South 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.

Updated plans have recently been released for Two Cathedral Square, a 470-foot-tall, 34-story mixed-use commercial and residential tower planned at 227 North 18th Street in Logan Square. Designed by Solomon Cordwell Buenz and developed by EQT Exeter, with Studio Bryan Hanes handling landscape design, the 700,000-square-foot-plus building is the largest component of Cathedral Square, a redevelopment master plan for the block-sized archdiocesan campus centered on the iconic Cathedral Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul. Today YIMBY takes a closer look at the most recent iteration of Center City’s latest trophy tower.