Philadelphia YIMBY’s recent site visit has observed that demolition work has still not started at the site of a 49-unit apartment building proposed at 1208 Chestnut Street in Midtown Village, Center City, even though demolition permits have already been issued for the dilapidated three-story structure currently occupying the property. Designed by SgRA and developed by Michael Alhadad, the building will span a narrow, through-block lot on the block between South 12th and South 13th streets, stretching north-south from Chestnut Street to Sansom Street. The building will span 51,436 square feet and will feature a basement, ground-floor commercial space, full sprinkling, and a roof deck. Permits list Christian A. Sanchez as the contractor and a construction cost of $5.5 million.
1208 Chestnut Street. Photo by Jamie Meller. June 2024
1208 Chestnut Street. Photo by Jamie Meller. June 2024
1208 Chestnut Street. Photo by Jamie Meller. June 2024
The site was once occupied by a stately prewar building rising nine stories tall. The remnant of this once-magnificent structure has since been reduced to a miserable, barely recognizable three-story stump, with a drab glass vitrine behind a roll-up gate at the ground floor and a completely stuccoed-over second level, decorated with an italicized “Rainbow” banner that appears ironically cheery for such a dismal-looking edifice. Only the dilapidated yet highly ornate third floor window remains as a reminder of the structure’s former grandeur.
1208 Chestnut Street via Civic Design Review
A demolition permit was issued in May 2019, listing Francis Henriquez of FH Demolition as the contractor and a cost of work of $60,000. The permit is currently listed as “completed,” although that clearly does not appear to be the case in reality. A construction permit was issued in the same month, although it had expired by June of last year. Still, we hope to see renewed progress at the site in the near future, as the proposed building would be a fine addition to the neighborhood.
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1208 Chestnut is the site of the Hamilton and Diesinger Building, a prewar, ornate eight-story commercial structure with a humongous first floor retail space and a cool mezzanine. Its top five stories were demolished in the 1940s after a fire. Subsequently, its lower two floors were reclad in stucco, leaving only the third floor with its original ornamentation (which is beautiful but deteriorated).
The building has had many commercial uses, including restaurants, photo processors, bookstores, linen stores, and several different shoe stores. The latest to inhabit this space was one of many Philly locations of the discount clothier Rainbow, which opened in 1998 or so and lasted until 2012. Since then, the building has been vacant.
The for-sale sign evident in the June 2024 photos has been up since at least May 2023. That the building remains unsold suggests that redevelopment is unlikely to occur any time soon. Other 1200 block of Chestnut vacancies only adds to the location’s dismal prospects.
In your opinion, why is there such a high number of vacancies on this theoretically prominent block? Thanks in advance.
Market East has struggled, especially in the Covid era. Witness the fiasco Fashion District Philadelphia, where reports of mayhem are a regular occurrence. On-line shopping has reduced demand for brick-and-mortar stores. Work-from-home has flattened the lunch business and suppressed overall retail demand.
Retail theft, vandalism, homelessness, panhandling, and loitering have all increased since 2020, the start of Covid, and pressured some shops to close (e.g,, Wawa). An addiction and mental health office, a behavior health center, and a methadone clinic, all nearby, are detriments.
Broad St. west has long attracted upscale shoppers and upscale shopping, creating a virtuous cycle. East of Broad has suffered down-scale, although there are individual exceptions (e.g., Moriarty’s Restaurant on the 1100 block of Walnut St.). Perhaps the recently opened outpatient Jefferson Honickman Center will draw foot traffic.
Moriarty’s is not the only exception, there are a ton of great restaurants that are just as good as the hoity toity places along Rittenhouse Square, East of Broad, many of them have been there for years if not decades. What about all the restaurants on South 13th between Chestnut and Locust, Steven Starr put in El Vez in the 90s and the rest have followed making that a area a bit of a restaurant Mecca. Retail on the East of Broad definitely sucks, the fashion district never really panned out and if they changed the name to the Discount District, people would probably show up and shop, but everyone still thinks of it as the Fashion district that was sold to us, upscale brands and all that BS, and seem as vacant as the Gallery was only brighter lighting inside, and even the Giant which is probably similar in square footage as the main level of the Giant at 23rd and Arch is not even a real Giant and has crappy hours, as if Giant corporate prefers people on that side of Broad to go to Acme or Wholefoods.
Everything you say is correct DJinWashWest.
Makes sense. I appreciate your insight! Hopefully, we’ll see some changes in the positive direction in the not-so-distant future, to your point.