>4080 Olive Street

Urban development is a delicate balancing act, and sometimes we must say goodbye to cherished local destinations in order to make way for a plan that is ultimately more beneficial to the community and to the city at large. One of such trade-offs is slated to occur at 7619 Germantown Avenue in Mount Airy, Northwest Philadelphia, where the Trolley Car Diner is set to meet the wrecking ball, to be replaced by a six-story, mixed-use residential development designed by Morrissey Design. Although the charming chrome, neon, mural, and freestanding trolley of the diner will be missed, the proposal at hand makes for more effective use of the site, bringing significant residential density within a two0-block walk of the Mount Airy Station of the SEPTA Regional Rail and replacing the auto-centric restaurant with pedestrian-friendly retail.

Permits have been issued for the construction of two three-story, six-unit apartment buildings at 1706 Master Street and 1708 Master Street in Cecil B. Moore, Lower North Philadelphia. Designed by Here’s The Plan, LLC, the two structures will replace a portion of a larger vacant lot nestled situated on the south side of the block between North 17th and North 18th streets, and will include a basement and two roof decks. For each building, permits list Omega Home Builders as the contractor and specify a construction cost of $280,000, of which $30,000 is allocated to excavation work.