Developer Birds Eye Development has a project coming to 1206-08 N 7th St., on a kind of dodgy block just north of Girard Avenue. Currently, these addresses include a large vacant lot and a large vacant shell.

Shell

Lot and shell

According to the zoning application, the plan for this location is to rehab the building that already exists, build another, and connect the two. Ultimately, the intention is for eight residential units between the two buildings. This will clearly be an improvement over what’s there now, but looking across the street, the block has a long way to go.

Vacant land and run down buildings

What we’re struggling to come to terms with is exactly who will be interested in living here. While this development is right around the corner from Tiffin, one of our favorite restaurants in the city, it’s not exactly near any established residential neighborhood centers. It’s on the fringe of both Northern Liberties and South Kensington, but a smidge too far west. Perhaps the most sensible tenants would be Temple students looking to save a few bucks by renting a little further off campus than most. Or maybe just Tiffin fanatics who want to live as close as possible to their restaurant of choice?

Actually, when we think about it that way, it doesn’t sound like a bad idea…