That would last 3 days on East Passyunk.

 yeah, what is OCF hiding here? its seems like they have an ulterior motive in bashing this store.

Pretty standard stuff for a bodega. I don’t see what the big deal is.. 

I love it and wish them success

I don’t see anything like that in Chestnut Hill.

Oooh, some snazzy graphics technician (my term for fake graphic designers) went buck wild with this signage. Mmmm.

Thank you for pointing this out – what filth!  I am VERY happy I don’t have to face that.  This community makes so many steps forward and then have crap like this pop up.  This store not only cheapens the neighborhood, but if they care so little about doing the right thing before they open, what happens when they do open?  Sell cigarettes to children?  Blare loud music?  Stay open all night long, drawing less than ideal clientele?  I could go on and on with this list!  

This looks great and is a big step forward for the area.

I am going to stop by on the way home and welcome them to my neighborhood.

ocf why u bashing, full disclosure, alternative motives?  luv it can’t wait to buy from this great-looking store!

CW “City Wide” is also in Fishtown and NL, everything I see there sign on had good bones but turn into a Sh.tshow, who are these trolls?

The corner store/bodega at 20th and Parrish also installed a similar looking sign. I hope to see it gone.

Nothing to hide. Some of us happen to live nearby and don’t want to look at these horrendous and illegal signs every day. That’s all there is to it.

At least “sadwiches” would appear to be truth in advertising?

wow, don’t think i’ve seen so much thinly-veiled racism and classism on nakedphilly before. or maybe i just haven’t been looking hard enough.

sorry, SOSNA’ers, but the mexicans who cook the food at your gastropubs and stock the shelves at whole foods have to shop somewhere.

if a pastry shop opened with illegal signage was put there, would there be a post about it, or would it be a welcome addition to the neighborhood?

Bullet proof glass would make any business owner or operator feel more secure, but all of the new businesses we can think of that have opened in this neighborhood in the last five years have forgone this measure because of a feeling of increased safety in the general area.
Whether it’s intended or not, installing the bullet proof glass sends the message that the owners of the business don’t believe that the neighborhood is safe. Sure, it’s the city and crazy things happen everywhere, but it just doesn’t seem appropriate for this location at this time.

Maybe both?

Truth be told, the fact that the signs are so over-the-top was what drew our attention in the first place, and it was after reading some neighborhood commentary that we realized that they happened to be illegal.

I think I’m missing a key piece of information here. How is this racist? What do ugly signs have to do with race? I agree that the city, and this neighborhood in particular, needs cheap grocery options, but I feel that Naked Philly’s points are well-made. These signs are hideous. A decent-looking sign isn’t a class issue; it’s an aesthetic one. Implying that ugly signs are a racial issue is an insult to both race and good graphic design.

Installing bullet-proof glass in this neighborhood is like asking to get robbed. It sends a very clear message that neither the residents or businesses should want to send. It’s a clear vote of no-confidence in the fabric of this community, and the signage is an affront to anybody who can read.

the sign looks terrible, and even worse at night when the whole thing is lit up. 

its better than a vacant space, but not by much, I would have preferred more of a restaurant or quality deli shop. 

I know for a fact that OCF is hiding something, they have a secret plan to make fun of stupid looking sign and buildings in an effort to make people buy coffee at their coffee shops…  Geneous…

Um, it would be racist if OCF thought the signs were ugly and illegal and decided to NOT point that out (in the supposed interest of political correctness). THAT would be taking the color of someone’s skin into account. That they are equal-opportunity critics shows they are not racist.

As for my part, my eyes are bleeding. It burns, it burns…

Pain is colorblind.

 is that really how you think genius is spelled?

This shop carries Mexican groceries? That’s a pretty racist assumption right there. Just because A guy named Reyes is the proprietor does not mean the store caters to Mexicans.

Thanks NakedPhilly for posting this.  I feel bad for people who don’t know about zoning and think they can build whatever they want wherever they want.  I feel less bad about people who have gone through the process multiple times and choose not to follow the simple rules.  They deserve to have all non-conforming items and street encroachments torn down.

They had me at sadwiches.

SAVE POINT BREEZE!

I think their marketing is pretty clever.  All of this discussion puts me in the mood for a sadwich.

so excited about this place!  luv it!  was down there taking pics of this awesome building!  I will be buying everyday!  hahah naked philly fox!  

Completely understand where you are coming from.

I think we’ll just have to agree to disagree on the message that sends.

Again, in total agreement about the code violations/ugly signage.

And my comments are not meant to throw shade at anyone who has helped to improve that area.  I do respect that work.

I just get easily annoyed by the “sky is falling” mentality of some.

And this is coming from someone who currently owns a house that has “Hoagie Town” on one side and “Buddy’s Seafood” on the other.  Need I say more LOL?

It looks like Charo exploded all over those awnings.

“Potentially illegal corner store”…you make a lot of assumptions in this article.

Also, residents of Grad Hospital: http://i3.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/newsfeed/000/052/812/Deal_with_it_dog_gif.gif

I wish people were this p*ssed off about all the illegal bumpouts in the neighborhood. 

I will say, It doesn’t look great, especially at night. However, they do have a right to have a shop even if it isn’t “the most ultimate gastropub in the world” or something awesome. But the owners could have garnered so much goodwill with the neighbors if they just talked to some folks first. This block is especially open to new places, and doesn’t have the suburban mindset of wanting only residential and no commercial.

(It’s especially disappointing for neighbors who were originally told a tapas place was going in there.)

At least it has been on SOSNA’s radar in the past.  Remember this letter they penned to the Planning Commission back in 2010:
http://scr.bi/KlaxeK

Not that anything has changed since then…

Love how the windows are completely covered up with more signage. Makes it easier to sell drugs inside without being noticed by those walking past.

The illegal signage (which I will agree is just ugly, as well as the plastered windows) and the illegal AC, there is no basis for any of the concerns in your comment, besides what I’m assuming is another suburban transplant yuppy bias towards the way cities have been for ages. So if a place isn’t a trendy upscale cafe or boutique, it’s obviously trash and criminal filled. And while there have been plenty of shady corner establishments in the city, many are legitimate operations that are also gathering places for members in the community. If the signage wasn’t as obnoxious, I wouldn’t see any problem in another corner store, and if anything I think a few more would be good around here. Go back to the burbs.

So, they specialize in sadwiches?  Maybe they should operate a more hospitable coven?

[...] Paging L&I: Illegal and Horrifically Ugly Signage Announces Potentially Illegal Corner StoreJune 22, 2012 [...]

I agree with PB Resident’s point about the 8 pm closure and the lack of beer.  The problem stores are the ones that stay open until 2 am, not the ones that close early. The bulletproof glass is debatable.  Clearly, a corner grocery is more likely to be robbed than a yoga studio or nail salon; so you have to compare apples to apples when assessing the need for this protection.  It will be interesting to see what selection of merchandise they carry.  How much quarter water vs. Hint Fizzy?

Looks like a turd sadwich.

Update:  Signs and awnings all gone, as of yesterday.

[...] we told you about the illegal awnings and terribly unattractive signage at the new corner store at 20th and Carpenter Sts., which opened about a week ago. As the week went [...]

Went by last week and was disappointed how ugly. Is the poster child for blight. Hope that the awnings are really gone. 

[...] taking a cue from nearby Reyes Grocery, or possibly just operating on a low budget, this new store has some of the most reserved signage [...]

Come to SOSNA Zoning this coming Wednesday night to see the new & (much) improved proposed sign design:  http://southofsouth.org/events/july-zoning-committee-meeting

[...] month ago, we told you about the horrendous signage at the newly opened Reyes Grocery on the corner of 20th & Carpenter. Thanks to the efforts of near neighbors, the owners of this [...]

[...] of 20th & Carpenter, and soon after put up some signage that could generously be described as incredibly ugly. In the past Closer [...]