In Bella Vista

Around town, there are dozens of buildings that have become favorites of ours over the years. One such structure can be found at the northeast corner of 7th & Fitzwater.The buildingToday, its home to Bella Organic Cleaners. But when it was first built in 1893, it was home to the

It was over two years ago that we first wondered about 915-17 S. 11th St., the former South Philadelphia State Bank building. At that time, the building, built around 1919 and designed by Makenzie and Wiley, was home to a business called the Cambridge Spice Trading Company. And while you could tell

Over the summer, we told you that Mildred Court, a 25-home project in Bella Vista, had gotten the necessary approvals. Passing by the other day, we saw a site that looks quite different than it did just a few months ago.Looking down 8th Street over the summerLooking down 8th Street

Two years ago, we first told you about plans for six new homes at the corner of Warnock & Catharine. At that time, a yellow, one-story building stood on this Bella Vista corner. Reader comments suggested, however, that the community wasn't crazy about the proposal, and that it had little

There's no question that the 600 block of South Street has made some major strides of late. Some time ago, we wrote a post lamenting the alarming number of vacancies on this block. And we had a point. But years have passed and new places have arrived. European Republic, Serpico,

A reader reached out the other day, wondering whether we had any news about 712-14 South St., most recently home to the Bottom of the Sea restaurant. The restaurant closed about a year ago, and was apparently headed to sheriff's sale as well. If you pass by today, you'll see

A couple of readers have reached out in recent weeks, wondering and worrying about some scaffolding that's currently in place at 838-42 Christian St., just a couple of steps away from the Italian Market. We remember visiting the market a decade ago and wondering how it was possible that these

601 S. Broad St. stands where South Street and the Avenue of the Arts converge.  Naturally, therefore, this has been the scene of major action over the years.  According to the earliest available documentation, the Southwestern National Bank occupied that Southeastern corner of Broad & South.  (We assume somebody was holding the compass upside

While this is more of a side dish than a meaty main course of development news, a three-story home on Washington Ave. just east of the Italian Market is getting a makeover. But when looked at in the context of other one-off improvements and developments in the immediate vicinity, the

Years ago, some friends lived in two different units located in a little courtyard, hidden off a side street in Bella Vista. They've long since moved out, but we never forgot how cool these spots were and how much fun we had at their courtyard parties. What we did forget,