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welcome to Northern Liberties

A couple of readers have asked us about 420-42 Fairmount Ave., a huge warehouse that stretches all the way to Wallace St. This place is as ugly as it is large.

From the south

Closer look

View from Fairmount Ave.

Though you might not guess this if you just drive by, this building is currently in use. Trans Atlantic Company, a commercial hardware company, uses this building, utilizing its entrances on both the north and south sides.

Looking at this building, it screams adaptive reuse to us, likely with rental apartments. And Trans Atlantic seems to agree. The building was on the market for awhile, listed at just a tick below $3M. From what we can tell, they found no buyers at that price, and the property is no longer listed.

But we suspect that if an interested buyer were to come out of the woodwork and present an offer that’s close to their number, they would sell the building pretty quickly. Which would be great for that company, and even greater news for anybody who lives anywhere nearby.

Just for kicks, here are a couple of photos of the building in happier times, in 1955.

Looks better with windows

Part of the structure was once a tire center.

 

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COMMENTS
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Posted in Northern Liberties | 6 Comments
  • Chris

    do they fall under the “doors & windows” ordinance?  that block must be 80% occupied…

  • me

    I think Samschick, the same guy who developed the Cigar Factory was going to buy it a couple of years ago.  He had a date on the NL Zoning agenda but I think he cancelled b/c he backed out of the project when the maket dipped a couple of years ago.

  • http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=608975509 Terry Nicol

    Could they not use the existing garage entrance for parking?  I used to live around the corner from this building and it always seemed tailor made for renovation.

  • Anonymous

    gotta keep the water tank on the roof…fewer and fewer of them every year..

     plz!

  • http://nakedphilly.com/northern-liberties/three-homes-will-replace-a-vacant-lot-on-fairmount-ave/ Three Homes Will Replace a Vacant Lot on Fairmount Ave. | NakedPhilly

    [...] much next door to a giant, unattractive, though unexpectedly in use warehouse building, and half a block away from an older one-story building that will probably soon be replaced by [...]

  • http://nakedphilly.com/northern-liberties/from-funerals-to-downward-dog-on-fairmount-avenue/ From Funerals to Downward Dog on Fairmount Avenue | NakedPhilly

    [...] this block for nearly fifty years before shutting down. Trans-Atlantic Co., the company that owns the huge warehouse across the street, has been there even longer. Across the [...]

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