Lobbyist, longtime Philadelphia politico and West Catholic alum Eleanor Dezzi, seated left, discusses the proposal to change the zoning on West Catholic High School’s parking lot at 46th and Chestnut to allow the construction of a large apartment building. Attorney Ron Patterson (also a West Catholic alum), standing, and real estate developer Jim Paterno are also part of the West Catholic group. Drawings of a possible design are in the background (Photo by West Philly Local).
The Spruce Hill Community Association zoning committee is considering a deal with West Catholic High School that would change the zoning on the school’s parking lot at 46th and Chestnut to make way for what could be a seven-story, 260-unit apartment building with ground floor commercial space.
The parcel is currently zoned CMX-2, which limits the height of the building. If West Catholic can secure a change to CMX-3, which allows for a much larger building, the parcel will become far more valuable to a potential developer.
An agreement would place several deed restrictions on the property to regulate things like the size of the building, the types of businesses that could be housed in the commercial space and the inclusion of affordable units. The Archdiocese of Philadelphia would retain ownership of the land and lease it to a developer.
The deal is linked to one of several zoning-related bills that outgoing Councilwoman Jannie Blackwell has introduced in the past few weeks. The bill would change the zoning to CMX-3 only if the West Catholic group came to an agreement with the SHCA zoning committee on restrictions. Blackwell promised to pull the bill if no deal is struck by Dec. 4, when the legislation is due to be introduced in City Council. If the bill is pulled, the property remains CMX-2.
West Catholic plans to use the money from the development to ensure the school’s sustainability and provide scholarships and much-needed renovations, according to a group of alumni and volunteers from the school who presented the plan to the zoning committee on Monday.
A group of West Catholic alums and volunteers, including lobbyist Eleanor Dezzi, a former member of the city’s Zoning Board of Adjustment, presented the proposal to the zoning committee and included a sample rendering of the kind of building that might be built there. It included seven floors and 260 units.
Dezzi said that the building would help enliven a block that gets pretty desolate at night, when the school and a nearby car wash are closed. A nursing home occupies much of the south side of the block.
“This would help create a community feel on the whole block,” she said, adding that a well-lit and occupied block at night would make it easier for the West Catholic building to be open for community use at night.
November 19th, 2019 at 4:28 pm
deed restriction for ~10% affordable units at less than 60% AMI would be a nice trade. actually need to provide the units though. no payment in lieu like other instances around the city. hope SHCA can finally get a meaningful amount of affordable units in a new development
November 19th, 2019 at 5:53 pm
Hmm,not sure why this is so great: Who exactly will it be good for?
https://www.dgphc.org/2018/05/10/ami-housing-deeply-unaffordable-for-low-income-families-part-2/
https://www.pewtrusts.org/en/research-and-analysis/reports/2018/09/26/philadelphias-poor-experiences-from-below-the-poverty-line
https://www.projecthome.org/about/facts-homelessness
November 19th, 2019 at 8:22 pm
Makes sense to me. This parcel is 1 block south of an el station, so it is a natural for denser development (good for the environment!). Chestnut St. is a major corridor for auto & bus transit, which also invites denser development.
November 19th, 2019 at 8:59 pm
Okay, but who does it benefit to fill in the empty spaces with major construction projects? Above and beyond concerns about parking and rental prices- which are significant- does it ultimately help make our neighborhood better? New York is New York and all that development there surely profited certain people but at the expense of the majority. What if we just don’t want to live under such conditions? Why submit to this sort of Gentrification?
November 19th, 2019 at 10:08 pm
And not one word about the impact of this development on the (Black)children who attend West Catholic High School. When will construction take place? The dust, the noise, etc. Plus 260 “strangers” coming and going right next door to students. This is not an improvement to building community. It’s blatant disregard for the community already there.
November 20th, 2019 at 2:14 am
Not taking sides, but this seems similar in zoning to the development at 3737(?) Chestnut, that created income for Philadelphia Episcopal Cathedral. The proximity to a school presents challenges but is not unprecedented.
November 20th, 2019 at 8:56 am
Who profits? Who is hurt?
“3737 Chestnut Changes Hands for $118M”
Radnor Property Group made out nicely on the sale of the building, which cost $92.5 million to build two years ago.
One of the first of the new high-rise apartment towers that are reshaping the University City skyline has a new owner: Radnor Property Group announced today that it had sold 3737 Chestnut, a project developed in partnership with the Philadelphia Episcopal Cathedral, to a joint venture of Korman Residential and The Carlyle Group for $118 million.
That’s a very nice return on Radnor’s original $92.5 million investment in the project, which was completed in the fall of 2015.
https://www.phillymag.com/property/2017/07/12/3737-chestnut-changes-hands-for-118m/
November 22nd, 2019 at 1:58 pm
@ American Dream – “What if we just don’t want to live under such conditions? Why submit to this sort of Gentrification?” Who’s “we?” The answer is simple. You are free to move. This is America and people have freedoms.
November 23rd, 2019 at 11:27 am
God bless America- where private property is more important than people!
“The law, in its majestic equality, forbids the rich as well as the poor to sleep under bridges, to beg in the streets, and to steal bread”.
-Anatole France