PHILADELPHIA | Chinatown Eastern Tower | 252 FT | 21 FLOORS - Page 11

hammersklavier · #**201** Posted **Oct 21, 2016, 5:14 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by McBane

And while the southside is pretty well developed west of Broad; east of Broad, there are many parking lots that could be developed.

IIRC the vast majority of them are owned by Sl-EZ Parking (they're the guys who razed a historic building on Front back in 2008 or so) who really do seem to think that parking lots are God's gift to the big city.

If the northside of Vine gets redeveloped in the next few years, though, you can bet that the redevelopment pressure on those parcels will be insane. Which makes sense -- Sl-EZ won't sell out until their parcels' land values are astronomical.

philatonian · #**202** Posted **Oct 23, 2016, 1:06 AM**

Thrilled this is happening, just wish we were getting the original rendering. That design was sexy. Still, I'm loving that developers are finally interested in Vine Street. Line the expressway with high-rises and suddenly the sunken highway doesn't feel like such a divide. The only thing I don't understand about this building is why the low rise component faces Vine, and the high-rise faces the small street to the north. Vine is so wide, I'd like to see the tallest of the tall lining it to make up for its width. No overall complaints though, just happy something's finally filling that lot.

philatonian · #**203** Posted **Oct 23, 2016, 1:37 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by hammersklavier

IIRC the vast majority of them are owned by Sl-EZ Parking (they're the guys who razed a historic building on Front back in 2008 or so) who really do seem to think that parking lots are God's gift to the big city.

If the northside of Vine gets redeveloped in the next few years, though, you can bet that the redevelopment pressure on those parcels will be insane. Which makes sense -- Sl-EZ won't sell out until their parcels' land values are astronomical.

Ugh, I live in the middle of that Sl-EZ pit (and P.S. I am so happy that the word "Sl-EZ lot" has taken off). Over the last two or three years they have torn down at least five more buildings between Broad and 13th. To be fair, most weren't great and some were falling apart. But they did tear down a nice apartment building that had been fully leased prior to demolition.

The sad thing is - and why I'm not optimistic the lots will be developed anytime soon - is that they haven't been demolishing for speculative development, it's all for convention center parking. It's basically Center City's equivalent of the South Philly stadium parking prairie and EZ makes bank off these lots and they aren't even filled 24/7 bc they have no overhead and pay bottom basement taxes.

And they really are sleazy: anywhere else you'd need to get L&I approval to put a curb-cut in the sidewalk for a garage or parking space, but after the last two demolitions EZ Park has turned all the sidewalks on the small streets between Broad and 13th, Race and Vine, into block-spanning curb cuts so drivers can go in and out with no formal entrance to the lot...and it looks like crap. They basically hijacked public streets as their own property without any approval.

Even more shady, during large conventions the police block residential parking on Summer and Camac to push people into the lots. Not surprisingly, the PPD gets discounted or free parking from EZ Lot. During the flower show a couple years ago EZ was so full they were putting cars on the sidewalks along Summer. No tickets, yet somehow I got a ticket for loading groceries for 2 minutes in front of my own house.

These lots won't go away anytime soon unless tax on parking is raised exponentially or someone finally calls them out for being the slumlords they are.

Unfortunately this neighborhood has historically been the place to dump the things others don't want in their backyards: the PCC, the VSE, rail tunnels, and at one point a potential baseball stadium. It's basically Center City's last pile of ****, at least the way the city sees it.

Projects like this one, and developments in Callowhill are going to help. But it's going to take more than private development to get Sl-EZ Lot's lots filled, it's gonna take the city seeing a need to improve the "Convention District" and a master plan that works. So it's probably gonna be a while. Ugh. Didn't mean to drone on. I just hate seeing what's going on around here because this area actually had a lot of potential at one time.

Boku · #**204** Posted **Dec 21, 2016, 4:45 PM**

Can someone explain what the point of all this foot dragging is if they supposedly have all of the funding lined up?

1487 · #**205** Posted **Dec 21, 2016, 6:30 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Boku

Can someone explain what the point of all this foot dragging is if they supposedly have all of the funding lined up?

and the building permit.

39.95n · #**206** Posted **Jan 11, 2017, 11:44 PM**

Looks like a further delay on this one. According to the minutes for tomorrow's PRA meeting the schedule now looks like this:

"1. Extension of this project's settlement deadline to March 3, 2017;
2. Extension this project's construction commencement deadline to May 1, 2017; and
3. Extension this project's construction completion deadline to May 1, 2019."

https://www.philadelphiaredevelopmen...d%20Agenda.pdf

So PRA, at this point, still owns the land. There is a note stating that the authority's staff believe these deadlines will be met...

summersm343 · #**207** Posted **Jan 12, 2017, 12:29 AM**

No surprise here.

jjv007 · #**208** Posted **Jan 12, 2017, 12:40 AM**

Is anybody really surprised?

Mr Saturn64 · #**209** Posted **Jan 12, 2017, 1:04 AM**

And how long has this one been a proposal? Several years... been a while...

Flyers2001 · #**210** Posted **Jan 12, 2017, 2:17 PM**

This came about at a similar time as "The Bridge." Not all hope is lose, but it is fading quickly.

1487 · #**211** Posted **Jan 12, 2017, 3:37 PM**

i guess they still don't have all the money

Boku · #**212** Posted **Jan 12, 2017, 4:12 PM**

Since this seems to be going nowhere, maybe they can donate the grant money they got from the state to Dranoff and he can start moving on the SLS.

jsbrook · #**213** Posted **Jan 12, 2017, 4:40 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Boku

Since this seems to be going nowhere, maybe they can donate the grant money they got from the state to Dranoff and he can start moving on the SLS.

Seriously....What actually does happen in cases where grant money is either distributed or earmarked but a project never launches? I assume it must be given back and is redistributed.