A recent site visit by Philadelphia YIMBY has observed significant construction progress at a seven-story mixed-use building at 225-39 North 13th Street in Chinatown, Center City. Designed by SLP Architectural Services, the development will feature commercial space at ground level and 81 residential units. In total, the structure will span 60,111 square feet.
225-39 North 13th Street. Photo by Jamie Meller. November 2024
225-39 North 13th Street. Photo by Jamie Meller. November 2024
225-39 North 13th Street. Photo by Jamie Meller. November 2024
225-39 North 13th Street. Credit: SLP Architectural Services.
225-39 North 13th Street. Credit: SLP Architectural Services.
225-39 North 13th Street. Credit: SLP Architectural Services.
225-39 North 13th Street. Credit: SLP Architectural Services.
225-39 North 13th Street. Credit: SLP Architectural Services.
225-39 North 13th Street. Credit: SLP Architectural Services.
225-39 North 13th Street. Credit: SLP Architectural Services.
225-39 North 13th Street. Credit: SLP Architectural Services.
225-39 North 13th Street. Credit: SLP Architectural Services.
225-39 North 13th Street. Credit: SLP Architectural Services.
225-39 North 13th Street. Credit: SLP Architectural Services.
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The Jaan at Center City is a 7-story, 59,560 square foot building with 80 short-stay units. It includes 1,748 square feet of ground floor commercial space, a gym, two or three roof-top decks and ground floor green space. The lobby entrance and retail are on 13th St. while the loading dock is on Class B Summer St.
The first floor is clad in glass while the rest of the facade is composite wood (which looks attractively different from most new construction). The building sports solar panels and aims for other energy efficiency benchmarks. The project is being built via modular construction on what was a 11,916 square foot CMX-3 zoned surface parking lot.
Philadelphia Chinatown Development Corporation’s executive director John Chin protested that the project does not align with Chinatown’s “vision”, which may be that the whole of Chinatown be reserved for Chinese. However, there are 12 surface parking lots in the immediate area, this project eliminating one. PCDC can realize their vision on the other eleven.
October 2024 Google Maps street view shows the seven story building topped off, most windows installed and insulation started.
These aren’t the right photos.
Another slap, dash, cookie cutter construction. I agree with residents of Chinatown-it’s an aesthetic embarrassment. But that’s more or less what happens in this city. Let us reflect upon the banality of Home2Suites by Hilton, adjacent to the magnificent Reading Terminal, or, for that matter, the monstrosity that is the Convention Centre. I won’t even go into the myriad of epic edifices we’ve lost to the wrecking ball, in order to make way for more of this rubbish. Capitalism is king, as the character of the city continues to crumble ad infinitum.
For a neighborhood so hellbent on “preserving community” in the face of development, Chinatown sure does push through the fugliest buildings (and parking lots) in the entire city.