4050-52 & 4054 Chestnut St. (Photo courtesy Preservation Alliance of Greater Philadelphia)

Two West Philly buildings – 4050-52 & 4054 Chestnut St. and 1026-28 Belmont Ave – have recently been added to the Philadelphia Register of Historic Places. The historic designation means that the Philadelphia Historical Commission would have to review any major changes to the buildings. Overall, nine city buildings were added to the register after the Historical Commission ended its marathon meeting on July 8. Residents from neighborhoods as diverse as Oxford Circle and University City, Germantown and Kensington had successfully petitioned for these properties to be named to the register.

“Residents all over the city, fearing that post-recession development and an epidemic of tear-downs would change the character of their communities, took action and saved these properties. It represents a citywide effort that recognizes the intrinsic and economic benefits of protecting our historic resources,” Paul Steinke, executive director of the Preservation Alliance for Greater Philadelphia, said in a statement.

Here’s more information about the two West Philadelphia buildings added to the Register from the Preservation Alliance:

4050-52 & 4054 Chestnut Street

Nominated by professor Aaron Wunsch, University City Historical Society president Elizabeth Stegner, and historian Oscar Beisert, these three houses, two of which are attached, feature Italianate bracket-and-dentil cornices, segmental-pediment dormers and paired, round-headed sash. These twins were commissioned by Thomas H. Powers, the eminent chemical magnate and real estate developer, as part of a larger development intended to lure city-dwellers west in anticipation of the 1876 Centennial Exhibition. These are among the eight surviving homes on the block that are listed in the National Register of Historic Places.

This building is next door to the property recently saved (pending appeals) from demolition after a hearing in the Court of Common Pleas.

                Google Street View image.

1026-28 Belmont Avenue

Nominated by the University City Historical Society with preservationist Andrew Cushing and historian Oscar Beisert, this Italian Renaissance Revival fire house was built in 1896 for Engine Company No. 16. It is among the few surviving smaller municipal buildings designed early in his career by John T. Windrim, the architect of the Wanamaker Building, Franklin Institute and Family Court Building. No. 16 is a three-story brick and terra cotta building, with a sculpted seal of the City of Philadelphia, garland keystone on the garage arch and white sandstone ground floor façade.

SEPTA riders who wanted to test the new SEPTA Key Fare card but didn’t get a chance to purchase it in June when the Early Adopters program was launched, will have another chance very soon. The SEPTA Key Early Adopters Program will begin expanding on Monday, Aug. 1, with two major sales offices offering a limited number of Key Cards loaded with Weekly or Monthly TransPasses. The expansion will continue through September, with more sales locations and station kiosks for reloading passes added each week.

Some 10,000 passes were offered for sale at fare kiosks inside stations along the Market-Frankford starting June 13 and Broad Street Lines and sold out by the end of June.

Starting Aug. 1, Weekly and Monthly TransPasses loaded on Key Cards will be sold at SEPTA Sales Offices located at 15th Street Station and SEPTA Headquarters at 1234 Market Street. Then, starting Monday, Aug. 8, SEPTA will expand sales and reloading of Weekly and Monthly TransPasses to sales offices at major transit terminals. Additional station kiosks will be available only for reloading of Weekly or Monthly TranPasses. The full rollout schedule is posted online at http://www.septakey.org/key/.

IMPORTANT NOTE: The Early Adopters program does not eliminate tokens, which will still be in use for single trips.

A stolen car with two armed teenagers inside crashed into several parked cars near 48th and Springfield overnight, according to reports. Police say the teens stole the car in South Philadelphia shortly after midnight and drove around in it for a while before they slammed into cars parked along the 4800 block of Springfield Avenue. Police spotted the car earlier in Southwest Philly but decided not to pursue it because they deemed it too dangerous.

“We believe these kids probably don’t have a license to drive,” Lt. John Walker of the Southwest Detectives Division told NBC News.

After running into the parked cars, the teens fled on foot. One of them reportedly has a head injury. No one else was hurt, according to police. Police found two guns in the stolen vehicle.

Google Street View image of 4046-4048 Chestnut Street rowhomes.

The twin apartment buildings at 4046-4048 Chestnut Street, which date back to the late 19th century, were saved at least temporarily after a municipal court judge issued a ruling yesterday barring demolition until mid-October.

Court of Common Pleas Judge Linda Carpenter’s decision found the demolition permit issued in March to a developer that sought to knock the buildings down and build student housing was invalid. The stay of demolition is until October 15, according to Plan Philly.

The final decision on demolition hinges on two more decisions. The first will be a likely appeal of Carpenter’s ruling that the permit is invalid and second will be a hearing at the Philadelphia Historic Commission to determine whether the buildings should be added to Philadelphia Register of Historic Places, which would make demolition far more difficult.

The buildings were sold on March 1 to a new owner who planned to replace them with new apartment buildings aimed at students. A demolition permit was issued later that month, but an application to declare the building “historic” was made on May 16 in an effort to save the buildings.

The hearing to determine whether the rowhomes can be demolished according to their developers’ plans was held last month and resulted in the decision issued yesterday.

For more in-depth coverage of the case and a copy of Judge Carpenter’s ruling, check out the Plan Philly story.

The City of Philadelphia has taken the landowners of 4301 Walnut Street, where the Supreme Shop n Bag is located, to court to pay more than $158,000 in property taxes.

The city filed a “sequestration” case against Gladwynne-based EFBEE Associates, owners of the property, in municipal court on July 11. The School District of Philadelphia, which would receive much of the taxes collected, is also named as a plaintiff (see the file below). A sequestration hearing is typically the last resort on commercial properties owing back taxes on the 66,000-square-foot parcel and will likely result in the garnishing of rental income – so Supreme will pay the city its rent instead of the landowner – until the back taxes are paid.

EFBEE has 20 days to respond to the sequestration order.  Continue Reading

Firefighters at the scene of fire on the 5200 block of Larchwood Ave. (Twitter photo @a_butler)

A serious fire broke out this evening in a two-story vacant row home on the 5200 block of Larchwood Avenue. The fire began shortly before 5 p.m. and was put out after about 18 minutes, according to PhillyFireNews.com.

No people were found inside the building and no injuries were reported.