PHILADELPHIA-CAMDEN-WILMINGTON-ATLANTIC CITY-READING | Metro Development Thread

[Urbanthusiat]

GMH Capital buys properties along Main Line

GMH Capital Partners has paid $3.2 million in two separate transactions to buy several properties along Route 30 in Frazer, Pa., for a proposed mixed-use development.

The Newtown Square, Pa., real estate company assembled and bought the parcels as part of its plans to develop a four-story apartment building with retail space. Those plans have been going through the approval process in East Whiteland.

The properties GMH bought include 554 Lancaster Ave., a 4.3 acre site where the shuttered Frazer Lanes had operated for years; 558 Lancaster Ave., which is an adjacent gas station; 548 Lancaster Ave., and Seven Norbros Circle, which is a mobile home park.

From: https://www.bizjournals.com/philadel...whiteland.html

Concept Rendering:



Site: https://www.google.com/maps/place/55...!4d-75.5696079

[Jawnadelphia]

WSFS was always in the shadows of Wilmington Trust in Delaware ... for a century. Now, it is WSFS's time to shine, as its corporate signage will be placed atop the Beneficial Bank building at 1818 Market Street, Philadelphia.

http://www.philly.com/philly/blogs/i...-20180808.html

WSFS's Wilmington headquarters here, built by Brandywine Realty, completed 2007.

[jonesrmj]

Originally Posted by TallCoolOne

WSFS was always in the shadows of Wilmington Trust in Delaware ... for a century. Now, it is WSFS's time to shine, as its corporate signage will be placed atop the Beneficial Bank building at 1818 Market Street, Philadelphia.

http://www.philly.com/philly/blogs/i...-20180808.html

WSFS's Wilmington headquarters here, built by Brandywine Realty, completed 2007.

That is awesome news! I do want to ask though, what happened to Wilmington Trust? I've seen that their logo is still on their building but I've herd that they no longer exist.

[Jawnadelphia]

^google— Wilmington trust, fraud, conspiracy, top executives convicted, bad loans, bailout, corporate greed, disgraceful pieces of sh*t.... and you will find the answer to your questions.
But I, too, am curious why their logo is still looming over Rodney Square. I guess they had a long term agreement to lease out that building with the corporate logo atop... because as I understand it Wilmington Trust doesn’t even exist, M&T Bank bought them out for pennies on the dollar. Maybe the building’s owner feels nostalgic for the old days. Wilmington Trust and DuPont were Wilmington in the 20th century.

[jslice]

Update on the Fieldhouse in the News Journal today. Sounds like targeting for December. I'd be surprised if it is done that quickly. I'm curious to learn more about the performance training center. Will that be a full fledged gym?

https://www.delawareonline.com/story...ars/896956002/

Also sounds like ribbon cutting at midtown residences today:
http://www.delawarebusinesstimes.com...ing-this-week/

[Justin7]

Originally Posted by TallCoolOne

^google— Wilmington trust, fraud, conspiracy, top executives convicted, bad loans, bailout, corporate greed, disgraceful pieces of sh*t.

So a bank then.

[Urbanthusiat]

Phoenixville Rail Project Taking Shape; 3 New Stations Proposed

PHOENIXVILLE, PA — The notion of bringing passenger rail service to Phoenixville has seemingly been brought up dozens of times over recent years, and oftentimes the rumors are more smoke than fire. That does not appear to be the case with the latest proposed project, however, as the Mayor's Task Force took another important step forward recently in outlining several possibilities for new station stops. .

The latest development calls for three new stops on SEPTA's Manayunk-Norristown line in King of Prussia, Schuylkill Township, and Phoenixville. The new stations would cost about $15 million. The committee charged with studying the feasibility of the project, made up of 20 local leaders and key community members, voted unanimously to approve this part of the plan recently.

...

evelopers propose connecting Phoenixville to the Manayunk/Norristown line via both the existing non-electrified Norfolk Southern freight track, and via SEPTA's electrified track through the Center City Connector Tunnel. The new stations would be located along this existing infrastructure, ostensibly speeding the development process.

...

There are three proposed station sites in Phoenixville: the Phoenix Industrial Complex on 41 South 2nd Avenue, the Holy Ghost Orthodox Catholic Church, and a piece of railroad property located along Bridge Street.

Thomas E. Frawley is in charge of the feasibility study. Attendees at the latest meeting included a representative from SEPTA and Chester County.

The approval at the recent meeting means that the proposal will move forward into the borough's Infrastrucutre Committee to be presented on Aug. 17. Assuming it passes there, it will go to the full borough council for a vote on Sept. 11.

More: https://patch.com/pennsylvania/phoen...tions-proposed

I'm glad Phoenixville is pushing for this, though obviously anything happening, if at all, is a ways off. The 422 corridor is one of the fastest growing areas of the state and traffic is awful. Something like this really needs to happen eventually. It's a long shot, but it doesn't hurt to try, and to show SEPTA that they're serious about it.

[eixample]

Originally Posted by Urbanthusiat

Phoenixville Rail Project Taking Shape; 3 New Stations Proposed



More: https://patch.com/pennsylvania/phoen...tions-proposed

I'm glad Phoenixville is pushing for this, though obviously anything happening, if at all, is a ways off. The 422 corridor is one of the fastest growing areas of the state and traffic is awful. Something like this really needs to happen eventually. It's a long shot, but it doesn't hurt to try, and to show SEPTA that they're serious about it.

I have two big questions relative to this news.

1) Can SEPTA build an additional track or tracks in order to avoid conflict with freight line here?

2) I realize this isn't a SEPTA driven proposal, but since the idea is to have a new station in KOP near the river, couldn't we just scrap the KOP light rail spur off of the Norristown High Speed Line and run 30 minute headways on the regional rail line all day long with a shuttle bus or light rail from the regional rail station to KOP mall and business parks?

[Nova08]

Originally Posted by eixample

I have two big questions relative to this news.

1) Can SEPTA build an additional track or tracks in order to avoid conflict with freight line here?

2) I realize this isn't a SEPTA driven proposal, but since the idea is to have a new station in KOP near the river, couldn't we just scrap the KOP light rail spur off of the Norristown High Speed Line and run 30 minute headways on the regional rail line all day long with a shuttle bus or light rail from the regional rail station to KOP mall and business parks?

1.) By and large yes. The right of way was once 4 tracks. But currently at most there are 3 tracks with primarily only 2 tracks (aside from the yard in ~Bridgeport). At the Phoenixville Riverworks complex the line goes down to 1 track because of a tunnel just west. Building a dedicated Septa track west of here will be extremely costly.

Aerial of one of the proposed station locations in Phoenixville, notice the track spacing.
https://www.google.com/maps/place/41...2!4d-75.505117

2.) I've been a proponent of something like this, but there isn't a ton of "workable" land to build a good size park and ride station

[Slyfox]

Originally Posted by Justin7

So a bank then.

Yes, and for those who are not familiar and don't feel like googling, Wilmington Trust was bought by M&T Bank in 2010.

On a side note I read this earlier, about the surge of wealthy New Yorkers seeking tax refuge in Florida due to the low taxes comparatively. I have also heard there are a lot of transplants in Sussex County, DE now around the beach area for similar reasons (particularly Lewes), I wonder if Wilmington could/will try to capitalize on this, the Acela is only about a 1 hour 20 min ride from NY Penn Station from Wilmington station if needed. There's no year round warmth and Chrystal clear water but it's much closer and competitively tax friendly (and cheaper) for New Yorkers.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/artic...oom-in-florida

[EastSideHBG]

Originally Posted by Justin7

So a bank then.

Exactly.

[PhillyEngineer]

Pictures of construction in Ardmore taken 8/12/2018:

On Ardmore Place:









Cricket Springs Crossing:

[mcgrath618]

The brick ended up looking great on that. Starting to be a sharp looking building.

[Urbanthusiat]

Originally Posted by jonesrmj

That is awesome news! I do want to ask though, what happened to Wilmington Trust? I've seen that their logo is still on their building but I've herd that they no longer exist.

Looks like the folks at PhilaBizJournals knew we wanted answers and heeded the call

Eight years later, class-action lawsuit against M&T Bank's Wilmington Trust appears to be nearing end


An eight-year-old class-action lawsuit against M&T Bank Corp.'s wealth advisory division is on track to end in a settlement.

The proposed $210 million cash deal between Wilmington Trust Corp. and certain shareholders was approved last month. Now, according to a regulatory filing, a final settlement hearing is set take place sometime during the fourth quarter of this year.

On Friday, an M&T (spokesman said there is no date yet for the hearing. If the deal is finalized, M&T would pay $200 million and public accounting firm KPMG would pay the remaining $10 million. Buffalo-based M&T NYSE: MTB), which has $2 billion in deposits and 30 retail branches in the Philadelphia region, said the settlement amount for which it would be responsible is within its current litigation reserves.

The case against Wilmington Trust pre-dates M&T's May 2011 acquisition of the century-old, Delaware-based bank that ran into trouble during the financial crisis. According to legal documents, a complaint was filed Nov. 18, 2010, that alleged misconduct in loan underwriting practices. That was followed by a class-action complaint on May 16, 2011. The case has been in court ever since.

Earlier this year, M&T added $135 million to its litigation reserves to handle pre-existing lawsuits. At the time, Wilmington Trust was in the middle of a criminal trial based on allegations that four ex-Wilmington Trust executives deliberately hid hundreds of millions of dollars in bad loans from regulators during the financial crisis. All four individuals were convicted in May on fraud and conspiracy.

If the current proposed settlement goes through, it won't be the first time that M&T pays for its subsidiary's past troubles. Last fall, a $60 million deal was reached to settle criminal charges against Wilmington Trust related to financial reporting and securities filings practices. The allegations in that matter also pre-date M&T's acquisition.

https://www.bizjournals.com/philadel...ainst-m-t.html

[Urbanthusiat]

Was driving in Horsham today. It looks like the Promenade at Upper Dublin is beginning site work. It's 402 apartment units with retail by BET.

Couldn't snap a pic, but this is what it is supposed to look like:





The site: https://www.google.com/maps/@40.1601...2!8i6656?hl=en

[EastSideHBG]

Originally Posted by Urbanthusiat

Was driving in Horsham today. It looks like the Promenade at Upper Dublin is beginning site work. It's 402 apartment units with retail by BET.

Couldn't snap a pic, but this is what it is supposed to look like:





The site: https://www.google.com/maps/@40.1601...2!8i6656?hl=en

This area is starting to boom again but my oh my is the traffic in the area awful. As soon as you get off of many of the main arteries you can come across some roads that are not only small and not built for large volumes but oddly shaped intersections so without a total overhaul not much you will be able to do.

[Urbanthusiat]

Montco approves plan for 800 miles of bike paths

Montgomery County plans to add 800 miles of bike paths to its on-road bicycle system.

The first bicycle plan for the county was adopted in 1998.

“Fast forward 20 years later, and we’ve realized that we haven’t gotten a lot of results out of that plan,” said Matthew Edmond, section chief of transportation for the Montgomery County Planning Commission. “We have about 19.5 miles of bicycle lanes within the county, out of 4,512 miles of roads.

“That’s an extremely low percentage,” Edmond points out — in fact, it’s less than half a percent.

The new master plan called “Bike Montco,” approved last week, calls for adding bike lanes in towns, near high schools, colleges, and transit stops, and to connect to park trails.

More: https://whyy.org/articles/montco-app...of-bike-paths/

Project website: https://www.montcopa.org/BikeMontco

Full report: https://www.montcopa.org/DocumentCen..._ADOPTED?bidId

[mcgrath618]

Originally Posted by Urbanthusiat

Montco approves plan for 800 miles of bike paths



More: https://whyy.org/articles/montco-app...of-bike-paths/

Project website: https://www.montcopa.org/BikeMontco

Full report: https://www.montcopa.org/DocumentCen..._ADOPTED?bidId

I can't tell from skimming any of this, but if this implies RailstoTrails, I'm going to scream. Making the Newtown line a trail was a huge waste.

[Busy Bee]

^Agreed

[El Duderino]

Originally Posted by mcgrath618

I can't tell from skimming any of this, but if this implies RailstoTrails, I'm going to scream. Making the Newtown line a trail was a huge waste.

It appears to be focused on bike lanes for existing roads/pedestrian paths, not the rails-to-trails thang.