entrepreneurship : Development News

Local bicycle entrepreneur Brian Hackford, refers to his third Keswick Cycle shop as "somewhat of a personal victory." Keswick is a high-end bicycle outpost with locations in both Glenside, Montgomery County, and Cherry Hill, N.J., and Hackford plans to cut the proverbial ribbon on his third retail space sometime this August, at 4040 Locust Street in University City--the former home of Strikes Bowling Lounge.

To hear Hackford himself tell the tale, the fact that he managed to secure the location at all is by far the most dramatic bit. University City and bicycle shops, it seems, have not always gone hand and hand.

"I've been trying to get on Penn's campus for seven years," he insists, In today's economic climate, of course, landlords aren't nearly as picky. (The 4,000-square-foot shop is being rented by Campus Apartments.) And it didn't hurt that Hackford's rental agent was himself a cycling enthusiast.

As for the Keswick Cycle retail philosophy, it tends to take bikes just a touch more seriously than your average cycle shop. Keswick sells and repairs bikes, of course, and all manner of biking gear and apparel is on offer. But you'll also find a 'fit studio' at the new shop, where pros and hobbyists alike can be properly fitted for an appropriately proportioned ride.

A grand opening celebration, Hackford says, will likely be planned for September, once school is back in session.

Source: Brian Hackford, Keswick Cycle
Writer: Dan Eldridge

Do you know of a new building going up, a business expanding or being renovated, a park in the works or even a cool new house being built in the neighborhood? Please send your Development News tips here.

According to Ori Feibush, a local real estate entrepreneur and the founder of South Street's OCF Realty, the process of finding a house to buy in Philadelphia--or anywhere else in the country, for that matter--is exponentially harder and more complicated than it actually needs to be. Partially, says Feibush, that's due to the fact that for most prospective buyers these days, the process generally begins with a search on a website that is incredibly difficult to navigate. "I liken them to Craigslist," Feibush adds. "They're often used, but they generally just create frustration for the end-user."

As it happens, Feibush thinks he's come up with a viable solution: An animated real estate-listings website that he likens to "a SimCity map of Philadelphia, and one that really tells the story of Philadelphia."

While that may indeed sound like a decidedly odd concept, consider the details: The website's map will feature precise boundaries for the city's neighborhoods, which will discourage crafty real estate agents from referring to a Strawberry Mansion property, for instance, as being located in the Art Museum District. As for the listings themselves, says Feibush, they'll be limited to price, number of bedrooms, and number of bathrooms. "You don't need to have a thousand options," he insists.

And yet on the other hand, the city-specific real estate map will come complete with copious details in the form of content from Naked Philly, the real estate blog maintained by OCF. "We'll have certain bars highlighted, certain restaurants highlighted," says Feibush. "We're really just trying to simplify the process (of home-buying) in an almost fundamentally stupid kind of way."

Feibush also insists that the new website and its attendant map won't be used to give preference to his company's listings. The site, which will be located at http://nakedphilly.com/map, is scheduled to launch at the end of June.

Source: Ori Feibush, OCF Realty
Writer: Dan Eldridge

Do you know of a new building going up, a business expanding or being renovated, a park in the works or even a cool new house being built in the neighborhood? Please send your Development News tips here.

There's certainly nothing unusual about a thrift store that also operates as a charitable organization. The second-hand shops of St. Vincent de Paul, Goodwill and the Salvation Army, for instance, all donate large chunks of their profits to various causes, including homelessness and hunger-battling initiatives.

But here in Philadelphia, an unusually well-curated and partly volunteer-run shop know as Philly AIDS Thrift has been doing business at 514 Bainbridge Street for six years now. And although it looks and feels more like a trendy vintage clothing shop than a dusty thrift store, Philly AIDS Thrift nevertheless donates the vast majority of the money it generates--about $8,000 a month--to the AIDS Fund, "which then gets distributed to about 30 AIDS organizations in Philly," explains Christina Kallas-Saritsoglou, one of the store's co-founders.

Which is all well and good, says Kallas-Saritsoglou. But throughout its six year history, Philly AIDS Thrift has had to deal with one slightly inconvenient hassle: The processing of its donated clothing has always had to take place in a second location across the street, where electronics are also sold. For convenience sake, the staff has always wanted to join the two locations, and now, with a new and slightly expanded location right around the corner at 710 South 5th Street, they've finally managed to consolidate their operations.

"The move happened," says Kallas-Saritsoglou, "because we hit the limit of what we could fit in here, because people are just really, really kind. We just have so many donations that we thought it would be best to try to find a new space."

That new space, she explains, which is already open, features 10,000 square feet of selling space, and a full three floors. The top floor will be dedicated to the processing of clothing donations, and a grand opening is scheduled for July 15-17.
 
Source: Christina Kallas-Saritsoglou, Philly AIDS Thrift
Writer: Dan Eldridge

Do you know of a new building going up, a business expanding or being renovated, a park in the works or even a cool new house being built in the neighborhood? Please send your Development News tips here. 

Not long after some members of the creative class in Philadelphia began referring to the city as the sixth borough of New York, a crackerjack New York real estate developer by the name of Dawanna Williams decided to enter the market here. If her name sounds familiar, that may be because her inaugural Philadelphia project, a seven-story low-rise condo building in Northern Liberties known as L'eau (pronounced "low"), was so unusually high-profile.

The rapper Jay-Z was the project's solitary financer, but as the Cityspace agent Michael Garden explains, "It hit the market right when everything was tanking." And although some of the 1,400-square-foot 2BR/2BA units came on the market in the $600,000 range, says Garden, "everyone referred to the building as 'Lou.' Which is not the French word you want on your new building!" he adds, with a laugh.

Once the market slowly began to right itself, however, Williams and Jay-Z chose to give NoLibs real estate another shot. They changed the name of their $8 million building, which sits at 603 N. American St., and which now has FHA financing, to the Lighthaus. They made a few minor upgrades, including a concierge desk in the lobby. And this time, they seem to be succeeding, thanks in large part to the price-downgrade: The 24 units -- each with soaring floor-to-ceiling windows that reveal either the city or the Delaware River--are now listed between $377,000 and $488,000. Which isn't an unreasonable price, especially considering that Erdy McHenry--the same group responsible for the nearby Piazza at Schmidts--was the building's architect.

The Lighthaus, says Garden, "makes a statement in terms of contemporary architecture" in the city. "We're starting to turn towards an architectural challenge (in Philadelphia)," Garden adds. "We should encourage that."

Source: Michael Garden, Cityspace
Writer: Dan Eldridge

Do you know of a new building going up, a business expanding or being renovated, a park in the works or even a cool new house being built in the neighborhood? Please send your Development News tips here.

The concept of cohousing--a collaborative style of living in which a number of different families participate in each others' lives, and may even bunk underneath the same roof--certainly isn't anything new. The idea originated in Denmark, and today, in some of the more liberal corners of the U.S., cohousing is practically considered mainstream. There are websites, annual conferences, and even cross-country tours promoting the lifestyle.

And yet in a hardscrabble city like Philadelphia, cohousing is just about as edgy as it gets. So it makes sense that one of Philly's edgiest home designers, Postgreen Homes, has announced plans to build a six-unit cohousing space in Kensington. And while each of the units will have its own kitchen and living area, large common areas--including a commercial kitchen, a dining room, and a roof deck--will be shared.

Postgreen is joining forces in the venture with the team from Independents Hall, the Old City coworking space. Indy Hall co-founder Alex Hillman says that he and his business partner, Geoff DiMasi, have long talked about the idea of "reinventing some other elements of life" in the same way they reinvented their work lives after Indy Hall was opened. Those very conversations, in fact, eventually led to the idea of creating a cohousing village. But as Hillman is quick to point out, "Cohousing is more than just providing common areas for renters. The cool thing about it," he says, "is that the communities are designed by the members of the communities."

Currently, Hillman and his team are searching hard for those members, as a fairly steep amount of money needs to be raised by June in order to secure the preferred plot of land. To learn more about joining the community, visit village.indyhall.org.

Source: Alex Hillman, Independents Hall
Writer: Dan Eldridge

Do you know of a new building going up, a business expanding or being renovated, a park in the works or even a cool new house being built in the neighborhood? Please send your Development News tips here.

Right around this time last year, relations between the University City Science Center and Philadelphia Redevelopment Authority (RDA)--which is responsible for encouraging development in the city--were slightly strained, to say the least. In May, the Science Center filed a lawsuit against the RDA in an attempt to stop the seizure of a portion of its University City research park. The undeveloped lots, which had fallen into default due to the financial crisis, were meant to become future additions to the Science Center's campus.

But thanks in part to a clause in the original agreement between the two agencies which disallowed foreclosure in the instance of "unforeseeable causes," the Science Center managed to hang onto its property. The two entities have also shaken hands and made up, metaphorically speaking. And on April 29, the Science Center published a press release announcing that the "longstanding redevelopment agreement" had been amended.

That's certainly good news for anyone who believes in the technology-based economic development happening at the Science Center. And according to Saul Behar, the Science Center's Vice President and General Counsel, the center now has the buffer of an additional 10 years to develop the four parcels on its campus that are still vacant. If the center is willing to shell out for additional fees, Behar says, that decade can legally be extended to 13.

As for what may or may not eventually be developed on the space over the next decade, the Science Center isn't quite sure--or isn't telling. "There's nothing solid right now," says Behar. "But we're continuing to market the parcels, and we're always looking for opportunities."

Source: Saul Behar, University City Science Center
Writer: Dan Eldridge

Do you know of a new building going up, a business expanding or being renovated, a park in the works or even a cool new house being built in the neighborhood? Please send your Development News tips here.

When the locally-adored Kensington restaurant and craft-brew bar known as the Memphis Taproom was last in the news, back in March 2010, it was due to a truly unfortunate circumstance involving restrictive state alcohol laws and the perennially unpopular Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board. Responding to an anonymous tipster, the PLCB raided the Taproom--along with West Philly bar Local 44, and the Resurrection Ale House in Graduate Hospital, all of which are owned by Brendan Hartranft and his wife, Leigh Maida--for serving beers that hadn't been officially registered with the commonwealth.

And while the Memphis Taproom is once again finding itself the subject of media attention, this time the news is considerably happier: In an attempt to build its local profile by providing a bar experience that's unique to the neighborhood, the Taproom has constructed an outdoor beer garden in its next-door lot. The garden features white oak tables and an atmosphere that Hartranft describes as "a mini block party." Outdoor stereo speakers will soon be added to the mix, and eventually a projection TV will show sports at night.

But the garden's best feature is almost certainly the food truck that will be permanently parked in the lot. According to Hartranft, the truck will do double duty as both a gourmet hot dog cart (all dogs cost $5.00) and a bar serving nothing but craft beers in aluminum cans (Sly Fox; 21st Amendment; Oskar Blues).

And while the Taproom's new addition didn't exactly come cheap (the total cost was around $135,000), "we're adding another anchor to a neighborhood that desperately needs as many anchors as it can get," Hartranft says.

The beer garden's grand opening took place this past weekend, and it's currently open for business Mon-Thu 4-10pm, Fri 4pm-midnight, Sat noon-midnight, and Sun noon-10pm.

Source: Brendan Hartranft, Memphis Taproom
Writer: Dan Eldridge

Do you know of a new building going up, a business expanding or being renovated, a park in the works or even a cool new house being built in the neighborhood? Please send your Development News tips here.

A mere five or ten years ago, the relatively simple practice of telecommuting--working from home instead of from a traditional office--was seen as a fairly revolutionary concept. But thanks to the multitude of productivity-enhancing tools that technology has made possible--smart phones, netbooks, Skype, email--members of the so-called creative class have increasingly been transforming not only how and where work gets done, but also how and where life itself gets lived.

During the April 25th installation of the Junto, "a monthly meet-up of hot topics and local issues" organized by the South Philly web design firm P'unk Ave, those very concepts--living and working just about anywhere, with the help of technology--will be discussed, debated, and possibly even expanded upon. (Reception at 6:00pm; discussion at 7:00pm.)

Past P'unk Ave Juntos have explored topics ranging from art criticism to the future of the Free Library. But the upcoming "Rethinking Shelter" Junto will explore the ideas of alternative housing, including cohousing, in which multiple families live together, and even multibasing, a practice in which travelers can share numerous homes in varied locations for short periods of time. "It's not like staying in a hotel," says DiMasi of multibasing, "and it's not like crashing on someone's couch."

The philosophy of the technomad--a knowledge worker who takes advantage of technology to live like a nomad--will also be discussed.

Two founders of Philly's uber-sustainable Postgreen Homes firm will be on the event's panel, and as DiMasi explains, although cohousing was originally based around the idea of family, "one of [Postgreen's] proposed projects is a co-housing place in Fishtown that will be more focused on the young and urban."

"We've had some really interesting discussions," says DiMasi of past Juntos, which have been ongoing since 2006. "And sometimes you don't even know that you care about this stuff!"

Source: Geoff DiMasi, P'unk Ave
Writer: Dan Eldridge

Do you know of a new building going up, a business expanding or being renovated, a park in the works or even a cool new house being built in the neighborhood? Please send your Development News tips here.

"If you were to walk down Germantown Avenue between Mt. Pleasant Street and Allens Lane, you'll see a thriving downtown area," says Anuj Gupta, the executive director of Mt. Airy USA, a community development organization. Gupta was hired to lead the group last November, and as he explains it, one of his major goals is to capture the explosive growth taking place along Germantown Avenue's northern stretch ("that energy, that momentum," he says), and to push it further south.

The process of creating new commercial life, of course, is no small feat. But Gupta and his colleagues recently learned that they've been given a considerable head start in the form of a Community Development Block Grant. Mt. Airy USA was awarded $249,600, all of which has been earmarked for a city-sponsored project known as the Mixed-Use Development Pilot Program. The funds will be used to rehabilitate two small and dilapidated Germantown Avenue buildings--one on the 6500 block and another on the 6600 block--into commercial spaces with affordable apartments on top.

Gupta's hope is that by properly repairing and then leasing the two spaces, which are both located just south of the booming strip in Mt. Airy, community revitalization will continue its forward march south along the avenue. And while he does have other neighborhood-improvement plans in place--talks are underway to start an outdoor summer movie series, for instance--Gupta ultimately hopes the upcoming projects will help "ignite the next resurgence of Germantown Avenue" by enticing private investors to seriously consider the underutilized and less trendy stretches of the street.

"Small business owners are climbing on top of one another to try and get in there," Gupta says, referring to the stretch of the avenue between Mt. Pleasant Street and Allens Lane. "And we want to try and get to the same tipping point further south."

Source: Anuj Gupta, Mt. Airy USA
Writer: Dan Eldridge

Do you know of a new building going up, a business expanding or being renovated, a park in the works or even a cool new house being built in the neighborhood? Please send your Development News tips here.

There's no doubt that South Philadelphia's East Passyunk Avenue commercial corridor--not to mention the various residential communities surrounding it--has grown, changed and become considerably gentrified over the past few years. And along with that growth and change, of course, comes a litany of fairly standard urban issues, such as the litter that seems to spout along the avenue at the conclusion of each weekend.

Thankfully, a new community group--Passyunk Avenue Revitalization Corporation--has sprouted in the area as well. Along with various neighborhood greening initiatives, its duties also include renovating and maintaining both commercial and non-commercial properties in the area. One of those properties, at 1737 East Passyunk Avenue, will soon be the new retail home of Fabric Horse, the bicycle accessories shop that was formerly located in Northern Liberties. The shop is scheduled to open within the next two weeks.

And although Passyunk Avenue Revitalization Corporation, or PARC, is in fact the same Vincent Fumo-founded organization formerly known as Citizens Alliance for Better Neighborhoods, PARC is being led by a newly installed executive director, Sam Sherman Jr., a dedicated New Urbanist who previously served on Mayor Nutter's sustainable development committee. PARC is also building five loft-style apartments in the former Citizens Alliance office space, at 1137 Wharton Street; PARC's offices will then move to the building's first floor.

Last Tuesday, the group held a press conference at the Passyunk fountain to announce its many greening initiatives, which have already included the planting of 17 trees along the avenue. The fountain square itself, says Sherman, will be spruced up with "Central Park-style benches on the perimeter, and a permanent chess table." At night, says Sherman, the fountain will be illuminated by lights affixed to the roofs of the buildings surrounding it; a lighting ceremony will take place sometime in June.

Source: Sam Sherman Jr., Passyunk Avenue Revitalization Corporation
Writer: Dan Eldridge

Do you know of a new building going up, a business expanding or being renovated, a park in the works or even a cool new house being built in the neighborhood? Please send your Development News tips here.

It's certainly no secret, at least to those of us who call Philadelphia home, that the University City district has for many years now been the proverbial nucleus of an incredibly well-connected and highly knowledgeable cluster of medical, science and academic professionals. But unfortunately, the area's so-called 'Eds and Meds' leaders have never fully succeeded in branding their community as one of the nation's most important research centers. That perception--or rather, the lack thereof--may soon be changing, thanks to the work of a newly-formed group calling itself the University City Innovation Collaborative.

The group is being headed by the University City Science Center; the nonprofit University City District; and the Science Center's development partner, a Baltimore company known as Wexford Science and Technology.

The aim of the group, according to Stephen Tang, the Science Center's CEO, involves making University City a world-class innovation center along the lines of similar regions like Cambridge, Mass., and San Francisco's Mission Bay district. And yet what sort of development that will actually entail still remains to be seen, because as Tang explains, "This is all a work in progress; the project doesn't really finish until April."

Part of what the project will almost certainly involve, however, aside from more spaces where innovation can take place, are recreational facilities. "You have to have amenities that allow creative people to be with like-minded people for extended periods of time," Tang says. "So that means retail, it means entertainment, it means after-hours places. All those things need to come together."

Tang is also quick to point out, however, that while "it's important that we have facilities, it's more important who's in those facilities, and for what reason. We need to foster better collaboration between organizations and institutions," he offers. "And that's not only to tell the story, but to build a better story as well."

Source: Stephen Tang, University City Science Center
Writer: Dan Eldridge

Do you know of a new building going up, a business expanding or being renovated, a park in the works or even a cool new house being built in the neighborhood? Please send your Development News tips here.

On Valentine's Day last week, Mayor Michael Nutter appeared at Esperanza College in North Philadelphia to introduce the recipients of the 2011 Neighborhood Economic Development grants. The purpose of the long-running and hugely popular program, which receives $1 million in funding from the federal Community Development Block Grant program, is to "support the completion of neighborhood economic predevelopment, planning, and development projects," according to a Philadelphia Department of Commerce press release distributed at Esperanza.

Mayor Nutter, however, described the program in significantly more passionate and straightforward terms: "When we talk about this program, it's not just about affordable housing," he offered. "It's not just about shelter for the homeless. It's not just about investing. It's also about jobs, which is all we really want to talk about. You ask me what time it is?" he continued. "It's time to help people get a job. You ask me what the weather's like? It's nice enough to go out and look for a job. Anything you ask me, we're going to talk about jobs."

And although some might argue that the Neighborhood Economic Development grants are about much more than simple job creation--at their core, they're about helping community groups foster serious economic growth--the reality is that a total of 368 permanent jobs will eventually be created as a result of the grant monies being awarded to this year's recipients.

Esperanza, in fact, was one of this year's nine grant recipients, as was the Center for Culinary Enterprises, a food business incubator which plans to break ground on March 23. Other recipients include Community Legal Services, which is constructing a four-story building; Mt. Airy USA, which is building the Mt. Airy Transit Village; and People for People (PFP), which will offer job training in a soon-to-be-renovated two-story building. Click here to read about the remaining grant recipients and their plans for future development.

Source: Esperanza College
Writer: Dan Eldridge

Do you know of a new building going up, a business expanding or being renovated, a park in the works or even a cool new house being built in the neighborhood? Please send your Development News tips here.

Those of us who live, work and shop in South Philly have driven past the iconic SS United States countless times over the years. It is currently berthed in the Delaware River, directly across Columbus Boulevard from IKEA. Very few of us, though, seem to truly understand the hugely important role the ships plays in our country's maritime history. For starters, it was the largest ocean liner ever built in the U.S. It was also the fastest to ever cross the Atlantic. And in its mid-century heyday, it was known for shuttling political dignitaries and Hollywood superstars alike.

Unfortunately, due to its exorbitant maintenance costs, it has also been widely assumed that the grand ship--which has been referred to by Mayor Nutter as a "national treasure"--would soon be headed for the scrap yard. That all changed on Feb. 1, however, when it was announced that the SS United States Conservancy, a nonprofit organization dedicated to revitalizing the ship, had managed to purchase it from its most recent owner, Norwegian Cruise Line. The $5.8 million price tag was covered by the local philanthropist H.F. "Gerry" Lenfest.

But now that the ship has been saved, and with the Conservancy planning to transform it into something of a floating entertainment complex--complete with a museum, a hotel, and retail--the big question has to do with whether or not the ship will actually remain in Philadelphia. "The simple answer," says Dan McSweeney, the Conservancy's Executive Director, "is there's a decent chance the ship could stay in Philadelphia as a redeveloped stationary attraction. There's also a decent chance the ship could go to New York or Miami for the same purpose."

The Conservancy says it now has 20 months to find a group of public and private partners interested in developing the SS United States.

Source: Dan McSweeny, SS United States Conservancy
Writer: Dan Eldridge

Do you know of a new building going up, a business expanding or being renovated, a park in the works or even a cool new house being built in the neighborhood? Please send your Development News tips here.

The Australian-based and internationally operating Servcorp organization certainly wasn't the first provider of so-called virtual office space to open for business in the Philadelphia market, but it is the most recent: In late 2010, the decades-old company--which currently does business with approximately 35,000 clients in nearly two-dozen different countries--moved into the 37th floor of BNY Mellon Center at 1735 Market Street in Center City.

If the industry happens to be one you're not familiar with, don't be surprised. "I've been in this industry for a lot of years," says Jennifer Goodwin, Servcorp's general manager and V.P. of U.S. operations. "And I think the executive suite industry is the best kept 50-year-old secret out there."

Also referred to in some parts of the world as the serviced office industry, a virtual office is essentially a solution for entrepreneurs, midsize businesses, and even Fortune 500 companies who need the support of a full office, but without the often exorbitant costs associated with financial district real estate.

On the lower end of Servcorp's suite of packages, for instance, is the Virtual Office Address, which allows small-time entrepreneurs to use the prestigious Servcorp addresses on their business cards and letterhead. More expensive options allow the use of Servcorp board rooms, offices, and even IT and secretarial staff at the company's various locations around the world--not a bad option for business travelers who might need to appear a bit more successful and internationally connected than they actually are.

"Ultimately, we're in business to make our clients' businesses more profitable," says Goodwin. "But it's about more than the real estate," she adds. "It's about us taking things off of your plate, so your primary focus is the profitability of your company."

Along with Servcorp, other major players in the virtual office space with locations in Philadelphia include Regus, HQ, and American Executive Centers.

Source: Jennifer Goodwin, Servcorp
Writer: Dan Eldridge

Do you know of a new building going up, a business expanding or being renovated, a park in the works or even a cool new house being built in the neighborhood? Please send your Development News tips here.

In an email message that Gabriel Mandujano recently sent around to friends and family, he was quick to admit that the opening of a new laundry business, of all things, was an odd career move for someone who studied urban revitalization at Penn and real estate at the Wharton School, and who formerly worked as director of The Enterprise Center's CDC.

But Wash Cycle Laundry, the sustainable business Mandujano launched last December in West Philly, is certainly not your average, everyday laundry enterprise. For starters, it's "a green, socially responsible business that aspires to radically reduce the water and energy consumed by the $20 billion commercial laundry industry," as Mandujano noted in his email. Every last bag of laundry is delivered by bicycle, for instance, and the all-natural Sun & Earth detergent, manufactured in King of Prussia, is the only detergent used.

What's more, Wash Cycle Laundry recently relocated into a green, coin-operated Laundromat at the corner of South and 16th streets, where the Wash Cycle staff will be hosting something of a grand opening party on Feb. 3 from 5:30-7:30 p.m. Along with inspecting the new digs, you'll be able to check out the Energy Star-rated Electrolux soft mount washers that make the use of driers--which suck up massive amounts of energy--practically obsolete.

Aside from Mandujano's commitment to workforce development, what's next for the company? "It's still a baby, so it's hard to know who it's going to be when it grows up," Mandujano says. "But if the laundry pick-up and delivery works here in Philadelphia, there's no reason why it wouldn't work in Brooklyn or D.C. or wherever."

Currently, Wash Cycle Laundry picks up in West Philly and a huge swath of Center City. Individuals looking for pick-up and delivery service can click here for details; businesses click here.

Source: Gabriel Mandujano, Wash Cycle Laundry
Writer: Dan Eldridge

Do you know of a new building going up, a business expanding or being renovated, a park in the works or even a cool new house being built in the neighborhood? Please send your Development News tips here.