For years, we’ve passed by the warehouse at the corner of Cedar and Huntingdon hoping that a developer would bring it back to life. The 30,054 square foot structure sits on a 19,825 square foot IRMX parcel and was once a hosiery mill. We always thought the building seemed to be in good shape and that it would make a fantastic adaptive reuse project.
It looks like the owner of the property has different intentions. Just yesterday, permits were pulled for the complete demolition of all structures on the property. No construction permits have been pulled to date, but it is likely that a large mixed-use project will rise in the warehouse’s place
Back in 2019, permits were pulled to consolidate 2 parcels that the warehouse stands on. After going back and looking closer at the permit documents, it looks like the owners laid out their plans for the property in their application. As of 2018, they were planning on building a 5-story, 60 foot tall building with 68 residential units, commercial space, and 37 parking spaces.
This project is by-right and would not need a zoning variance. We imagine that we will see construction permits issued sometime before the end of the year so the owners can take advantage of the 10 year tax abatement. As this is more than 50 residential units, the project should also need to appear before the non-binding Civic Design Review (CDR). At that time, we should get more information about the plans and should see project renderings. We imagine that the plans will be the same or very similar to the project laid out above.
We do welcome the residential density that this project will bring, but are very sad to see this warehouse get demolished. Philadelphia is slowly erasing its architectural history and charm. We need to embrace these buildings and better incentivize their redevelopment. We think a balance could have been reached at this property by preserving the main structure and overbuilding the rest of the warehouse. However, we are not engineers and do not know what state the building is in. We imagine whatever rises on this lot will not hold a candle to the warehouse.
How do you feel about this project?
UPDATE: plans for this project have been released, and it is more than double the size of the 2018 proposal. Read the updated article – 150 Units Planned in Olde Richmond
Kyle is a commercial real estate agent at Rittenhouse Realty Advisors, a homeowner, and a real estate investor in Philadelphia. Kyle uses his extensive Philadelphia real estate market knowledge to help his clients buy and sell multifamily investment properties, development opportunities, and industrial sites.
Email Kyle@RittenhouseRealty.com if you are looking to buy or sell a property
Instagram: @agent.kyle