PHILADELPHIA-CAMDEN-WILMINGTON-ATLANTIC CITY-READING | Metro Development Thread

[EastSideHBG]

Originally Posted by DudeGuy

I'm usually the first to complain about faux-urban suburban developments, but this looks pretty good!

Agreed, and Conshy's lack of space and hilly terrain has also forced its hand into some urbanism that we may not have seen otherwise.

[EastSideHBG]

Borough of Conshohocken seeking public input on possible zoning ordinance overlay along Fayette Street

The Borough of Conshohocken is seeking the public’s input on a potential zoning ordinance overlay for Fayette Street.

The flyer (below), states that the zoning ordinance overlay is “intended to improve connectivity from the waterfront to the upper avenues, promote redevelopment of empty store fronts (sic), and rebrand Fayette Street as the vibrant commercial core of the community.”

https://morethanthecurve.com/borough-of-...-ordinance-overlay-along-fayette-street/

[El Duderino]

^I hope they include some sprucing up of the bridge into Conshy, too. That could be such a statement heading into the commercial corridor and right now it is about as infrastructure-y as it gets.

Either way, I love me some Conshy so I hope that this is done right and moves forward.

[DIESELPOLO]

Originally Posted by summersm343

Philly’s biggest mall owner wants to build thousands of apartments on its properties to help pay its debts



Read/view more here:
https://www.inquirer.com/business/retail...GwgxovCDHknXlybC7NmSdyyiBQew8jM3h2yR9TsY

This is very smart. A major advocate for reworking the entire Willow Grove mall campus, which is essentially a TOD. With community input, this could easily be a beautiful project that, no, isn't single-family homes with yards, but walkable units within walking distance to gym, shopping, grocery stores, restaurants, and transportation networks (regional rail and bus).

[Milksteak]

Originally Posted by DIESELPOLO

This is very smart. A major advocate for reworking the entire Willow Grove mall campus, which is essentially a TOD. With community input, this could easily be a beautiful project that, no, isn't single-family homes with yards, but walkable units within walking distance to gym, shopping, grocery stores, restaurants, and transportation networks (regional rail and bus).

They are looking to do the same thing at the Oxford Valley Mall:

https://levittownnow.com/2020/08/25/600-...ord-valley-mall-greenlit-by-supervisors/





As it is, it's not a very walkable area...but it's near the train station and there is a proposed shuttle to and from the complex to the train station. I'm all for this, if you've been to the OV mall in the last 10 years, it's a massive empty parking lot with abandoned big box stores in the middle. It's the definition of a neglected mall. This proposal would remove a lot of that parking, then there is a proposed phase 2 that would bring outdoor shopping (think KOP towne center light)

[EastSideHBG]

Originally Posted by DIESELPOLO

This is very smart. A major advocate for reworking the entire Willow Grove mall campus, which is essentially a TOD. With community input, this could easily be a beautiful project that, no, isn't single-family homes with yards, but walkable units within walking distance to gym, shopping, grocery stores, restaurants, and transportation networks (regional rail and bus).

WG mall has a massive parking lot and could easily handle this, agreed. The mall still remains pretty busy too, especially in comparison to many others in the metro.

[TempleGuy1000]

According to yimby, The Station at Willow Grove has been very successful too.

The Station at Willow Grove, a 275-Unit Mixed-Use Development in Willow Grove, PA, is Fully Leased



Let's hope to see more!

[PHLtoNYC]

^ I would like to see more of this in Willow Grove.

The massive parking lot in front of Bloomingdale's could be reduced for a similar project.
https://www.google.com/maps/@40.1401774,...itch%3D0%26thumbfov%3D100!7i13312!8i6656

Or directly across the street.
https://www.google.com/maps/@40.1429571,...itch%3D0%26thumbfov%3D100!7i16384!8i8192

While on the topic, I'm surprised there hasn't been any sizable project proposed in downtown Media since the West End Flats project wrapped up. Some singles and townhouses here and there, and a few teardowns, but there are still some prime lots that could handle denser development.

[DIESELPOLO]

• Agreed PHLtoNYC, the massive parking lot in front of Bloomingdale's is where the first proposal I saw was sited – See page 31 in the linked pdf << if anyone knows how to get this picture into the post, thank you in advance
  
  
• And yes TempleGuy1000, that new apartment building was really successful. Super excited too that the finished product was comparable to the rendering. It shows up well in person.
  
  
• Bc the Willow Grove mall has so much capacity and is right next to the train station, if done right and with an eye to future development (think with actual neighborhood design elements like sidewalks, streetlights, a walking trail with benches surrounding the "lake" (I.e. the catchment basin)), it really could be something other close-in suburbs don't have.

Bonus: It should build a trophy central green...maybe with a grove of Willow trees? (perhaps you can tell I've thought of this before). Putting the park back in Willow Grove Park

PS – PREIT is already starting the campaign for this officially on their site: Living at Willow Grove Park

[iamrobk]

Originally Posted by DIESELPOLO

Bonus: It should build a trophy central green...maybe with a grove of Willow trees? (perhaps you can tell I've thought of this before). Putting the park back in Willow Grove Park

Not super relevant, but the same is because it used to be an amusement park (called Willow Grove Park), not because it was a park lol. The Wikipedia page has some history and a really cool aerial picture: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Willow_Grove_Park

On the issue of transit-oriented-development, I just want to add that there's only one train track and it runs at street level (I forget the exact term for this but I'm sure somewhat can correct me) so speed and frequency are somewhat limited on that line.

[summersm343]

Willow Grove could and should be a lot more urban and walkable. There could be numerous walkable, urban developments built on the huge surface parking lots around the mall, along Easton Road, along Moreland Road and along York Road.

Willow Grove could actually be one of the best towns in the burbs... on par with Ardmore, Media, West Chester, Phoenixville, Collingswood, Haddonfield and Newark.

Unfortunately, it doesn't seem like a lot of people in Willow Grove have an interest in or want this to become a reality. Hopefully this view will change with each new development we see.

[arkitect13]

The apartments at OV mall look good! Could have a better street presence, and is hopefully mixed use, but density is always preferred to subdivisions, i hope more is done in Willow grove especially, KOP and Willow grove have great (or in KOPś case will have great) transit access.

[justremember]

I grew up literally around the corner from WG Mall (like, as a kid, if I strained my neck at the right angle looking out my bedroom window, I could catch a glimpse of what used to be Srawbridge). I've long thought they need to build on those parking lots, including residential.


I actually think they should build more garages, and then build residential and retail that meets the street. The resident quoted in that Inquirer article has it all wrong. Having a "suburban" feel is not preferable over an "urban" feel in that area. There's already parts of WG that feel more urban, because it's a really old suburb close to the city with a rail line and multiple bus routes linking it to the city.


It tell people I grew up in the suburbs, but not the real suburbs. When I hear "Urban feel is just a euphemism for "we don't want certain types of people disturbing the comfortable secluded oasis we've fled to" but Willow Grove already isn't that, especially on the Abington side and around Easton/Moreland/York/Welsh.

[mcgrath618]

Originally Posted by justremember

I grew up literally around the corner from WG Mall (like, as a kid, if I strained my neck at the right angle looking out my bedroom window, I could catch a glimpse of what used to be Srawbridge). I've long thought they need to build on those parking lots, including residential.


I actually think they should build more garages, and then build residential and retail that meets the street. The resident quoted in that Inquirer article has it all wrong. Having a "suburban" feel is not preferable over an "urban" feel in that area. There's already parts of WG that feel more urban, because it's a really old suburb close to the city with a rail line and multiple bus routes linking it to the city.


It tell people I grew up in the suburbs, but not the real suburbs. When I hear "Urban feel is just a euphemism for "we don't want certain types of people disturbing the comfortable secluded oasis we've fled to" but Willow Grove already isn't that, especially on the Abington side and around Easton/Moreland/York/Welsh.

I agree with most of what you said... except for the "we need to build parking garages" stuff.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JGG5WRBPeFk

[summersm343]

Atlantic City tries for a gayborhood as the party returns to the Boardwalk town

Read more here:
https://www.inquirer.com/life/atlantic-city-gay-pride-chelsea-neighborhood-20220416.html

[summersm343]

King of Prussia:

Industrial Investments Inc. plans to raze what many know as the American Reading Co. building at 201 S. Gulph Road that is visible from the Schuylkill Expressway in King of Prussia and develop a new 144,040-square-foot industrial building on speculation. “It is the premiere site in KoP and we expect a great deal of interest in the property,” said Jay Bown of Industrial Investments. The building is expected to be completed during the first half of next year.

Phoenixville:

The Phoenixville Area School District board voted to sell a 7.4-acre property with a building that served as a kindergarten center at 100 School Lane in Phoenixville to Toll Brothers Inc. The builder plans to develop townhouses on the site. The transaction needs approval from Chester County Court before being finalized.

Article behind paywall here:
https://www.bizjournals.com/philadelphia...cx_testVariant=cx_8&cx_artPos=4#cxrecs_s

[EastSideHBG]

Oldies.com Building Next to Blue Route in Montco Hits the Market

The Oldies.com building at 60 Portland Road in West Conshohocken, Montgomery County, is a landmark along the Blue Route (Interstate 476)

The owner of the 52,000-square-foot building at 60 Portland Road in West Conshohocken has decided the company no longer needs as much space to distribute the vinyl records, compact discs, DVDs and other collectables, said Justin Bell, a broker with Newmark who has the listing. Oldies.com needs about 5,000 to 10,000 square feet and has decided to put the property on the market.

“It’s a great time to sell an industrial asset and we’re going to test the market,” Bell told PBJ.com.

The industrial market, which consists of large and small warehouses and distribution centers, has never been hotter across the region. The overall vacancy rates stands at 3.7% and average asking rents are $8.86 a square foot, which is up 4% quarter over quarter, according to CBRE Inc.’s first quarter industrial report.

https://www.nbcphiladelphia.com/news/bus...route-in-montco-hits-the-market/3207561/

[EastSideHBG]

Hatfield Township, PennDOT Officials Break Ground on Second Phase of 309 Connector Project

https://northpennnow.com/hatfield-townsh...ound-on-second-phase-of-co-p5443-103.htm

http://www.pa309connector.com/

[Urbanthusiat]

California biotech company Exelixis to set up major hub in Philadelphia area, hire hundreds

Exelixis Inc., an Alameda, California, biotechnology company, is establishing a major hub in the Philadelphia area that involves eventually developing a 175,000- to 200,000-square-foot building and hiring several hundred new employees.

Referred to as Exelixis East by the company, Exelixis has a temporary base in 23,000 square feet at 640 Freedom Business Center Drive in King of Prussia that is scheduled to open in June. That space will accommodate an initial 135 to 140 employees. The company, which is led by CEO Michael Morrissey, anticipates using the Freedom Business Center space for two years.

In the meantime, Exelixis is exploring sites in the King of Prussia, Conshohocken and Plymouth Meeting areas for a new built-to-suit that it will eventually move into and possibly expand upon in the future. “Ultimately, it will really be a major campus for Exelixis,” said Vicki Goodman, executive vice president and chief medical officer at Exelixis.

...

“We’re growing and expanding our pipeline so our need to bring in talent is increasing,” Goodman said. “When we look at where the pharmaceutical and biotech talent is, there is a nexus on the West Coast, which is where the Alameda campus is, and there is one on the East Coast.”

While Boston was considered, it’s "pretty saturated" in terms of the competition among companies vying for talent, Goodman said.

“We see the Philadelphia area as a great base of talent with the right education and background across Southeastern Pennsylvania, adjacent areas of New Jersey and Central New Jersey, as well as Wilmington," she said. "We see this as an ideal place to set up a center of operations.”

While Goodman declined to indicate how many people the company will eventually employ in Philadelphia, she confirmed it will be several hundred. By focusing on suburban locations with access to major highways, the company expects to pull talent from a wide geographic area.

“We’re making a real commitment to the Philadelphia area. It’s not a satellite campus for us,” Goodman said. “We think that building will meet our needs for some time but have aspirations to be a global company and the East Coast could be a launching pad to expand to Europe.”

[mcgrath618]

Originally Posted by Urbanthusiat

California biotech company Exelixis to set up major hub in Philadelphia area, hire hundreds

Yet another company that should've taken up space in Schuylkill Yards... what is Brandywine doing?????