Someday, when we get around to learning much more about the history of Philadelphia's streets, perhaps we'll understand why certain streets in disappear and reappear as they make their way through town. Bonsall and Bucknell Streets run north to south between 23rd and 24th Streets, disappearing and reappearing seemingly without rhyme or reason. From a transportation perspective, it seems a little silly. Why did a city planner a hundred something years ago think that it made sense for Manton Street to dead-end at 23rd Street in one direction and 24th in the other?
But alas, someone who died long before our birth made these decisions and there's not much anyone can do about it. So let's look at some real estate development on these blocks, shall we?
At the corner of Bonsall & Federal, we spied a new foundation and a newer home right next door. It's a little odd that the home at 1202 S. Bonsall St. has a third floor setback. Since it was a vacant lot next to a vacant lot, the setback wasn't required. Then again, it looks like a nice deck on the front of the house which surely has excellent skyline views. In the photo above, you can see there's another new house directly to the west, on Bucknell Street.
This home, which has two-story homes on either side, required the third floor setback. And from this angle, it kinda looks like a Tetris piece. The home has three bedrooms, two bathrooms, and about 2,100 sqft of living space, and it's listed at $339K. But wait, there's more!
At 1220 S. Bucknell St., the same developers building the home near the corner are working on a similar looking project. This one is a little skinnier and a little shallower, and is listed for $325K. Considering the fact that many of the other homes on the block have a front porch, that might have been a nice touch here, but it's a little too late for it now.
Two more vacant lots on this block recently changed hands, and the owners will soon go to the ZBA with plans for two single-family homes. We'd be surprised if both lots aren't under construction by the end of the year. That will be six projects between the two blocks in a very short period of time- it seems likely that these blocks will see even more construction in the coming years.