When Developers and Realtors Seemingly Give Up

Three condo projects appear somewhat forgotten by those involved - and we have some feelings about it

Even on the hottest days, the hottest real estate blogger (temperature-wise) in Philly is out to bring you updates the built environment in the most walkable city in the country (again). As we were checking out a newly consolidated set of properties in Old City, we continued our walk along the block to check on the happenings in the area. A Four Foot Prune, Wax + Wine, The Gaslamp Hotel and gallery, the Avian & Exotic Philly Vet in the former Clay Studio space, and Calandrino’s wine bar have all opened along the block of N. 2nd St. between Arch and Race within the last few years. But while this formerly auto-centric stretch has seen something of a mini-commercial Renaissance, there are three commercial spots that have been stubbornly devoid of activity over several years in some instances.

And all three are on the ground floor of luxury condo buildings.

An aerial of the block in question, as seen from Bridge on Race back in June 2021

While all of those businesses we mentioned above have opened since that photo was taken almost exactly four years ago, some of the most prime real estate along this stretch have remained stubbornly empty - both from a residential and a commercial perspective. This is not meant to dump on those who have been a part of these projects, but a nudge to perhaps reconsider the current approach. Now that that caveat is out of the way, let’s get into the nitty-gritty for each of these three projects. We’ll work our way south, starting from a project we’ve talked about many a time.

The Ben at 160-64 N. 2nd St., on the corner of 2nd & Race, with only a little of its vinyl siding gone above the unpainted cinderblocks

Nothing says luxury like brown paper and painters’ tape on the main facade when purchasing a multi-million-dollar pad

This property has kept us intrigued for several years after previous designs and concepts came and went. Today, however, this luxury condo building remains mostly empty after wrapping up construction about a year ago. After a fancy rooftop opening party with caviar last June, there has been one sale here (for the least expensive unit, at $200K less than original asking) since then, along with a separate permit allowing for two short-term stay units (one of which appears to be the one that sold). Also, Jared McCain sadly passed on a spot here, too (Editor’s note: get healthy soon!).

But not only is there a noticeable lack of people coming and going from what was supposed to be the sexiest luxury condo around, the rumored food/beverage tenant never came to be, either. The papered-over windows - while looking as uninviting as can be - do thankfully have some good news affixed to them: a zoning permit indicating a fit-out for body art services, which appears to be moving ahead per other construction-related permits. Given this location, we’re going to guess this will be more on the beauty side of the house as opposed to a tattoo parlor (unfortunately for yours truly).

The additional activation on this corner should make this spot more appealing to potential buyers. Also, how about a throw in a little landscaping, clean the vomit off the building (it was there for literally a month) and get the trash out of the lobby if you want to give off the high-end vibe? Additionally, an open house was marketed tonight, June 26th, from 5-7pm per Redfin; I stopped by not long ago at 5:30pm ET, and there was no signage at all anywhere close to the building and no one around to actually open the house. Let’s move south.

124-26 N. 2nd St. has been in a similar state for years

An empty storefront that’s looked similar since the Covid Times

A rendering of what the future should look like

We next come to 124-26 N. 2nd St., a former Economy restaurant supply store, which was sold to developers back in 2018. The concept here is four luxury, for-sale condos above ground floor commercial space, but things have been rather slow-going here to say the least. It looks like there was one confirmed sale for $1.8 million earlier this month - seemingly the first sale after the building has been finished for years, though another source says that a different unit was also sold for $1.85 million, though public records don’t seem to reflect this. The penthouse is currently listed for $4.4 million.

The commercial space has also been vacant all these years, though a zoning permit from just a few days ago indicates that a solo dental/medical practitioner should be at long last leasing the storefront. But here we are almost seven years after development started with what appears to be one confirmed sale and a potential dentist. Let’s continue further south and east down Arch St. to check out our last stop.

The side-by-side buildings that are 113-15 Arch St.

A look up at the landscaped terraces included for most of the units

Ground floor retail, still “available”

At 113-15 Arch St., we come to - you’re not going to believe this - six luxury condos above ground floor commercial space. This project has also been in the works for many years, with things wrapping up in 2019, combining two historic buildings to create what is a damn sexy project. Unlike the other properties, all of the residential units here sold shortly after completion. But also unlike the other properties, the retail space here offers little clue as to what might be in store. In fact, searching for any sort of commercial listing here leads to nothing, including when checking out the available commercial properties in Old City. Odd indeed! And while this block doesn’t exactly have the highest foot traffic in the area, Arch Enemy Arts has been kicking it immediately next door for years; things can indeed be successful here.

Listen, we do our best to not just throw out complaints but COME ON. These are all gorgeous properties with excellent finishes from respected architects in prime locations - seemingly the ideal spot for people to live and set up a business. This is an area we are very familiar with, and we have seen very little being done to market either the residential units or commercial units we’ve discussed.

The lack of creativity here is baffling - how many times can one sip champagne on a catered rooftop with people who already know about the project and act like there’s any sort of ROI? We urge those involved at every level of these projects (and ALL real estate projects across the city) to step up the effort - these are key spaces in an important neighborhood, and having parties and then taping paper in the windows while not actively drumming up excitement makes absolutely no sense to the braintrust here at JackPhillyRE HQ. Again, this isn’t meant to shame, this is meant as a call to all of those involved in real estate to spend less time marketing themselves and more time marketing their properties.