Over the past year or so, a new thirty-three unit apartment building has been going up at 15th & Fairmount, replacing an old seafood warehouse and a former nuisance bar. We’ve brought some updates to you over that time, most recently in an incidental fashion when we checked in last month on the Project H.O.M.E. development that’s progressing across the street.

In the background

When the new project was originally presented, it didn’t include the vacant corner parcel, and had no retail elements. A few months after groundbreaking, the interesting building that formerly housed Princes Fairmount 1500 was demolished and three more apartments and a commercial space were added to the project. The construction isn’t finished just yet, but the retail space is currently being listed by Precision Realty Group.

From the corner

We love fabric row. We appreciate that we can head over there and get replacement buttons for a suit, fabric to make some curtains, and/or whatever textiles our hearts desire. But it’s not all fabric over there. Famous 4th Street Delicatessen, House of Tea, and Essene Market have been stalwarts on this stretch, holding down the fort for the non-fabric craving set. In more recent years, places like Juju Salon & Organics, Red Hook Coffee and Tea, and Bicycle Revolutions have opened, luring a slightly younger demographic to 4th St.

Fabric row back in the day, from Philaplace.com

One thing we’ve noticed over time is the number of vacant commercial spaces on Fabric Row, with many of them sitting for years. One such space that caught our…