Permits have been issued for the construction of a three-story, four-unit residential building at 3220 Germantown Avenue near the Temple University Hospital in Franklinville, North Philadelphia. The new building will rise on the west side of the block between West Allegheny Avenue and West Hilton Street. The structure will span 3,654 square feet and will feature commercial space spanning 974 square feet as well as a basement. Permits list Haynesworth Investments as the contractor.
Construction costs are listed at $119,000, lending a total of around $189 per interior square foot. These costs include $100,000 allocated toward general construction and $19,000 toward excavation work.
In 2020, Philadelphia YIMBY reporteed that demolition permits were filed for the site, where a vacant three-story prewar rowhouse once stood.
The development is part of a slow-simmering yet consistent trend of property development in progress across the neighborhood surrounding the campus of the Temple University Hospital, which is situated two blocks to the west of the property. The Broad-Allegheny station on the Broad Street subway line is situated on Broad Street next to the hospital. The route 23 bus runs along Germantown Avenue across from the property.
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This residential development took several years from demolition to construction (which will hopefully begin soon.
This article described how well SEPTA transit services manage to serve this thriving community.
There was no mention of off-street parking and I found no evidence that would be possible in this development.
In Summary:
In November 2020, demolition permits were filed for 3220 Germantown Avenue, a vacant three-story prewar rowhouse in Franklinville, North Philadelphia, with plans to add stucco to adjacent lot walls post-demolition.
The property, a 0.03-acre lot zoned CMX2, was sold on May 10, 2024, for $48,920, presenting opportunities for multi-unit development.
This sale aligns with the ongoing revitalization of Germantown Avenue, which has seen increased residential and commercial development, including projects like the Vernon Lofts and Kenyon Lofts.
The posted Google Maps view is from October 2019.
Google Maps May 2022 shows that 3220 Germantown Avenue had been razed. The April 2025 perspective reveals that 3222 Germantown Ave. next door had been rehabilitated with an operational ground floor “health and beauty” shop, complete with a barber pole. On the other side, 3218 Germantown Ave. had signage indicating that it was an auto repair outlet, offering tune-ups, brake pads and rotors, and shocks. The sidewalks had been cleared of trash.
Unfortunately, directly across the street, an auto junkyard, a second repair shop and a tire shop were all still in business. New Wave Auto Tags is a half-block away. Pandora Auto, a third auto repair shop, is a block away. Although this project has no off-street parking, auto maintenance is convenient. And if your car decays to the point of no return, its final resting place is at hand.
.This situation validates the general principle that a neighborhood’s quality of life is inversely proportional to the number of its auto related enterprises (e.g., general repair shops, tag shops, tire shops, muffler shops, gas stations, auto junkyards, parking garages, dealerships, body shops, brake shops, transmission shops, oil and lube shops, glass shops, painting shops, parts stores, electrical shops, air conditioning shops, etc.).
On the plus side, nearby North10-developed “Be A Gem Crossing”, a 41 unit affordable and architecturally pleasing apartment complex, opened in March 2024.
PS: A 3,654 square foot building that costs $119,000 is a structure that costs an impossibly low $33 per square foot.