The Inquirer's article for those interested:
New Ventures In Old City
JACOB ADELMAN, INQUIRER STAFF WRITER
POSTED: Tuesday, September 29, 2015, 3:01 AM
Something's finally cooking at the National Products building, the long-vacant restaurant-supply showroom in Old City known for its orange glazed-tile facade and stainless-steel signs.
After more than a decade of failed proposals to develop apartments or condos at the Art Deco landmark near Second Street and Elfreth's Alley, a developer has applied for permits to begin dismantling the site for construction.
Planned are six stories of apartments in a structure that incorporates the historically protected 57-year-old facade.
It's at least the fourth long-dormant Old City residential project to show recent signs of life in the still-scruffy corner of central Philadelphia where developers are responding to resurgent interest from prospective residents.
"It's really a change in market conditions," said Job Itzkowitz, executive director of the Old City District, a business association. "Neighborhoods go through cycles."
The four projects would add 670 apartments to a neighborhood that had 2,624 housing units in 2013, according to the most recent U.S. census data for the tract bounded by Vine, Seventh, and Chestnut Streets and I-95. That was up from 1,900 units in 2000.
The flurry of residential building comes as the area sheds its reputation for raucous nightlife, which scared away some of those first drawn to its red brick homes and converted industrial buildings.
It also doesn't hurt that monthly Old City rents are 11 percent lower than in the more established residential areas to the west of Broad Street - $1,990 vs. $2,251 in August - according to the most recent data from real estate website Zillow.
A half-block south of the National Products site, PMC Property Group - perhaps the city's biggest residential landlord - is seeking approvals for 10 stories of apartments beside a historic cobblestone lane called Little Boys Court.
Read more at
http://www.philly.com/philly/busines...ivy12WDgtAJ.99
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