1501 Fairmount Avenue. Photo by Jamie Meller. April 2022

Construction and Vertical Extension Anticipated at 1501 Fairmount Avenue in Fairmount, Lower North Philadelphia

7:00 am on April 23, 2022 By Vitali Ogorodnikov

Last September, Philly YIMBY reported that permits have been issued for the construction of a four-story-story, 20-unit addition and vertical addition to a prewar Art Deco commercial building at 1501 Fairmount Avenue in Fairmount, Lower North Philadelphia. More than half a year later, our visit revealed no construction progress at the development. Designed by Harman Deutsch Ohler Architecture, the development will add 20,558 square feet of space to the existing building, boosting the total area to 26,025 square feet. The project, which is also known under the address of 1501-05 Fairmount Avenue, will feature 5,467 square feet of commercial space, elevator service, roof decks, parking for seven bicycles, and full sprinkling. Permits list Construct Design Corp. Inc. as the contractor and a construction cost of $2.7 million.

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1325 Buttonwood Street. Photo by Jamie Meller. April 2022

A Study in Duality: Construction Nears Completion at 1325 Buttonwood Street in Callowhill, Lower North Philadelphia

8:00 am on April 22, 2022 By Vitali Ogorodnikov

Philly YIMBY’s recent site visit discovered that construction is nearly complete at a four-story, two-family residential development at 1325 Buttonwood Street in Callowhill, Lower North Philadelphia. The unusual-looking structure stands on the north side of the block between North 13th Street and North Broad Street. Permits list a floor area of around 3,000 square feet and Kevin O’Neill as the designer and Basch Builders as the contractor. Construction costs are specified at $555,000, of which $315,000 is allocated for general construction, $120,000 for plumbing, and $60,000 apiece for electrical and mechanical work.

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Rendering of Southbridge Condos at 701 South 19th Street. Credit: Zatos Investments.

Philly YIMBY Looks at New Developments Spanning 1,000 to 10,000 Square Feet

7:00 am on April 22, 2022 By Vitali Ogorodnikov

Today’s installment of Philly YIMBY’s Category Spotlight series focuses on Philadelphia’s proposed and under-construction developments that span between 1,000 and 10,000 square feet. This group generally covers the smallest size range of conventional urban construction (our only smaller category, which is reserved for buildings under 1,000 square feet, does not have even a single entry at this point). Buildings in this category typically range from single-family dwellings and multi-unit rowhouses to small apartment buildings with up to around ten residences. Below is a selection of some such buildings that we have covered since the beginning of the year, when we first introduced the category.

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Rendering of 210 South 12th Street. Credit: Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners.

YIMBY Shares Renderings of Revised Design for 210 South 12th Street in Center City

8:00 am on April 21, 2022 By Colin LeStourgeon

One of the most highly-anticipated developments in Philadelphia is the mixed-use high-rise planned at 210 South 12th Street in Washington Square West, Center City. Recently, developer Midwood Investment & Development shared with YIMBY updated details and renderings for the mixed-use project, which will rise 32 stories tall and will feature a two-story commercial space containing approximately 17,000 square feet. The structure above will hold 378 rental apartments. The development wil span 401,870 square feet. London-based Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners is the architectural firm behind the project’s design, with BLT Architects as the architect of record.

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BNY Mellon Center future lobby. Image via Silverstein Properties

Lobby Renovations Underway at BNY Mellon Center at 1735 Market Street in Center City

7:30 am on April 21, 2022 By Thomas Koloski

At the time when the Liberty Place project was proposed in Center City, other developers scrambled to join Philadelphia’s skyline race to top the Statue of William Penn atop City Hall. At 1735 Market Street, the skyscraper formerly dubbed Mellon Bank Center, now known as BNY Mellon Center, has long been a major fixture of the Philadelphia skyline. The project, which started to rise in 1987, rises to a height of 824 feet, with a 792-foot-high roof, and 54 stories. The tower was designed by Kohn Pedersen Fox and developed by CommonWealth REIT. Silverstein Properties, the owners of the World Trade Center in New York City, purchased the property in 2019 for $451.6 million; renovations were later announced for the tower.

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