PHL Family Court Update

The future Family Court Building currently rising at the northwest corner of 15th and Arch Streets will unite the Domestic Relations and Juvenile Division facilities of the Philadelphia Family Court.  The facility was recently topped of earlier this month.  The occasion was celebrated by state and local government officials, project team members from the Pennsylvania Department of General Services (DGS) and Tishman Construction Corporation, just to name a few.

The 670,000-square-foot 15 floor facility designed by Ewing Cole, will feature space for court queuing and security, court support offices, public waiting areas, staff support areas, holding cells and judges' chambers for court administration.  The facility is expected to open in June 2014.

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PHS Plans for Next Generation Civic Landscapes

The Philadelphia Horticulture Society is currently investigating seven potential sites  to serve as canvases to its next generation of civic landscapes initiative.  In recent decades PHS had developed landscape approaches to improve high-profile places like the Azalea Garden and Logan Square, as well as less show-stopping locations like the medians along Columbus Boulevard.

PlanPhilly reports that the organization also seeks to design impressive Welcome Gateways to the city at the International Airport and in the Northeast Corridor along the Amtrak/Septa rail line running through North Philadelphia. For the last year and a half, PHS worked with PennPraxis and more than 100 key stakeholders to zero in on which sites in Philadelphia are most worthy of their focused attention alongside community and civic partners.

Here are the seven sites currently at the top of their list:

1. North Broad (Diamond St. to Spring Garden St.)
2. Central Broad (Spring Garden St. to South St)
3. South Broad (South St. to Passyunk Ave)
4. Vine street (Benjamin Franklin Bridge/ 5th St. to 20th St.)
5. Northeast Corridor (Amtrak/SEPTA rail corridor through North Philadelphia)
6. West Girard Avenue (29th St. to 41st St)
7. Airport (PHL/I-95)

Each project could include multiple projects at a variety of scales; may focus mor on making a positive impression ("image-makers"), fostering a sense of place ("place-makers"), or improving neighborhood connections and quality of life ("partner-makers").

PHS has several tools in mind to help improve these spaces, including signage, surface textures, land or aquatic forms, furniture, landscape screening techniques, vertical or horizontal plantings, lighting, and artistic installations.

Family Court Redevelopment

The process is finally underway to selecting a developer to convert the historic local landmark at 1801 Vine Street into a hotel. The presence of government institutions on the Parkway will finally be a mistake of the past and we can now envision a more complete future that embodies culture, education, livability, leisure, entertainment, and exploration.

After a Request for Qualifications (RFQ) process last year, five development teams were selected to submit proposals for the property's reuse in a process being overseen by the Philadelphia Industrial Development Corporation (PIDC).  The five teams are: HRI properties, Dranoff Properties, Peebles, P&A Associates, and Logan Square Holdings.  Proposals are due July 10 and will be evaluated by a selection committee comprised of representatives from city agencies.

The pre-qualified developers are being asked to consider turning the building's upper floors into a hotel, find creative ways to retain public access to areas of the ground floor's historically designated  interiors, and must achieve a minimum sustainability threshold of a LEED Silver rating.

Philadelphia Wins EPA Grant To Plan for the Reuse of Brownfield Properties Along Frankford Creek

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced Philadelphia as one of 20 communities to receive a grant to conduct a planning study to guide the cleanup and reactivation of brownfield land.  A $200,000 grant to Philadelphia will fund a study for a four- square- mile- area of the Frankford Creek, including sections of the Bridesburg, Frankford, Port Richmond and Juniata Park neighborhoods.  The Philadelphia City Planning Commission applied for the grant, which was announced April 25th, and will manage the planning process.

The grant is the first step  toward reusing formerly industrial properties along Frankford Creek in new and exciting ways, says Gary Jastrzab, Executive Director of the City Planning Commission.  the revitalization of the area was the focus of the recently adopted Philadelphia 2035: Lower Northeast District plan.

The former Coke and Rohm and Haas site, totaling 126 riverfront acres in the Bridesburg neighborhood, present economic development opportunities for waterfront redevelopment and community revitalization.  Similarly, the former site of Edgewater Dyeing and Finishing presents a unique opportunity for creek-side redevelopment in Frankford.  The rehabilitation of brownfield sites will also enable the development of the Frankford Creek Greenway, a greenway that would connect Tacony Creek Park to the North Delaware Riverfront.

2116 Chestnut; Apartment High-Rise Update

The soon to be completed high-rise rental at 2116 Chestnut will offer studios, 1 and 2 bedroom units, along with indoor parking, a dog run, car share, and bike storage.  Studios start at $1,700 per month and 1 bedrooms at $1,950 per month.

Marketed as resort style living, the fifth floor of 2116 Chestnut features a professionally  landscaped sun-deck with a spacious lawn, green roof, hot tub, lounge seating and a grilling area with outdoor kitchen.  Indoors residents can enjoy and entertainment suite featuring a catering kitchen and a club room. Also on this level is a state-of-the-art fitness center, business center with conference rooms and media room.

Paseo Verde Update

The transit oriented development designed by WRT in partnership with Jonathan Rose Companies and AMP, is progressing quite well and looks like it could be complete by the end of summer.  The 1.9-acre brownfield site sits adjacent to SEPTA's Temple University Station – the fourth busiest stop in the regional transit system.  The project consist of a mixed-use program focused on affordable and market-rate workforce housing.  Paseo Verde offers 120 units of sustainable housing for low and moderate income families, approximately 30,000 SF of ground floor retail and community services, commercial office space, and parking.

When completed, Paseo Verde will link residents, workers and students to one of the busiest transit stations outside of Center City, and will represent the culmination of a decade-long planning effort by APM to revitalize the surrounding neighborhood and successfully reintegrate the local community into both the neighboring Temple University campus, and the broader urban fabric beyond.

The project is designed to attain the highest levels of LEED for Homes and LEED for Neighborhood Development certification, and aims to serve as a model for sustainable redevelopment in neighborhoods throughout Philadelphia.

Morgan Hall; Temple University

Temple University's Morgan hall raises the skyline of North Philadelphia as it inches closer and closer to opening day.  The project will surely help user in a new age of vitality to the North Broad street corridor, pushing limits of the "unexpected" in North Philadelphia.

The $174 million, 736,000 square foot apartment complex features a beautifully understated (except for its hight) contemporary 27 story tower joined by a ten story dorm on the south end designed by MGA Partners.  The two dorms will contain at least 1,200 beds in 4-person suites and 20 singles.  There will also be dining facilities and new retail dining space in a separate building on North Broad Street and a courtyard in the middle of the complex.  The project is set to open July 2013.