Affordable Sustainable Living in Francisville

Nonprofit developer Community Venture and the Francisville Neighborhood Development Corporation have collaborated on a 44-unit rental housing development called Francisville East on the 1500 block of Poplar Street.  The building is a much welcomed addition to the ongoing beautification efforts of Francisville.  Long time neighbors are very excited to see their neighborhood coming back to life, and the development of affordable housing is an added bonus that will hopefully help to keep property taxes at an affordable rate.

The building will be home to  27 one-bedroom units as well as two and three bedroom units.  Solar panels will be used to assist in energy consumption, and small perimeter gardens and adequate sidewalks greet neighbors as they pass by.  The property management company said that they are looking for tenants that are making a minimum annual income of $18,000.  The building was also built with senior citizens as well as the handicapped in mind, considering the aging population of North Philadelphia and changing physical needs.

Information provided by Public Record

Owner: Francisville East LP
Purchase Price for 16 lots: $1 each in 2010
Land area per lot: 1130 SqFt
Location: Francisville
Use: 3-Story Apartment Building

Race Street Pier Video Updates

Video's Courtesy of Plan Philly

Race Street Pier Nears Completion

Its crunch time for Race Street Pier as it nears its grand opening set for May 12.  the contractor is working round the clock to get the park open time for next months public opening, and a pre-opening fundraising party that aims to raise about $60,000 for waterfront activities.  The sky promenade is complete and there has also been progress on the Race Street connector project, which will link the pier park to Old City.  DRWC received arts commission approval for the lED screens that will go on the I-95 underpass.  the connector is set for completion by the end of June.  The lights are part of a public art component  featuring abstracted LED-crafted images of the real-time wave and current patterns of the Delaware River.  Artist Richard Torchia explained how a camera, positioned at the end of the pier and focused across the river, will capture images and send them to a computer housed in the old Philadelphia Water Department building next to the underpass.  By abstracting the water's plays of light and movement, the piece would remind pedestrians that a river lies beyond.

Officials also see an exhibition use in the future for Pier 9.  Philadelphia Live Arts Festival & Philly Fringe said that they'd like to use Pier 9 for Festival- an event at the end of their two-week festival featuring restaurants from around the city.  The event would be the launch of Pier 9 as an exhibition space.

Manayunk Bridge May Receive Major Rail to Trail Transformation

The Manayunk railroad bridge is due to receive a walking trail, which would connect parks on both sides of the Schuylkill River.  Officials said this week they were close to choosing design, engineering and landscape architecture teams that will use a $1.3 million PennDOT grant awarded in January for construction and earlier grants for feasibility studies and preliminary work.  

On the Philadelphia side, the bridge trail effort dovetails with the city's Green Works initiative to add 500 acres of open public space by 2015.  In Lower Merion, the bridge is seen as a component of the 60-acre, 2-mile long ribbon of urban parkland of the Cynwyd Heritage Trail.    More.....

Image by; Owls Flight Photography

Philadelphia School District Announces Plan to Sell Off Vacant Properties

The shortcomings of The School district of Philadelphia is not news to many, for the enrollment rate has dropped considerably over the last decade which has caused the authority to consolidate and close many of its locations.  The lack of Federal funding has caused the budget deficit to grow to $639 million, leaving officials no choice but to close as many as 50 school buildings over the next three years.  The target schools and neighborhoods remain unknown.

The School District realizes that schools are much more than buildings where children learn to read and write, they are neighborhood anchors serving as informal community centers and physical references.  Acknowledging this fact, the School District is considering a new "adaptive reuse" policy to govern the sales of these properties that would in theory put community need ahead of the profit motive.

Unlike the existing policy, where the district's goal is to achieve the maximum market rate value in the sale of property, the proposed new rules would offer discounts of up to 25  percent off the market value for would-be educational buyers, such as a charter school.  Non-profits and community service providers- a faith-based charity, or a CDC would be eligible for discounts of up to 15 percent, at the district's discretion.  Developers and other private-sector buyers would not be eligible for discounts.

Thomas A. Edison High school is under agreement of sale for $600,000.

For each property it sells, the district intends to solicit a "request for information" from all would-be developers, including non-profits and educational organizations.  According to the draft policy, applicants would need to explain their projects, document their capacity to develop the property and show that they have the financial capability to buy and develop the land.

West Philadelphia High School

This post courtesy of PlanPhilly

G8 Development; 2200 Amber

Spring brings many sweet treasures like flowers; rain; or the Easter Bunny. But nothing is better than the smell of New Construction!  After a grueling permitting process and bitter cold winter, G8 Development has broken ground and is well on its way to constructing 2200 Amber, a 2 story residence designed in the progressive contemporary style, featuring sustainable construction methods and materials, as well as a fluid layout.

Friday the concrete base was poured using insulated concrete forms (ICF) manufactured by GreenBlock.  The ICF method reduces the buildings carbon footprint by insulating the basement, allowing for more efficient heating and cooling of the home.

Convention Center Parking Garage

City Council passed a zoning ordinance allowing a parking garage to be built adjacent to the historic Arch Street United Methodist Church at Juniper and Arch Streets.  The 530 space parking garage will host 16,000 square-feet of retail space on its ground floor facing Arch Street, and sport a reflective, silvery cloth on its facade to conceal its function as a parking structure.

Early construction was help up by concerns presented by members and leaders of the church and the historic Masonic Temple, as well as residents of Center Square.  They were worried that vibrations from construction could damage the historic buildings and would block views and light from the windows.  After the February planning commission meeting, Arch street Methodist Pastor Robin Hynicka said Maloomian, of Realen Properties, offered to set aside a self-contained shaft in one corner of the garage that the church could use to house new mechanical systems and an elevator that would give more people access to the church.  The developer has also agreed to do vibration studies and repair any damage that occurred.  The upper floors of the garage will be set back from the street to protect the view, and artificial lights will illuminate stained glass windows that will be blocked.