The rocky road to build 57 homes | Real Estate Newsletter
And ghosts of demolished buildings.
The Philadelphia Housing Authority needs to get permission to build dozens of affordable homes in Strawberry Mansion.
The agency’s been trying since 2019.
Meanwhile, inflation has pushed up the project’s cost by $5 million, according to a PHA official.
Now, PHA and the project’s developer say that in light of recent and anticipated moves by the Trump administration, if the project doesn’t move forward soon, it might never happen.
Keep scrolling for that story and more in this week’s edition:
Rowhouse ghosts: Take a look at some of the city’s “building ghosts” and learn about the lives some rowhouses lived before they were demolished.
Stealing homes: Read about an alleged deed-theft scheme involving dead homeowners that resulted in 21 stolen Philly homes.
Office transformations: Learn about six Center City office buildings that are becoming apartments.
I want my MTV!: Peek inside this Ambler home that shows the passion of its owner, who says MTV changed her life.
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PHA got the ball rolling for its plan to build dozens of affordable homes in Strawberry Mansion in early 2019.
The homes would be spread throughout 14 city-owned lots, an arrangement that comes with additional requirements for approval.
Among the hurdles the project has faced:
intense scrutiny by the neighborhood
the clashing priorities of a former City Council member and the current one
several hearings before zoning officials
To try to win support for the project, PHA and developer Pennrose have made several tweaks to their plans, including:
cutting the number of homes from 77 to 57
abandoning duplexes for single-family townhouses
moving and reducing the size of a senior apartment building
But even with the concessions, the project is still being held up.
The delays demonstrate some of the challenges PHA and Philly’s mayor are up against as they try to implement ambitious housing plans.
I’d bet that many of us have had the experience of passing by an empty space where a Philly rowhouse once stood.
The house is gone, but on the once-shared walls of its surviving neighbors, you can see how rooms were laid out, where the stairs were, where shelves sat.
You may have wondered what happened and who used to live there.
A pair of authors have written a book about these “building ghosts” across Philadelphia.
Their book, Building Ghosts: Past Lives and Lost Places in a Changing City, explores the everyday people who once lived in rowhouses that have been demolished.
Building ghosts, one of the authors said, attest to “centuries of human life in Philadelphia.”
The authors are coming to Rittenhouse Square next week to talk about their work. They told my colleague, Kevin Riordan, that a goal of their book is to get the public talking about demolition in Philadelphia.
Keep reading for a look at some of the stories they uncovered about the past lives of Philly building ghosts.
The latest news to pay attention to
A Philly notary has been charged in a deed-theft scheme in which 21 homes were allegedly stolen.
These six Center City office buildings are converting to apartments.
A historic hotel in North Wildwood has been torn down to make way for single-family homes. Here’s what it looked like in its heyday.
Five former Pennsylvania governors are teaming up to help restore the state mansion following last month’s arson attack.
Here’s the hidden history of Philadelphia’s window-box gardens and their role in urban reform.
A former Dilworth Paxson chair, passionate Philadelphian, and history lover who helped shape Center City has died.
House of the week: For $870,000 in Bella Vista, a four-bedroom rowhouse with a finished basement and a roof deck with city views.
Luxe listing: For $2.8 million in Bryn Mawr, a home with a gated driveway and castle-like turret.
MTV changed Pamela Biasi’s life. Specifically, it was the music videos that introduced her to 1980s new wave music from the United Kingdom.
Now, the basement of her home in Ambler has become what she calls her “music museum.” It holds memorabilia from more than four decades of collecting.
Biasi has almost 800 items in her collection. And that’s not counting the records, cassettes, or CDs.
She said her meticulously organized basement is a kind of time capsule of ’80s bands from the U.K.
Among her treasures:
🎸 an autographed guitar that Tom Bailey of the Thompson Twins played at Live Aid in Philly in 1985
🎸 an Adam and the Ants jacket hanging on a mannequin
🎸 backstage passes and more than 200 set lists
🎸 drumsticks, guitar picks, and posters
🎸 MTV memorabilia and Funko POP! figures
Peek inside Biasi’s basement museum and find out what gig she booked because of her status as a new wave ‘80s music super fan.
📷 Photo quiz
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Last week’s quiz stumped you. That corner mural of Addie Whiteman Dickerson and husband G. Edward Dickerson is on the outside of Art Sanctuary at South 16th and Bainbridge Streets.
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