People like to say that a little coffee shop can be a good indication that a neighborhood has achieved "up and coming" status. If that's the case, then what does it mean when a neighborhood or a corridor has a bunch of little coffee shops, one after the other? Such is the

A reader tip directed us to the 1400 block of S. Colorado St. in Point Breeze, and we're embarrassed to say we believe it was the first time we ever set foot on the block. The reader noticed some zoning notices toward the southern end of the street, and because

Scanning the ZBA calendar earlier this week, we noticed that a new project at 1648-50 Ridge Ave. went to the board yesterday. This property, which sits next door to a community center disguised as a shoe store (because the building once housed a shoe store), has been sitting vacant for

The Cathedral Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul is a Philadelphia landmark, serving as the principal church of the Philadelphia Archdiocese and striking a stunning architectural presence at the corner of 18th, Race, and the Benjamin Franklin Parkway. Built between 1846 and 1864, the building is constructed in the Roman-Corinthian

You might not realize it, but pallets are a big business. Wanna ship something large and heavy? It's probably going on a pallet. Wanna ship a bunch of smaller things? Again, it's pallet time. But where do all those pallets come from? In some cases, the pallets come from Pallets

If you're old enough, you remember when smoking on airplanes was a thing. Considering that through the lens of 2017, it seems crazy. Non-smokers were trapped in a smoky cabin for the length of every flight. People has lighters and matches on planes! Sheer madness. Then again, we've learned countless health and

A couple readers have reached out recently, wondering what's happening on the north side of the 3600 block of Haverford Avenue. You may recall, several years ago, there was a plan floating out there to build a supermarket in Mantua, spanning four city blocks between 36th and 38th Streets, Haverford

In early 2013, Breezy's Cafe opened their doors in a little commercial space at 2011 Reed St., a location that nobody would confuse for prime real estate. The space was in the middle of the block, with a funeral home across the street, a large warehouse next door, and numerous blighted properties

We've covered the vacant 1.5 acre triangular parcel at 19th & Wylie numerous times over the years, always lamenting its persistent vacancy, which is only amplified by the torrent of development happening all around. We first wrote about this property back in 2013, telling you that the Hankin Group purchased it from the City

721 N. 2nd St. has been used as an auto garage specializing in European cars for as long as we can remember, surely for longer than the decade than we can see in Google Maps Street View. Once upon a time, back when there was very little retail activity on this