We're always on the lookout for interesting development opportunities around town, and it certainly helps us out when real estate agents post signs that really hammer it home. Such is the case at 251 N. 12th St., a vacant lot at the corner of 12th & Vine that has been used as a skinny surface parking lot for many years. We were zipping down 12th Street the other day and a prominent sign caught our eye all the way from the other side of the Vine Street Expressway.
Hm, interesting. The property, most recently listed for $275K, has a few things going for it. As the listing notes, it's just a block from the Convention Center and has very permissive zoning that would allow a five-story building by right. Also, it's very convenient to the highways. On the other hand, maybe it's a little too convenient to the highways, as it sits on busy Vine Street and overlooks the recurring traffic nightmare that is I-676 (inferior only to the traffic nightmare that is I-76 because there's no song about it). The other less than ideal thing about the parcel is the size, at just 1,674 sqft it might be tough to justify a taller building, since such a large part of the property will be taken up by staircases/elevators.
So… development opportunity or no?
The answer is no, but it's because someone has already beaten you to the punch. The property is currently under agreement, with closing scheduled for next month. The new owners have worked up a plan to build a five-story building here, designed by Interface Studio Architects. We're not sure whether they're opting for mixed-use or a purely residential play, but we'd guess that the building will feature eight rental units above a retail space. The project, whatever it is, appears to be by right. Will people want to live next to the highway? Well, if they're willing to live next to the El as we're seeing over and over in South Kensington, we can't see why they wouldn't wanna live here.