We're generally peeved about large vacant lots in prominent locations. Broad & Washington (two lots!) drives us nuts. We're annoyed about the large triangular lot at 19th & Wylie in Francisville. And the vacant lot at 13th & South has raised our ire for years.The lotBut ah, when those lots

Over the last several months, a new four-story building has appeared on the 100 block of Race Street. This quadplex, which has been dubbed Race Street Square, is replacing a surface parking lot at 138 Race St. that was previously associated with the building next door. Since cars had to

Along the river just south of Washington Avenue, you can walk out along a new boardwalk above the water at Pier 53. You can climb a spiral staircase that coils around a land buoy that stands 55 feet tall. If it was there a hundred years ago, the buoy would

The other week, we passed by Carpenter Square on 17th Street just south of Carpenter, and saw some work happening that piqued our interest. This project, in case you don't remember, has meant the construction of eleven new homes on a long vacant lot. A second phase, with a mixed-use

As the vacant land near 40th & Baring has continued to fill in with new construction student housing, it comes as no surprise that existing properties are now seeing some attention from developers as well. Last month, we directed your attention to an apartment building just north of the intersection,

The other day, we spotted some construction activity at 1117 S. 2nd St., a double-wide property in Pennsport. This building, according to an old listing, was originally a dry goods and butcher shop, though it hasn't been used as such for many years. The listing also mentions some old details

Today, the most significant thing about the northeast corner of 13th & Locust is on the building next to it, which casts a stunning mural against the busy intersection.  But the corner lot itself has a compelling invisible history.  According to The Gayborhood Guru, the site was occupied by rowhouses until the

A couple months back, we visitied the 2200 block of Coral Street, noting the appearance of a new home at 2231 Coral St. and foundations for two more next door. The homes, collectively from developers Luval Inc., were of particular interest because of their slenderness. The typical Philly row home

Last year, we brought 2940 W. Thompson St. to your attention, noting that the vacant one story warehouse that had been owned for decades by PHDC and was under agreement with an unknown party. At the time, we suggested that the parcel held a lot of value, and the building

The DMV experience is generally terrible- a few Simpsons episodes featuring Patty and Selma have driven this point home. But our experiences at the PennDOT Driver License Center at 1530 S. Columbus Blvd. were generally tolerable, with relatively manageable wait times in a rather depressing setting. But that setting is