Despite the fact that it's one of our favorite neighborhoods in town, East Kensington is admittedly a mixed bag. Some blocks are wonderful, filled with occupied homes. Other blocks are mixed, with a smattering of vacant lots or blighted buildings mixed in with newer and older housing stock. And other

About two years ago, we shared the exciting news that 2132 Montrose St., a former nuisance property located next to Julian Abele Park, could be replaced by a new mixed-use building with a cafe on the first floor. In the intervening years, the park has undergone an impressive transformation, but

For years, a home has rotted a mere block away from Palmer Park, the burgeoning Frankford Avenue, and the excellent Steap & Grind. 14 E. Palmer St. was somewhat interesting looking from the outside, set back from the sidewalk with a little front yard, like a handful of other homes

A phenomenal and thorough article appeared in yesterday's Daily News, detailing an interesting aspect of the City's efforts to deal with the 5,100 dangerous properties within its limits. It may surprise you to learn that almost 300 of those properties are owned by government agencies. Those agencies, if you're keeping

The area where South and Broad Streets meet is in the midst of a major facelift, anchored by the notable insertion of the Southstar Lofts.  By contrast, the structure on the northwest corner of South and Broad, listed as 512 S. Broad St., still looks very much like Broad Street of

We've covered projects in Northern Liberties large and small, and have suggested that as vacant land becomes more scarce, developers will start to look for more and more out-of-the-box locations to build. We confess, we wouldn't have expected to see a project rise at 82 E. Laurel St., but that's

Two years after a Christmas Eve fire at Elenas's Soul toppled three businesses along the 4900 block of Baltimore Avenue, Gary's Nails, the third business that closed due to the fire, is now undergoing renovations to reopen.After the fireWhen we passed by a couple of days ago, we saw new

Over the weekend, while making our rounds through town looking for stories, we spied some new homes under construction near the corner of Sepviva & E. Firth. We had never been to this block before, and Google Maps was rather useful in helping us understand what had been here previously.In

Every few months, we get another email from a reader wondering about 1842 S. 9th St., a mixed-use building on the northwest corner of 9th & Mifflin. This property seems to have apartments on the upper floors and surely had a business on the first floor once upon a time.

We've been careful to document, in sometimes excruciating detail, all of the changes that have been happening on Frankford Avenue in recent years. Below Girard, Barcade is thriving, old buildings are being turned into apartments, and big plans for an entertainment district near Delaware Ave. are just on the horizon.