West Catholic High parking lot at 46th and Chestnut.

West Catholic High School has been bitten by the development bug.

Located at 45th and Chestnut, about a block from an El stop, the school sits on property most developers would love to get their hands on. A small group representing the school asked the Spruce Hill Community Association zoning committee last night to rezone the school’s parking lot at the corner of 46th Street and Chestnut to make it enticing to developers and clearing the way for a large, potentially seven-story apartment building. The revenue from a possible development deal would fund the school’s refurbishment and provide a scholarship endowment.  Continue Reading

A monthly Spruce Hill Community Association (SHCA) Zoning Committee meeting will take place tonight (Monday, Oct. 21) at the Spruce Hill Center (257 S. 45th St).

One of the items on the agenda of the meeting is a “by right” development for construction of a new 7-story mixed use building at 4240 Chestnut Street. The building will include 102 residential units on floors 3-7 with a garage for 40 underground parking slots, 34 bicycle spaces and trash rooms. The first two floors will house new space for Intercultural Family Services, currently located at 4225 Chestnut St., with a separate entrance, elevators and services.

A “by right” development means that the developer doesn’t need to apply for a zoning permit to proceed with construction. However, some developers still want to present their projects to the community for informational purposes. A community RCO (Recognized Community Organization), such as SHCA, has no legal sway over a “by right” project, but it can make suggestions and recommendations that a project’s development team can consider and potentially implement.  Continue Reading

The neighborhood group fighting a proposed apartment building on a piece of land tucked away down a narrow alley near 51st and Spruce will hold a public meeting on Monday, Oct. 21 that will include City Councilwoman Jannie Blackwell, who is sponsoring legislation to rezone the parcel.

Developers Callahan Ward want to build a 33-unit building with ground floor commercial at 303 S. 51st St., where a defunct auto body shop sits in the middle of the block, surrounded by the backyards of several adjacent properties. The only access to the property is via a small alley. Callahan Ward can build the building “by right,” meaning they don’t need community approval.  Continue Reading

The Enterprise Center in West Philadelphia is forming a new Neighborhood Advisory Subcommittee (NAS) and inviting residents in their designated area (see map) to participate in its work.

The Enterprise Center is looking for community members who are interested in bettering their communities and working across neighborhoods, and specifically interested in:  Continue Reading

The City Council rules committee will hold a public hearing tomorrow (Wednesday, Oct. 16) on an ordinance that will change the zoning designations on a handful of properties, including a controversial parcel near 51st and Spruce where a developer wants to build a 33-unit apartment complex.

The ordinance (PDF) would change that property – 303 S. 51st St. – from a CMX-2 zoning designation, which allows apartment buildings and ground-floor commercial, to RSA3. An RSA3 designation would require builders of anything but a single family home to acquire a variance from the city, which requires community input.  Continue Reading

The West Park Apartments towers (Photo by West Philly Local).

The city is selling two public housing towers in the West Park Apartments complex near the 46th Street El stop, renovating a third and building new low-income homes on the site.

The Philadelphia Housing Authority (PHA) will use proceeds from the sale of two towers and an undisclosed amount of “increasingly valuable land” to fund the renovation of the third tower and build more modern homes (low-rise apartments and townhomes) for low-income residents, according to a statement.  Continue Reading