The retail mix has completely changed at the 3rd & Market intersection over the last few years. Turn back the clock to 2011, and you'll find an AT&T Store on the northwest corner, Pizzicato restaurant on the southeast corner, and Shirt and Suit Corner on the northeast and southwest corner, respectively. Not one of those businesses remain at this location today. On the northeast corner, the historic buildings that housed the Shirt Corner were demolished when it was discovered that they were structurally unsound. An apartment building with a ground-floor CVS has appeared in their place. On the northwest corner, the AT&T store moved out last year.
OCF Coffee House, owned by the same company that owns this here blog, is set to open its sixth location at 301 Market St. at the end of next month. The shop will offer coffee, light sandwiches, pastries, and smoothies, like most of the other locations. It's a rather small space though, so it'll focus on take-out business.
Perhaps news about one coffee shop here isn't enough to excite you. If that's the case, we can tell you that we're hearing rumblings that Starbucks will be opening a new location at the southeast corner, home for almost two decades to Pizzicato. From what we're told, the 3rd & Arch Starbucks will remain in operation, an idea that feels like something that New Yorkers joke about. Maybe someone at Starbucks will take a more careful look at foot traffic in the area and realize it's a lousy idea, but then again maybe they know better than we do.
While the Shirt Corner was demolished as part of an attempted reuse, the Suit Corner was torn down because the building was ruined by a fire. Last fall, we told you about plans for a new four-story building at this corner, with ground-floor retail and 12 apartments on the floors above. Construction got moving at 300 Market St. just a few weeks ago, and a foundation is now in place, as you can see in the photo above. As we mentioned before, OCF Realty is the broker for this project so in a burst of self-promotion, check out these nice lookin' elevations drawings.
There's about 1,400 sqft of retail space available at this prime corner, and there's also a nice sized basement for storage or any other use. The building should be ready at the end of the year/beginning of next year, and the location really speaks for itself. If you're interested in the space, send an email and someone will get back to you. Just, please, no coffee shops, ok?