Last week, we told you about a 200-unit apartment building being proposed on North Columbus Blvd., between to Sugarhouse casino and Waterfront Square. At the same Planning Commission meeting where these plans were discussed, the same architects, Cope Linder, presented plans for another tower on the same street, just a couple of miles to the south.

The site

This project, which would be located at 735 S. Columbus Blvd., would sit directly to the south of the building that most resembles a cruise ship in the city, the Residences at Dockside. The developers intend to demolish Pier 34-35, which is partially collapsed at this time, and rebuild and reorient the pier in shallower water.

View of the pier

Once this is accomplished, the plan is to construct a twelve-story, 204 unit building with 204 parking spaces. Tentatively, a fitness center is planned for the retail space fronting the street, but the developers could be convinced to lease the space, should retail prove viable for the location.

Take a look at this rendering:

Tentative design

At the presentation, the architects indicated that the vertical panels you see above will move, simulating the light reflecting on the water. Seems dizzying to us, but we’ll see. Also, while it looks like the building sits almost on top of the adjacent property, it’s just a trick of the perspective of the rendering. The site plan clearly shows plenty of space between the two buildings.

See what we mean?

While the idea of a new building near Sugarhouse made a little sense to us, considering the relatively easy access to Fishtown and the expected Penn Treaty Village development nearby, this development seems far less intuitive. Are people really clamoring to live across the street from the entrance to I-95? Sure, they’d have great access to the highway, but if your main goal living in the city is easy access to the highways and bridges, and walkability is totally unimportant, wouldn’t it just make more sense to live in Jersey?

Across the street