Back in the fall of 2011, Murray Development LLC built a new house at 1203 Ellsworth St., on the western half of a community garden. By the time spring rolled around, they had sold the 2,100 sqft home for a little over $400K, and what must have been a tidy profit. According to some neighbors, the developers left a bit of a mess in their wake, making it impossible to reestablish the community garden on the remaining corner lot. And now, thanks to a new hole that was recently dug, it appears as though any thought of a community garden returning to this location can now officially be put to bed.

New home and new hole

But that’s not all! Additionally, a new hole has recently appeared immediately to the north at 1200 Peters St., a lot that’s been vacant…

We see plenty of rehabs around town getting new front facades, but it’s rare that we see a building getting a new side wall. But that’s just what we encountered at 1308 S. 7th St., where we’re guessing a renovation that involved a new front facade necessitated the replacement of the party wall.

This is odd

Closer look

With most row homes being connected to each other in greater Center City, this problem doesn’t seem to crop up too much. But with the vacant lot next door, we have this unusual sight. Check it out before the stucco arrives!

As we often do, we were perusing the ZBA calendar the other day and noticed that owners of 1204 S. 12th St. were hoping to construct six new single-family homes with carports and a shared driveway. It was only when we swung by this address that it occurred to us that this was the not-yet-completed final phase of the Latona Court homes, a project we last checked in on about a month ago.

The lot

New homes under construction to the south

According to Passyunk Post, the original plan for this parcel was a large single family home. Because of this unexplained change of plans from developer Gagan Lakhmna, the Passyunk Square Civic Association zoning committee came out in opposition to this plan. Neighbors were apparently concerned about added traffic, and…

A little over a month ago, we lamented the closing of the famous and wonderful Carman’s Country Kitchen. Carmen’s decision to close her doors after twenty-three years represented the end of an era, and left long-time regulars scurrying for a new brunch place to call their own.

Ah, Carman's. Photo from Yelp.

At the time, we noted that owner John Angelis was actively marketing the space at 11th & Wharton for sale, asking for $1,500/mo. Despite the high rent number relative to the tiny space, we didn’t doubt that someone would sign a lease relatively quickly- and that’s exactly what appears to have happened.

View from the north

Brown paper currently covers the lower portions of the windows, but we were able to sneak a peek inside and see that the space has been completely…

A reader checked in recently, wondering about 1426-30 S. 6th St., the former home of Meglio Fresh Foods. Apparently, this business moved from the corner of 6th & Wilder to deep South Philly a couple of years ago, leaving these buildings empty for the time being.

Three buildings

With a footprint of 52′x70′, this site offers potential developers a few different options. The existing buildings could be preserved, with some other small manufacturer taking over the property and using it more or less as is. Alternately, the buildings could be demolished, with three new construction homes built fronting 6th Street, which could be used as duplexes or triplexes, depending on community support. Also possible would be five single family homes fronting Wilder Street, each 14′ wide.

Closer look at the corner property

Unfortunately, it…

Way back in the summer of 2011, we first brought the vacant and blighted armory building at 1221 S. Broad St. to your attention. At the time, it was mentioned as an aside to the building that was being constructed next door, which obstructed an underwhelming Frank Sinatra mural. According to Hidden City, the property has been tied up with deed restrictions for the better part of a decade, and even though it was purchased by its current owners for a low price, maintaining the building has been extremely onerous.

Looks rough

The old entrance

With the introduction of a bill by State Senator Larry Farnese, property owner Tolentine Community Center and Development Corporation will now finally be able to sell this property. And according to Passyunk Post, the…