station on the SEPTA regional rail, which all offer a rapid commute to Center City and beyond, we expect more development announcements in the near future.
In the meantime, we urge the city to increase investments in improvements in local infrastructure, which has seen decades of neglect, in order to accommodate the incoming surge of residents. We also encourage upzoning, as well as incentives for public amenities and street-facing retail, for this lucrative, increasingly in-demand area. Hopefully such actions would be implemented before large vacant lots available for construction become sparse.
2218 North Marshall Street. Looking north. Credit: Google Maps
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Did you reach out to the city’s planning commissioner on your concerns?
You can share your concerns at Planning Commission meetings in audience comments, whenever something in this neighborhood comes up. I’ve already expressed concern about the need to preserve retail space and zoning along Germantown Avenue in this neighborhood at a PCPC meeting a few years ago, when a proposed Phila2035 district plan proposed only residential development on that stretch of Germantown Avenue. I used South Street West as an example where shortsighted thinking during tough times for that neighborhood damaged the important business district there. I once spoke to Planning Director Ann Fadullon, after a meeting, about considering a train station along the regional rail line in Brewerytown and she said that she would ask people on her staff to study the idea.
The Planning Commission meets every third Thursday now at 1PM on Zoom. Info can be found on the PCPC website, accessible through the phila.gov site. Before the pandemic, they would meet live at One Parkway, at 16th & Arch Streets.
“I once spoke to Planning Director Ann Fadullon, after a meeting, about considering a train station along the regional rail line in Brewerytown”
Excellent idea, Gabriel! Also, thanks for the resources on communal outreach.