753 North 44th Street. Looking east. Credit: Google

Permits Issued for a Multi-Family Structure at 753 North 44th Street in Haverford North, West Philadelphia

7:00 am on March 4, 2021 By Vitali Ogorodnikov

A zoning permit has been issued for the construction of a multi-family residential structure at 753 North 44th Street in Haverford North, West Philadelphia. The building will be situated on the east side of the block between Aspen Street and Brown Street, near the boundary with the Mill Creek neighborhood to the west. The attached structure will rise from a 1,098-square-foot footprint. No floor count is specified, though the permit mentions a setback at the third floor, which, together with the surrounding housing stock, suggests a three-story height. BSC NC 1 LLC is the listed owner.

Read More
Waldorf Astoria looking northwest. Image via Cope-Linder Architects

Looking at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel & Residences Once Proposed at 1441 Chestnut Street in Center City

8:00 am on March 3, 2021 By Thomas Koloski

Today’s entry in Philly YIMBY’s ongoing “unbuilt” series is the Waldorf Astoria Hotel & Residences Philadelphia, proposed at 1441 Chestnut Street in Center City, where the W/Element Hotel is now nearing completion. The 567-foot-tall, 59-story tower would have occupied the south side of the site of the former One Meridian Plaza, a 492-foot-tall office skyscraper damaged by a lethal fire in 1991 and demolished in 1999 (yesterday YIMBY covered a supertall structure proposed earlier at the site). Like the W/Element Hotel, the Waldorf Astoria iteration was also designed by Cope-Linder Architects, though the developers at the time were Mariner Commercial Properties, Inc. and Gatehouse Capital Corporation. The tower would have featured 181 hotel rooms and 126 residences.

Read More
Wharton Flats at 1283 South 9th Street via Hightop Real Estate

Façade Work Wraps Up at Wharton Flats in Passyunk Square, South Philadelphia

7:30 am on March 3, 2021 By Colin LeStourgeon

Façade work is wrapping up at Wharton Flats, a four-story mixed-use project under construction at 1283 South 9th Street in Passyunk Square, South Philadelphia. Developed by Hightop Real Estate and Development, the project consists of 21 apartments, three townhomes, and a 5,400-square-foot commercial space. The building gained approval in June 2018, and construction began shortly after. The building stands across the street from Pat’s King of Steaks and down the block from Geno’s Steaks, two of Philadelphia’s most iconic cheesesteak restaurants.

Read More

Renderings Revealed for a Nine-Townhome Development at 2001-13 Abigail Street in Fishtown, Kensington

7:00 am on March 3, 2021 By Colin LeStourgeon

Renderings have been revealed for a four-story, nine-townhome development at 2002-13 Abigail Street in Fishtown, Kensington. The homes feature two design variants, where the five at the northwest corner will include parking, while the four homes to the southeast will not. Catalyst City Development, the developer, is also in charge of the residential conversion of the historic Harbisons Dairy across the street, which YIMBY covered last October.

Read More
Center City Tower rendering with Liberty Place. Image via Kling Lindquist

A Look Back at Center City Tower, Once Planned as the City’s First Supertall Skyscraper

8:00 am on March 2, 2021 By Thomas Koloski

In the late 1990’s, a massive supertall was planned at the site of the 492-foot-tall One Meridian Plaza, an office skyscraper damaged by a fatal fire in 1991 and demolished in 1999. The proposed Center City Tower at 1414 South Penn Square in Center City would have been built where The Residences at The Ritz-Carlton and the under-construction W/Element Hotel currently stand. Designed by Kling Lindquist, the 1,050-foot tower would have become the first supertall skyscraper in Philadelphia, rather than the Comcast Technology Center, which took the title 20 years later. Notably, Comcast was also considering taking office space at Center City Tower, and the cable company’s decision to pull out of the project and to build Comcast Center at 17th and Arch Street instead was a major reason behind the supertall’s cancellation.

Read More