Back at the end of 2011, we first told you about plans for a new cafe across the street from the then-not-yet-started Bottom Dollar in Brewerytown. A year later, we checked back in on the space and discovered a totally redone exterior, and some degree of interior progress toward this new business coming to fruition. It wasn’t until a couple of weeks ago that iMunch, at the corner of 31st & Baltz, finally celebrated their grand opening.

In the past

A few months back

We poked our head inside this new cafe the other day and came away with the clear impression that the owners poured a ton of money into this space. Not only has the facade been totally renovated, but the interior contains a number of expensive new…

We were in the area the other day, and spotted three fenced-in lots on the 3000 block of West Girard, just around the corner from the still-newish Bottom Dollar market. Doing a little bit of research, we discovered that all of the properties are being developed by ML Builders LLC. 3028 W. Girard Ave. has been a blighted property for years but has now been demolished. 3004 and 3008 W. Girard have both been vacant lots for at least a decade.

3028 in the past. It's the one with the blue door.

Current shot shows demoed home and formerly blighted home next door being rehabbed.

The two vacant lots at the end of the street

The developers purchased all three parcels at the end of last year, shelling out…

Almost a whole year ago, we updated you on the construction progress of a new construction home on the corner of 31st & Baltz, which at the time was across the street from a vacant lot that would supposedly someday become a supermarket. At the time, we also mentioned that a run-down mixed-use property with some lovely bones, located immediately to the south, had recently gone before the ZBA with a proposal to open a cafe.

In the past

Now, here we stand, a year later. The home on the northeast corner is finished. A giant orange pig sits on the roof of a newly opened Bottom Dollar. And iMunch, the cafe that we told you about way back when, looks like it should be opening sometime soon. Aside from the name and the tagline ‘Imbibe, Imagine, Inspire,’…

Less than five months after breaking ground, the new Brewerytown Supermarket at 31st & Girard opened its doors last week. Years in the making, this new Bottom Dollar location will provide locals with easier access to groceries than they’ve had in decades, and at reasonable prices, to boot. And since it has been built due to the collaboration of community groups, politicians, and developers, this is a particularly proud moment for many people.

The market

We don’t claim to be design experts here, but we can say without hesitation that the design of the project is terribly disappointing. And we’re not even gonna get into the orange pig curiously stationed on the roof.

Anybody like Pink Floyd?

A few years back, Interface Studio Architects, and the Community Design…

Last May, we told you about the first supermarket coming to Brewerytown in almost two decades. But that project was delayed due to a lack of funding.

Now, it’s back on track. Today, at noon, at 31st & Girard, state and local officials, members of local civic groups, and developers will break out the shovels, and a cast of suit-wearing folks will don construction hats for a photo-op, at the official groundbreaking for the construction of a Bottom Dollar supermarket.

Nice rendering at the bottom

“It’s gonna be a changer,” said Charles Holliday of the Greater Brewerytown CDC, a 40-year resident of the neighborhood.

The Brewerytown area needs a supermarket like the School District needs cash.

When we wrote about the project last year, the site was owned by Westrum Development, and in addition…

Back in September, we mentioned a new construction project at 1235 N 31st. St. from Steph-Sin Development. In the past couple of months, things have progressed nicely, as you might have expected.

The corner back in September

The view the other day, from the same angle

Looking from the north

Framing is done, windows are in, and sheathing is up, so we’ll be looking for some bricks in the coming weeks. The three mini bays are a nice touch, here’s hoping Steph-Sin resists the urge to use stucco.

In slightly more exciting news, Brewerytown Living reports that the corner storefront across the street could become a coffee shop.

Little storefront right across the street

At a zoning hearing last week, J. Roger…