6044 Chestnut Avenue

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.

The nighttime Philadelphia skyline is getting brighter as new additions join the existing cluster of towers. In the Washington Square West West neighborhood of Center City, the new condominium skyscraper, Arthaus, rises at 311 South Broad Street, joining the rest of the Center City towers at a height of 542 feet and 47 stories. Designed by Kohn Pedersen Fox (with Arthaus being the firm’s first residential skyscraper in the city) and developed by Dranoff Properties, the tower will feature 108 condominiums along with amenity space that includes a pool and outdoor decks.