Nine single-family homes are slated to replace a warehouse that still has to be demolished at 6th and Fairmount Ave. Final designs will need to be tweaked and reviewed by members of the Northern Liberties Neighborhood Association (NLNA) who supported the project during a return visit from 626 North Fifth Partners, a company associated with Tower Investments that purchased the building in July for $3M.

Corner of 6th Street

Though they supported the project, NLNA members asked developers to return with more detailed plans items like exterior facades and elevation, an issue the NLNA pays close attention to, and parking.

“After going around the block of couple of times on that one so to speak I guess we were really happy they took the garages off the front of the houses,” said Larry Freedman, NLNA zoning chair, referring to earlier proposed designs for 626-36 N. 5th St., a property that occupies the entire south side of the block between 5th and 6th Streets along Fairmount Avenue.

A few months ago. Room for lots of homes.

We first wrote about the nine homes indicated on zoning placards posted at the site in October. Concurrent to Tower principal Bart Blatstein’s efforts to transform North Broad Street, he is also developing various properties under different businesses associated with his development company Tower Investments in the space between his Piazza development in Northern Liberties and his North Broad vision. Among other things, his operations represent a lucrative business model and an impetus influencing the face of Philadelphia.

–Lou Mancinelli