2 Planned Demolitions In Rittenhouse Square Add To Wave Of Redevelopment
A set of buildings totaling more than 50K SF in Rittenhouse Square are set to be torn down, opening the door for redevelopment in a hotbed of reconstruction in the area.
Two buildings at 1812-1814 Chestnut St. and the adjoining 1816 Chestnut St. address will be demolished, the Philadelphia Business Journal reports.
Both properties are owned by the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers, which told the PBJ on April 23 that the structures at 1812-1814 already had an interested, unnamed buyer. Demolition permits were issued for those buildings at that time. The teachers union did not respond to requests for comment from Bisnow by publication time.
The union bought both tracts in 2021, purchasing the buildings at 1812-14 Chestnut St. for $4.9M and 1816 Chestnut St. for $2.8M.
Now, Savills is the listing group for both properties, a flier shows. The agent, Hetherington Smith, told PBJ that the buildings at both addresses will be sold off together. Demolition is approved for both sites.
The 1920-era buildings take up plenty of prime space. The properties will allow 200K SF of development, Savills wrote. The entire area is zoned for CMX-5, which does not enforce a height restriction and is the easiest zoning type to work with.
This area of Rittenhouse Square has been undergoing a major redevelopment revolution in recent years, mostly adding height and apartments. Household incomes average $126,736 within a mile radius of that section of Center City, according to Savills.
Pearl Properties has begun to demolish buildings to redevelop 113-119 S. 19th St. into a 50-story apartment tower.
Goodman Properties plans to add to its property at 1826 Chestnut St. It has proposed a 46-story apartment tower atop an existing CVS store at the address, which is a few paces west of the union's buildings. It has not announced a development timeline.
Astoban Investments, which owns the Freeman property at 1808-1810 Chestnut St., two doors east of the union addresses, outlined a plan to build 19 stories atop five existing stories and complete two commercial spaces by the second quarter of this year. The plan would also demolish the existing building adjoining that property on 18th Street.
However, Astoban’s permits were issued back in 2021, and plans have stalled out with no updates to the timeline to build, according to PBJ.
Nearby, The Laurel and its sister apartments, 1909 Rittenhouse, opened last month. That tower is now the tallest residential structure in the city, 48 stories at 599 feet high.
