A couple months back, we told you about the impending redevelopment of the Lincoln Apartments Building at 1222 Locust St., with construction expected to begin in the springtime. While we were over there, snapping photos of the handsome yet neglected building, a vacant commercial space next door at 1234 Locust St. caught our eye. This space is part of the building that houses the the Independent, a twenty-four room boutique hotel.

Looking up at the Lincoln

Empty commercial space next door

The hotel. From the Independent's website

The liquor license application in the window is from 2009, for a concept that never took off. We did a little digging, however, and learned that the space will indeed house a new concept, and very soon. As it turns out, the space is connected to the currently vacant commercial space on the corner. And as has been reported by Foobooz, Grubstreet, and everyone else, that corner commercial space will soon be home to a relocated Fish. It’s no joke that this new space will be a tremendous upgrade over the current location at 1708 Lombard St., if for nothing else but a much larger space. The expected opening date is less than two weeks away.

With Fish on the way, (the utterly impressive) Vedge opening a few weeks back, NEST still making the kiddies happy after a few months, and the planned renovation of the Lincoln, this block is in the middle a rediscovering itself. Could this be a natural southern progression of the upscale offerings in Midtown Village, or is it merely a prime block finally sorting itself out? Whatever the reason behind this rapid transformation, it’s certainly something fascinating to observe. And delicious to eat, might we add.