A new mixed-use development called The Frankford, which is proposed at 1120 Frankford Avenue in Fishtown, Kensington, is going before the Civic Design Review. Designed by BLT Architects and developed by US Construction, the new building will rise five stories tall. On the ground floor, there will be 7,166 square feet of commercial space. The building will yield 150 residential units, spanning 83,372 square feet of space. There will not be any car parking included with the project, but the building will offer space for 50 bicycles.
Rendering of 1120 Frankford Avenue. Credit: BLT Architects.
The new building will feature a high-quality industrial design. Brick will be utilized at all easily viewable sides of the structure, from the ground floor to the very top, with abutting piers and small window sills adding texture. There will be floor-to-ceiling windows on the ground floor, with metal awnings, as well as street trees and outdoor seating, making for a pleasant street presence. Above this, the rest of the windows will see a uniform, square shape and size. On non-street facing building faces that are not noticeable, designs opted to use gray-black metal paneling, likely to lower construction costs.
Aerial view of 1120 Frankford Avenue. Credit: BLT Architects.
The new building will replace a vacant lot, one of the largest still remaining in the entire neighborhood. The lot cuts all the way through the block, from Frankford Avenue to Dunton Street, creating a large gap on the streetscape. The site is commonly used as parking space by nearby residents and workers. The only notable feature of the property is the bright and a moving FISHTOWN mural that is situated at the northernmost portion of the site, and will unfortunately be sacrificed for the new development.
Rendering of 1120 Frankford Avenue. Credit: BLT Architects.
Despite the loss of the mural, the building will provide a massive improvement for the site, adding commercial space along one of the busiest commercial corridors in the city, and hundreds of resinous on the upper floors. The lack of parking is nothing to be worried about, as Girard Station on the Market-Frankford line is just a couple of short blocks away, and the property is in such a walkable location. Renderings show a “Brew Pub” located on the ground floor, although this is likely just a conceptual illustration.
Rendering of 1120 Frankford Avenue. Credit: BLT Architects.
YIMBY will continue to monitor progress made on the development moving forward.
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The renderings show some very attractive brick work. The street presence looks excellent. This is exactly the type of investment that should take place so close to reliable public transit.
I wish our zoning would incorporate façade requirements. This project would pass right through, but for the developers tossing up projects with junk facades that look horrible with ~5 years of aging, those projects would need to be amended before getting approvals to proceed. I’d even like to see height bonuses for incorporating quality facades into projects. We need better incentives for quality design.
1120 has no zoning variances and is a by right project. Then why are we letting concerned neighbors whine about the project?
So people like you have something to complain about
If the plans work well for the neighborhood it would seem good to build it. Also regarding the bike parking, hopefully the situation a lot for Ebikes and cargo/utility bicycles.