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Wed
Oct 26
2011

The Southern End of Frankford Ave.: Rarely Considered, but Not for Long?

While millions of shad that once swam through the Delaware River off the banks of Fishtown have been killed off by American industry among other things, Fishtown is faring quite well these days, thank you very much, in terms of neighborhood revitalization. While the development of Frankford Ave. north of Girard is well documented, the quieter southern stretch of Frankford Ave., between Girard Ave. and SugarHouse Casino, has deservedly received less attention.

From Google

Looking north

Other side of the street, looking north. Barcade is in the building next to the empty lot

But things are starting to move in this area.

A lengthy road improvement project that diverted traffic off of this street for months recently came to an end.

Barcade opened its doors a couple of weeks ago. Despite some licensing issues, Bookspace has been hosting various arts events, including trapeze acts in the past couple of years. The Barbary has been in the neighborhood for years, and rumor has it there are plans for a a new business next door. That’s two  entertainment venues, a bar (with video games!), and a possible new venture along these two blocks.

The takeaway is that the area is reaching a critical mass of local residents and visitors to support these different types of businesses, and there should be room for more growth. Look not further than the numerous dilapidated old warehouses and several of vacant lots for where that growth can take place.

We’re wondering if any of the dozens of developers that have been building in Fishtown will send their crews a hammering to this area. And what about more retailers?

Huge warehouse, just south of where I-95 crosses Frankford Ave.

At the bottom of Frankford Ave., across Delaware Ave. is the much-maligned casino. “SugarHouse Casino has been a non-entity,” said Larry Freedman, zoning chair of the Northern Liberties Neighborhood Association, speaking about the casino in terms of problems the public thought might arise, like an increase in the volume of traffic and crime. He said he mostly considers Sugarhouse as a means to generate money to rehabilitate area roads and generate money for revitalization. One million dollars a year, that is, available through the Penn Treaty Special Services District (PTSSD).

With that money available for investment into the community as well as private investors doing their thing, it should be very interesting to see how the southern end of Frankford Ave. develops in the years to come.

–Lou Mancinelli

10
COMMENTS
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Posted in Fishtown | Tagged , , , , , , | 10 Comments
  • thegreengrass

    I noticed that the street was apparently repaved recently, and that the tracks down it were still in tact (and they look like they’re in pretty decent shape even). Did they not pave over them just as part of the usual routine of repaving a road but leaving the tracks in place “just in case”?

  • Liam

    The tracks are actually brand new. With PennDOT redoing the entire Girard Ave Interchange on 95, the 15 trolley won’t be able to get to Port Richmond for several months/years. SEPTA installed these tracks down Frankford Ave to a new trolley loop at Frankford and Delaware so trolley service can continue on most of the route. The portion of the 15 between Fishtown and Port Richmond will be bustituted.

    It will be interesting to see if the trolley adds any vitality to this stretch. At worst, we will have the SEPTA Casino Express!

  • thegreengrass

    Oh wow, I didn’t realize that was part of the Girard interchange redo. Thanks for the info.

  • Liam

    Does anyone know about the building across Frankford from Barcade (located to the right of the white building in the second picture above) that has been under renovation for a while? It looks like it’s nearly complete and will be apartments/condos, but I can’t find anything about it.

    Streetview: http://www.google.com/maps?ll=39.967582,-75.134425&spn=0.000066,0.038495&t=m&z=15&vpsrc=6&layer=c&cbll=39.967648,-75.134424&panoid=2k-lM-fzzTHs_CZjioCOew&cbp=12,142.5,,0,-9.23

  • http://pulse.yahoo.com/_MKGNVENCXIVD33V5I5YYCJTFNA Roman

    That building has been like that for as long as I’ve lived in Fishtown (5 years). Doesn’t seem like it would take much to finish it up, but there’s hasn’t been any activity in a looooong time.

  • qguy

    From 1970 to 1975, I-95 ended at Frankford Ave. All southbound traffic had to exit and descend a temporary ramp, turn left onto Frankford, then turn right onto Delaware Ave. I-95 didn’t pick up again until just south of the airport.

    I was in my early teens at the time and remember riding that route many times in the back seat of the family car.

    The city would be nearly paralyzed if it were still like that. ‘Course there were much better ways to build it than was ultimately chosen.

  • qguy

    Yup, ya don’t see brand new trolley tracks on a new alignment very often these days. Enjoy it ‘while ya see it.

  • FishtownYo

    My old neighbor was the developer on this building. He went bankrupt. Lost his residential home as well. Unless someone buys it, the building will just sit as is…

  • http://nakedphilly.com/fishtown/frankford-avenue-is-getting-brooklynier-before-our-eyes/ Frankford Avenue is Getting Brooklynier Before Our Eyes | NakedPhilly

    [...] bar plus arcade (‘natch) has had some decent success in its nearly yearlong run on on a sometimes forgotten stretch of Frankford Avenue. And now, right next door to the wildly successful Frankford Hall, another Brooklyn-based business [...]

  • http://nakedphilly.com/fishtown/whats-to-come-for-a-stalled-project-in-fishtown/ What’s To Come for a Stalled Project in Fishtown? | NakedPhilly

    [...] The south side of Frankford Avenue has been on our radar for months. Considering all of the commercial activity on the block where already sit the Handle Bar, Barcade, Barbary and more, we wondered what else could soon happen around these parts. [...]

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