In South Kensington

We can only imagine what South Kensington looked like when Gratz Fire Protection Services started their business at 241 W. Oxford St. in the last 1970s or the early 1980s. It must have been pretty rough. We suspect the neighborhood was mired in a state of decline back in those days, as industry was continuing

There's something about a steamy July morning that makes us think about pallets. For your enjoyment, here are some pallet facts, thanks to Business Dictionary: Standard American pallets measure 4' by 4', but European pallets are typically rectangular in shape, measuring 1m x 1.2m. Who knew? Pallets can generally handle

We're pretty certain that the buildings at 1209-11 N. Hancock St. were originally built for residential purposes. The architectural details, like the locations of the windows and the intact cornices, strongly suggest an initial residential use. Somewhere along the line though, the buildings were combined into a single industrial use,

There's a half dozen homes on the north side of the 500 block of Jefferson Street which were completed last fall, and you can be forgiven for mistaking them for Philadelphia's latest City Target location. While this shade of red isn't necessarily our taste, the best thing about architecture is that

There's a huge vacant lot at 1300 N. 2nd St. that's been in development purgatory for over a decade. Back before the 2008 recession, developers were planning a significant for-sale project for this 2.5 acre property, eyeing 160 condo units and 16 artist studios. After everyone finished licking their wounds from the

If you're in the market for a big vacant warehouse and some vacant land on North American Street, we're pleased to inform you those things are very much in your grasp. And if you like cider, even better.We were cruising around South Kensington the other day and happened upon a

Look out South Kensington, here comes the next wave of high end homes. PRDC Properties, the company that redeveloped the corner of 13th & South and is currently building Liberty Square near 5th & Fairmount, is behind this 36-home project, which will span a few different blocks around the intersection of

The 1400 block of Germantown Ave. has changed dramatically over the last several years, a microcosm of the evolution of South Kensington as a whole. Most of the projects we've seen on this block have been on the small side though, with some single family homes, and some duplexes and triplexes

Back when Kensington was the Workshop of the World a hundred years ago, industry boomed and the surrounding neighborhoods bustled with factory workers. As the years passed and manufacturers moved away or closed their doors, Kensington fell into a state of disinvestment and the neighborhood became overrun with blighted buildings and vacant lots.

The Ninth National Bank and Industrial Title and Savings Trust Company buildings at the corner of Front & Norris are very handsome structures that reflect the kind of opulence that banks once projected with architecture in order to make customers feel good about the safety of their investments. If either building were