Mayor Jim Kenney told the audience gathered for the Spruce Hill Community Association annual meeting last night that the city would likely to have a handful of serious proposals for the old Provident Mutual Insurance building at 4601 Market St. by early January.

His administration cancelled plans in May to move the police headquarters to the building, opting instead for the old Philadelphia Inquirer building at 400 N. Broad St. Those plans were devised during the administration of Michael Nutter.

The city has received several requests for quotation (RFQ) on the property. These are narrative proposals of what would be done with the property. Those proposals range from commercial and retail to medical and educational. All propose a mix of uses for the property. Kenney said the RFQs are private and he could not provide specific details on any of them. 

Details will likely come in January when the city shortens that list and puts out a formal request for proposals (RFP). Respondents to the RFP and their plans will be made public and likely go through an open forum, Kenney said. The city hopes to choose a proposal by April 2018.

Several requirements will be built into any agreement, Kenney said, including a social impact study to determine the impact of the proposal on the surrounding neighborhood and stipulations about hiring local and minority workers on the construction.

Kenney’s visit wasn’t the first by a sitting mayor to an SHCA meeting. Nutter swung by a meeting back in February 2011 to chat.