Urban planning analysis

A Project HOPE development at 115 East Huntingdon Street. Credit: Cecil Baker + Partners Architects

A Detailed Look at Upcoming Project HOME Residence at 115 East Huntingdon Street in West Kensington

Recently Philadelphia YIMBY visited the site of a new 56-unit Project HOME assisted residential facility under renovation at 115 East Huntingdon Street at the Temple University Campus Episcopal Campus in West Kensington. The development is part of Temple University Hospital’s ongoing effort to create over 1,000 affordable supported-living residences for persons that have experienced homelessness, mental illnesses, substance abuse, and other issues. The project team consists of Cecil Baker + Partners Architects as the designer, Temple University Hospital’s Project HOME as the owner/developer, and T. N. Ward Company as the contractor. Construction costs are specified at $14.9 million. In the previous article we focused on the project’s social mission and its financial backers, which include musician Jon Bon Jovi. Today we look at the architectural and technical aspects of the massive, five-story renovation project.

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725-29 South Broad Street. Photo by Jamie Meller. March 2022

Construction Pending at 725-29 South Broad Street in Hawthorne, South Philadelphia

Last year in May, permits had been issued for a commercial renovation and vertical expansion for a three-story prewar building at 725-29 South Broad Street in HawthorneSouth Philadelphia. Since that time, however, no construction progress has been made on the structure, as Philly YIMBY’s recent site visit has shown. Designed by CANNOdesign, the structure, located on the east side of South Broad Street on the block between Bainbridge and Fitzwater streets, will rise five stories. Permits list Santech Construction Corp. as the contractor and a construction cost of $3.8 million.

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2709-15 Cecil B. Moore Avenue. Photo by Jamie Meller. March 2022

Demolition Underway at Historic Columbia Theater in Cecil B. Moore, North Philadelphia

A recent site visit by Philly YIMBY has revealed that demolition has begun at the historic Columbia Theater at 2709 Cecil B. Moore Avenue in Cecil B. MooreNorth Philadelphia. The 100-year-plus-old structure, situated at the north side of the block between North 27th and Marston streets, will be replaced by a four-story, 18-unit apartment building. Designed by Kore Design Architecture (KCA), the new development will span 21,030 square feet and feature elevator service, full sprinkling and a roof deck. Permits list Bloomtown Holdings LLC as the owner, GRIT Construction as the contractor, and a construction cost of $3.16 million. The Columbia Theatre, as it was originally known, was built in 1911 in a grand Beaux-Arts style. The massive, dramatic marquee and vertical sign that once adorned its front entrance are long gone. Still present, however, is the symmetrical facade with Palladian and oeil-de-boeuf windows, a garland-adorned crown, and a dentil course cornice. Even the elegant bishop’s crook light sconces continue to grace the structure at the second level. The roughly 30-foot-tall building is at once in scale with the avenue’s rowhouses and offers a distinct sense of urbane grandeur.

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1700 North Front Street. Credit: NORR

Development Anticipated at 1700 North Front Street in Fishtown

Last August, YIMBY shared renderings for a five-story, 204-unit development proposed at 1700 North Front Street in FishtownKensington. More than half a year later, no construction permits have yet been filed nor has any construction activity taken place, as confirmed by our recent site visit. Designed by NORR, the 172,844-square-foot building will offer 123,218 square feet of residential space, which will be split between 28 studios, 141 one-bedroom units, 35 two-bedroom apartments, and a 5,264-square-foot amenity suite. The project will also feature 16,429 square feet of retail and parking for 70 bicycles.

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Rendering of 1120 Frankford Avenue. Credit: BLT Architects.

Philly YIMBY Considers an Alternate Layout for The Frankford at 1120 Frankford Avenue in Fishtown

Earlier this month, Philadelphia YIMBY published a detailed overview of The Frankford, a six-story, 150-unit mixed-use residential and retail development planned at 1120 Frankford Avenue (alternately 1120-36 Frankford Avenue) in Fishtown, Kensington. Designed by BLT Architects and developed by US Construction, the attractive Neo-Idustrial structure will create 7,166 square feet of ground-level retail and 83,372 square feet of residential space, contributing a significant volume of housing stock and a vibrant retail-fronted streetscape to the neighborhood. However, despite the positive impact the proposal promises to deliver, it arguably suffers from a squat, sprawling massing, which was likely crafted as a response to the neighborhood’s unreasonably low height limit. In this publication, YIMBY shares an alternate project layout of our own, which shows how a less restrictive zoning envelope would allow for a more organic relationship to the street, improved unit layouts, creation of new public space, improved pedestrian circulation,and even preservation of a locally beloved mural.

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