Transit-oriented development. It’s got a ring to it, and in places like Sweden and Denmark it’s been happening for decades. It’s the kind of urban development that provides mixed-use buildings close to transit stations, and it’s something that we’ve been only marginally successful with in Philadelphia over the years.

At 9th and Norris Streets, near Temple University, a huge lot has been razed and construction trailers and equipment are on site immediately adjacent to the Temple University regional rail station. Here, a 120-unit project called Paseo Verde Transit Village Residencies (1900 N. 9th St.) will soon rise.

The corner

Looking south at the site

In a neighborhood ripe with development, this project, on which developers broke ground in February, is slated for completion in the summer of 2013, and will feature 67 market-rate and…