Proposed building rendering at 42nd and Market (JKRP Architects).

A six-story, 352-unit apartment building proposed for 42nd and Market cleared the last phase of community review on Tuesday. When completed the nearly block-long building will cap off one of the densest blocks in the area.

Developers presented plans to the city’s Civic Design Review Committee, an advisory group for large projects that makes non-binding recommendations on everything from building materials to landscaping. Construction could begin this fall.

The Alterra Group presented the project to the West Powelton/Saunders Park RCO in June. The project is being built “by right.” The building will occupy most of the south side of the 4200 block of Market Street and include just over 22,000 square feet of ground floor retail space. Continue Reading

All that’s left of the strip mall on the north side of the 4300 block of Chestnut Street.

A seven-story 275-unit apartment complex is coming to the 4300 block of Chestnut Street – the site of the former strip mall and parking lot. Construction has already begun – the strip mall buildings have been recently demolished to make room for the complex.

The complex will include retail space on the ground floor and an underground garage with 75 parking spaces. The plans for this development were announced last summer and renderings were revealed last fall. Continue Reading

A community meeting on the 13-story, 170-unit apartment building proposed on the 4700 block of Spruce took place yesterday over Zoom. Organized by the Garden Community Association Zoning Committee, the meeting was advisory and included the developers’ (Spruce Street Development) lawyer and building architect. Residents could make non-binding suggestions about the project, which will likely begin construction in the fall.

Here are some key points from the meeting:

• The demolition of the existing one-story commercial structures on the block to make room for the new building is not expected to begin until at least late summer, contingent on the approval by the City’s Civic Design Review Committee. Some neighbors voiced concerns over possible air and soil pollution as a result of the demo work at the adjacent communit garden project. Continue Reading

Artist renderings of the 4746-48 Spruce St. project.

Residents are invited to join the Garden Court Community Association (GCCA) this Wednesday (May 11) for a discussion on a 13-story apartment building planned for the 4700 block of Spruce St.

The meeting, organized by the GCCA Zoning and Development Committee, is an opportunity to provide feedback as part of the city’s Civic Design Review process, where developers take non-binding suggestions from community groups and residents about things like building materials, building height, parking and landscaping.

The current plan includes the following: a 13-story building (six stories on the east end) with commercial space on the first and second floors (proposed uses include restaurant and grocery store), 170 residential units, 28 vehicular parking spaces (accessed via Spruce Street), 76 bicycle parking spaces, and an off-street loading dock (accessed via 48th Street). Continue Reading

An artist’s rendering of the proposed 76-unit apartment building at 48th and Chester.

A proposal for a 76-unit apartment building at 48th and Chester will go back to the city zoning board following a court decision in favor of neighborhood groups who oppose the project.

Court of Common Pleas Judge Anne Marie B. Coyle ruled earlier this week that the city’s Zoning Board of Adjustment “had failed to clearly identify any factual evidence” that not granting variances for the building would result in “unnecessary hardship” for the developer. The board can grant variances based on “unnecessary hardship” for a number of reasons, including financial viability.

The project is being proposed on the land owned by an adjacent nursing home – Renaissance Healthcare and Rehabilitation Center. Renaissance owner Meir Gelley is seeking to combine several land parcels adjacent to the nursing home for the proposed development – 4701-15 Kingsessing Ave., 4720 Chester Ave., 4724 Chester Ave., 1115 S. 48th St., and 1119 S. 48th St. Continue Reading

The City’s down payment assistance program, Philly First Home, has reopened today, according to an announcement by the Division of Housing and Community Development (DHCD). The program provides up to $10,000 (or 6 percent of the purchase price, whichever is less) in assistance to first-time homebuyers or those who have not owned a home for at least three years. The assistance recipient also must:

– Purchase a home in Philadelphia
– Have a household income at or below 100 percent Area Median Income (AMI)
– Complete housing counseling at a DHCD funded housing counseling agency. Continue Reading