We've visited 263 N 3rd St. repeatedly over the last couple of years, first wondering why the location was sitting vacant, then wondering about what appeared to be some construction activity. Over the summer, we went past the property and discovered that all but the stone facade had been demolished. As you

A couple of readers have checked in recently, noting that the historic but blighted Purvis House at 1601 Mount Vernon St. was experiencing some changes of late. We finally made it over to the area yesterday.

Looking at the L&I Map, the building has three fresh violations as of the beginning of this

A few months ago, we gave you the heads up about the upcoming construction of a Penn Herb Flagship on the northeast corner of 2nd & Spring Garden. This project promised a contemporary new gateway to Northern Liberties, and its development required the demolition of a few existing buildings.

We were

As the months have gone by, we've told you about the many comings and goings at 19th & Poplar, in Francisville. The most visible project on this corner is the line of duplexes on the southwest corner, which have risen where a church once stood. Built by the TBM Group,

The 1300 block of Ridge Avenue has had a rough go of it for many years now. At its intersection with Broad Street stands the vacant and blighted Divine Lorraine. Much of the western side of the block is taken up by the building that formerly housed the Ridge Avenue

Infill Philadelphia: Soak it UP! is a Community Design Collaborative stormwater management and sustainability design challenge now accepting registration for interdisciplinary teams interested in submitting ideas for the retrofitting of three Philadelphia sites, one residential, one commercial and one old warehouse, through November 30.

It’s a way for the Design Collaborative, in collaboration

About two years ago, we toured 1128 S. 19th St., a large corner property that caught fire mere weeks before we set foot inside. The first floor was trashed, the second pretty severely damaged, and the third only had some minor blemishes from smoke and water. We passed on the

Thus sayeth the mighty cartoon Union rat!

Gotta love:

1) The OCF green tie

2) That the rat actually is drinking a cup of coffee!

3) The 'Please don't litter' tag on the bottom

4) The phone number listed on the flyer is wrong. It's actually 215-735-7368

5) The miniature American flags

What else? There's got to

Last week, we told you about the controversy that's erupted over the demolition of a one-story property on a block full of similar homes, and its replacement by a new three-story home. Today, we'll tell you about a similar tale on a similarly unattractive block just a short jaunt away.

The other day, we told you about a new home that's currently under construction on Norris St. by developers BMK Properties. Today, we can tell you about two other homes nearby that this developer is working on at the moment.

The home on the corner, 2216 E. Thompson St., is clearly