PHILADELPHIA | Highrise Development Thread X

[iamrobk]

Originally Posted by Boku

Philadelphia sites selling at torrid pace as developers bank on city’s post-pandemic rebound

https://www.bizjournals.com/philadelphia/news/2020/12/10/sale-of-sites-on-the-rise-in-phila.html

Just IMO, and I know this article isn't about retail, but we've seen enough of these positive development articles (and, even better, actual positive action) that I'm confident retail will follow once the pandemic passes. I generally agree with Londonee about Walnut Street, and I think a lot of major luxury retailers think similarly about it (which is to say, they don't think about it but are happy in KOP alone). Post-pandemic, I'd love to see some kind of Walnut Street retail marketing campaign, aimed at both consumers and businesses. There's certainly enough money in Center City right now, let alone in the surrounding neighborhoods (how many $500k+ condo sales have we seen in the last few years; I've even see multiple million dollar home sales in Fairmount), for their to be more high-end retail options in Center City. But like I said, I think its just overlooked too much.

[summersm343]

Condé Nast Traveler recognizes Philadelphia as a destination to visit on its 2021 Gold List

Article behind paywall below. Who can read this?
https://www.bizjournals.com/philadelphia...cx_testVariant=cx_8&cx_artPos=1#cxrecs_s

[summersm343]

Originally Posted by Boku

Philadelphia sites selling at torrid pace as developers bank on city’s post-pandemic rebound

https://www.bizjournals.com/philadelphia/news/2020/12/10/sale-of-sites-on-the-rise-in-phila.html

Great to see!

[pwp]

Originally Posted by summersm343

Condé Nast Traveler recognizes Philadelphia as a destination to visit on its 2021 Gold List

Article behind paywall below. Who can read this?
https://www.bizjournals.com/philadelphia...cx_testVariant=cx_8&cx_artPos=1#cxrecs_s

Use this link instead:

https://www.cntraveler.com/gallery/best-destinations-in-the-world-gold-list

[TK2001]

I'm in the city now. Looks like something was recently demolished on the rumored Comcast 3 site, near the Parkway lot

[PHL10]

Originally Posted by pwp

Use this link instead:

https://www.cntraveler.com/gallery/best-destinations-in-the-world-gold-list

Come see our flawed history, dilapidated rowhomes, and inequality. Great. No other city on that list got such a back-handed, loaded write up as Philadelphia.

[thoughtcriminal]

Originally Posted by PHL10

Come see our flawed history, dilapidated rowhomes, and inequality. Great. No other city on that list got such a back-handed, loaded write up as Philadelphia.

For real:
"There’s really something special about Philadelphia, about the way it doesn’t care for pretense or about what anyone else thinks of it. One place I return to both in daydream and reality is Fairmount Park, behind the famed art museum, and the miles-long pathway that traces a circle around that part of the Schuylkill River. I think about the Italian Market and its small world of vendors, about the murals glinting in the sun, the digestible chaos of Chinatown, the essential, if flawed, sense of American history, the beautiful, dilapidated row houses that speak to the promise of equality we haven’t yet reached as a country. Spiritually, it’s my city". —Betsy Blumenthal
WTF is she talking about?

[skyhigh07]

Originally Posted by thoughtcriminal

For real:
"There’s really something special about Philadelphia, about the way it doesn’t care for pretense or about what anyone else thinks of it. One place I return to both in daydream and reality is Fairmount Park, behind the famed art museum, and the miles-long pathway that traces a circle around that part of the Schuylkill River. I think about the Italian Market and its small world of vendors, about the murals glinting in the sun, the digestible chaos of Chinatown, the essential, if flawed, sense of American history, the beautiful, dilapidated row houses that speak to the promise of equality we haven’t yet reached as a country. Spiritually, it’s my city". —Betsy Blumenthal
WTF is she talking about?

Wouldn't be surprised if she was high when she wrote it. Also, I looked her up; she apparently lives in Hoboken. I'm sure she knows Philly like the back of her hand

[summersm343]

Originally Posted by PHL10

Come see our flawed history, dilapidated rowhomes, and inequality. Great. No other city on that list got such a back-handed, loaded write up as Philadelphia.

Whatever! Good press regardless honestly.

[summersm343]

Kenney signs 180-day pause on restaurant evictions into law as more hospitality aid bills head to his desk

Behind a paywall. Who can read this? Good that more hospitality bills are heading to Kenney's desk. Restaurants, gyms and the likes need it desperately.

Link:
https://www.bizjournals.com/philadelphia...cx_testVariant=cx_8&cx_artPos=0#cxrecs_s

[cardeza]

Originally Posted by summersm343

^^Exactly. I'm not saying every store needs to be in Center City, but it could be better. There's a lot of stores in the KOP Mall and the surrounding area that should be in Center City.

For Market East, there should be:
-A Disney Snore
-Hershey's Chocolate World
-Legoland Discovery Center or Lego Store


Stores located in the KOP mall that SHOULD have a Center City presence:
-Abercrombie & Fitch - should be on Chestnut or Market East
-Against All Odds - Should be on Chestnut
-Alex and Ani - Chestnut or Market East
-Aritizia - Should be on Walnut
-Bloomingdales - Should be somewhere in Center City (yes, I understand the space needs are not really there in Center City, and yes, I know there is a Bloomingdale's Outlet on Chestnut)
-Hugo Boss - Should be on Walnut
-Burberry - Should be on Walnut
-Clarks - Should be on Chestnut
-Coach - Should be on Walnut
-Cole Haan - Should be on Walnut (and yes, I know there was a store that JUST closed)
-Crate & Barrell - Should be somewhere in Center City (yes, I know CB2 is their off-price brand)
-Godiva - Should be on Walnut or Chestnut at the least
-Gucci - Should be on Walnut
-Johnston & Murphy - Should be on Chestnut
-Longchamp - Should be on Walnut
-Louis Vuitton - Should be on Walnut
-Nordstrom - Should be in Center City (and yes, I know the space requirements aren't currently there, and there is a Nordstrom Rack on Chestnut)
-Oakley - Should be on Chestnut or at Market East
-Peloton - Should be on Walnut
-Pottery Barn - Should be in Center City
-Ralph Lauren - Should be on Walnut (yes, I know it was and it closed recently)
-Shinola - Should be on Walnut
-Stuart Weitzman - Should be on Walnut (yes, I know it was on Walnut and it JUST closed)
-Superdry - Should be on Chestnut
-Ted Baker - Should be on Walnut
-The Container Store - Should be somewhere in Center City
-Timberland - Should be on Chestnut or Market East (yes, I know it was on Walnut and it JUST closed, but I do think this was kindof a bad spot for it as well)
-Tory Burch - Should be on Walnut
-Vans - was on Walnut before the looting/fire/arson. Hopefully it comes back, even if it's to Chestnut or Market East - probably two locations it more properly belongs
-Vera Bradley - Should be on Chestnut
-White House Black Market - Should be on Chestnut
-Zara - Should be on Chestnut, or Market East (yes, I know there was one on Walnut that closed)

several of those stores were on walnut and closed. Coach, Ralph Lauren and Burberry to name a few.


For a lot of reasons CC isnt the same as the area around K of P. Many of the young, progressive, college educated types that live in and around CC dont even shop at those stores.

[PHLtoNYC]

Originally Posted by Londonee

It had half of those stores - and they closed. Rents, market conditions, and COVID were all factors.

But, I've said this before on a million forums - Walnut Street just isn't branded as a retail destination. Hell, i bet 75% of Philadelphians if you polled them in the far northeast wouldn't know that Walnut Street is one of the main shopping corridors in the region - let alone tourists and visitors. It's just not branded the same as the other premier corridors like Fifth Avenue, Michigan Ave, Newbury Street, etc. - and that hurts foot traffic and business.

It's also not that well run. The sidewalks are cracked, dingy (Louis Vuitton isn't setting up shop above a cracked poorly maintained sidewalk), and need of a total re-do. There's no coordinated Christmas decoration effort like you see on Regent Street or Michigan Avenue that pull in suburban experience shoppers... as someone who lives nearby and shops here weekly, during the holidays the lack of festiveness is almost depressing.

AFAIK there's no beautification effort during the warmer months for the strip to enhance it's appeal like you'd find on Rodeo - they have a few hanging planters here and there but you wouldn't notice them unless i pointed them out to you.

It's just kind of...like, Philly. Not a ton of vision, the Rittenhouse Row leadership is summering in FL 8months a year, and ZERO interest from City Hall (they could pass ordinances prohibiting invasive cell phone stores and banks from setting up shop like Newbury Street has done) to do anything to enhance a clear urban need a potential moneymaker. Maybe Philly should enact a .5% tax on clothing and suddenly they'd be all in?

Agree with everything you said. Walnut Street needs a makeover first followed by an intense marketing campaign, then I could see the retail lining up. Until then, this is the status quo unfortunately...

Originally Posted by PHL10

Come see our flawed history, dilapidated rowhomes, and inequality. Great. No other city on that list got such a back-handed, loaded write up as Philadelphia.

Yea, wow, what the hell was that? Meanwhile DC gets a rave review of near perfection. I think National Geographic actually had a very good writeup about the city a little while back without the typical jabs.

Betsy Blumenthal needs to take a seat.

[TK2001]

Philadelphia skyline from South Street Bridge by Philly SkyGuy, on Flickr

Today was a great day for pictures. Get ready for the next YIMBY updates

[allovertown]

Originally Posted by PHL10

Come see our flawed history, dilapidated rowhomes, and inequality. Great. No other city on that list got such a back-handed, loaded write up as Philadelphia.

Don't forget about the people! The wonderful people who don't care what you think of them. Which definitely doesn't make us sound aggressive and standoffish at all!

[brenster]

Originally Posted by TK2001

I'm in the city now. Looks like something was recently demolished on the rumored Comcast 3 site, near the Parkway lot

I’m surprised there is no reaction to this post. Anyone hear anything?

[DeltaNerd]

Originally Posted by iamrobk

Just IMO, and I know this article isn't about retail, but we've seen enough of these positive development articles (and, even better, actual positive action) that I'm confident retail will follow once the pandemic passes. I generally agree with Londonee about Walnut Street, and I think a lot of major luxury retailers think similarly about it (which is to say, they don't think about it but are happy in KOP alone). Post-pandemic, I'd love to see some kind of Walnut Street retail marketing campaign, aimed at both consumers and businesses. There's certainly enough money in Center City right now, let alone in the surrounding neighborhoods (how many $500k+ condo sales have we seen in the last few years; I've even see multiple million dollar home sales in Fairmount), for their to be more high-end retail options in Center City. But like I said, I think its just overlooked too much.

So much for the Fashion district trying to market itself for high end stores. Sigh

[WestPassyunk1]

Originally Posted by summersm343

Kenney signs 180-day pause on restaurant evictions into law as more hospitality aid bills head to his desk

Behind a paywall. Who can read this? Good that more hospitality bills are heading to Kenney's desk. Restaurants, gyms and the likes need it desperately.

Link:
https://www.bizjournals.com/philadelphia...cx_testVariant=cx_8&cx_artPos=0#cxrecs_s

6 months of rent relief if their profits fell 50% or more during 2020. The restaurant owners are certainly happy about the relief, but again express frustration that its the only type of pandemic relief that was offered. This was the last OFFICIAL 2020 Council session.

I think Philly Council is banking on Congress or the Biden administration to provide the bulk of the financial relief (stimulus $ to hospitality companies, PPP loans, etc)

They also voted to protect workers' rights when they do eventually return to their hospitality jobs. Personal opinion- while it's certainly admirable to protect workers in this manner, it's not wise to do so when not much is in place to guarantee that those jobs will continue to exist at all.

[iamrobk]

Originally Posted by DeltaNerd

So much for the Fashion district trying to market itself for high end stores. Sigh

Were they ever really trying to be a high end destination? I always thought it was intended to be a "middle class" destination, for lack of a better description. I've been there a few times and it seems like places there are doing ok, all things considered.

Originally Posted by WestPassyunk1

6 months of rent relief if their profits fell 50% or more during 2020. The restaurant owners are certainly happy about the relief, but again express frustration that its the only type of pandemic relief that was offered. This was the last OFFICIAL 2020 Council session.

I think Philly Council is banking on Congress or the Biden administration to provide the bulk of the financial relief (stimulus $ to hospitality companies, PPP loans, etc)

They also voted to protect workers' rights when they do eventually return to their hospitality jobs. Personal opinion- while it's certainly admirable to protect workers in this manner, it's not wise to do so when not much is in place to guarantee that those jobs will continue to exist at all.

Not to get too political, but keep in mind that unlike the Federal government, the city and state can only spend what they take in, while the Federal government can deficit spend. As a practical matter, that means that while the city and state can reallocate spending (basically, just change their budgets), any real stimulus must come from the Federal government.

[PHLtoNYC]

Originally Posted by iamrobk

Were they ever really trying to be a high end destination? I always thought it was intended to be a "middle class" destination, for lack of a better description. I've been there a few times and it seems like places there are doing ok, all things considered.

.

Early on in the process it was slated to be a higher end shopping destination, then higher end outlets then average mall stores with a few decent ones mixed in.

[TK2001]

Originally Posted by brenster

I’m surprised there is no reaction to this post. Anyone hear anything?

I'm surprised as well. But I just looked at Google Maps with imagery from October 2017 and the structure was recently demolished by then, my mistake. The demolition looked recent, but hopefully something actually happens soon