In our mind's eye, 1821 Chestnut St. is still a furniture store. It was indeed a furniture store for several years, right? More recently though, it contained a discount store called Dollar Plus that also sold cell phones. Somehow, this business was able to survive here for a few years. It's been closed for a minute now, but some of the signage still remains.
It's currently available for lease from Michael Salove Company. The space includes 2,900 sqft of retail space next door to the soon-to-open new Joan Shepp location. On the other side of the building is the parking lot for Boyds. As you're surely aware, this location is just a block from Rittenhouse Square and is surrounded on all sides by other retailers. Foot traffic is among the best in town. Seems like a no brainer for plenty of businesses, right?
Our biggest complaint about the space has less to do with its rentability and more to do with the fact that the building represents a missed opportunity. With plenty of density all around, we lament the fact that this one-story structure doesn't have any additional height. While we don't know what was here decades ago, it's safe to say that its ownership in the last 35 years didn't give it much of a shot for greatness. Sam Rappaport owned it from at least 1980 until 1994, and Richard Basciano owned it from 1994 until earlier this year. You remember Mr. Basciano, right? With new owners who are ostensibly willing to work with a tenant to improve the building's facade, there's a good chance the building will look better in the near future, Sadly, we don't see the property achieving its highest or best use, as a mixed-use building, anytime soon. Bummer.
Still, we're optimistic that a worthwhile new business will soon join the fray on Chestnut Street. What do people want to see here?