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Fri
Jul 27
2012

Rehab Ongoing at Cool Looking Frankford Ave. Building

We were in the neighborhood the other day, and the sight of this building, under construction, gave us pause. 1600 Frankford Ave. has been on and off the market for the last couple of years, before finally being purchased by Barksdale Properties LLC earlier this year, for $210K.

The building

Inside, the building has nearly 3,400 sqft of space, and it had most recently been set up for five apartments. According to the most recent listing, the property was in need of a total rehab, and that is exactly what appears to be taking place. Speaking of the listing, it also boasts that the property is within walking distance of “Barcade Sandwich and Sub Shop.” Huh?

On Oxford St.

What was this, originally?

The bones of this building are very cool, and we just hope that the developers maintain the original aesthetic as much as possible as they make it inhabitable once again. The utterly unfortunate rehab that took place just a block away at 1700 Frankford Ave., which eliminated almost every original detail, including a mostly-intact cornice, serves as a cautionary tale.

From this...

To this! Oh, what could have been...

We’ll check back in over here in the next couple of months, to see what things look like once the rehab is nearing completion.

11
COMMENTS
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Posted in Fishtown | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 11 Comments
  • veggie

    hope they don’t destroy it like the building across from the post office, seen above.

    is that just a new stairwell, or is it an elevator tower??

  • Patrick

    It is always fascinating and very sad to see people invest in the devaluing of their real estate. Preservation shouldn’t the icing on the cake, it should be a part of the batter.

  • Teac

    that grey and black building looks amazing!  love it thanks for posting such beautiful pics!

  • veggie

     it’s garbage.

  • Kam

    Ugh, that grey & black building breaks my heart.  Please developers, please learn that preserved buildings have a higher value.  If it’s at all possible, keep the cornice & detail intact!  AND enough with the stucco!! 

  • Anonymous

    After that Naked Philly post about commenters actually liking that fake stone crap I can’t tell when people are joking anymore.  

  • Anonymous

    I remember about 6 or 7 years ago when talking to the sister of the landlord of the building undergoing renovations. She said he charged little for a rent and finally evicted his junkie tenants.  She seemed to have zero clue about the impending wave of gentrification coming into the neighborhood.

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Ken-Nemeth/641953126 Ken Nemeth

    While I agree that masonry looks better the reality is that from a longevity and maintenance perspective nothing is better than stucco.  As long as it is installed properly, has proper control joints and has integral color instead of being painted, stucco requires literally no maintenance and can last 100 years.  While I agree the gray building is a complete piece of crap, from a development and profitability perspective, the developer made the right choice.

  • Mood

    OhhhMG…… That may be one of the worst things I’ve seen ever. Why would they do that ? I just don’t understand.  Grey ugh, oh

  • http://nakedphilly.com/fishtown/update-interesting-frankford-avenue-rehab-will-include-a-restaurant/ Update: Interesting Frankford Avenue Rehab Will Include a Restaurant | NakedPhilly

    [...] summer, we told you about efforts to rehab 1600 Frankford Ave., a building with some interesting architectural details that we hoped would be preserved. We [...]

  • citywide

    I’d like to see this in 25 years, never mind 100! Can you point out some examples of 100 year old stucco?

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