Turning back the clock a couple of decades, the Graduate Hospital neighborhood had well over a thousand vacant lots and buildings literally littering the area. The 2100 block of Carpenter Street was among the worst in the neighborhood. In 2004, at least thirty out of forty-seven properties on the block were sitting vacant. As we've covered before, the block has now totally filled in, with many of the new construction buildings featuring lovely stucco bay windows.

Looking west on Carpenter St.

Despite the dramatic improvement to the block, 2100 Carpenter St. has remained vacant and blighted as the years have rolled along. We mentioned the property a little over a year ago, mentioning that it had a ton of violations and had been owned by the same party since 2006. It also had some sweet graffiti. A neighbor gave us the heads up earlier today though, that a chain link fence recently appeared around the property which gives us a sense that renovation or demolition could be on the horizon. Sweet news indeed.

Fence around the property

We don't see any new permits for the property, nor does public record give any indication of an ownership change. Nevertheless, we'd say that this fence is the best indication that the property will soon turn over. Speaking of buildings turning over, 908 S. 21st St. looks mighty different than the last time we visited. You may remember, this building was also sitting vacant and blighted for many years, until it was demoed in the summer of 2015. Soon after, we attended a SOSNA meeting where we learned of plans for a new four-story triplex. That's an improvement over what was here before.

In the past

Triplex on 21st Street

We'd have expected that these units would be on the market by now, but we cannot find the listing. Once they are available, look for them to sell quickly. After all, inventory is pretty low in this neighborhood, especially when it comes to new construction. It should be interesting to see what kind of prices the developers are able to get for these units.