Flying Kite has been
'On the Ground' in Germantown for three months now, capturing a fluid snapshot of the neighborhood’s development scene. To put it simply, change is happening. Fast. Historic (often vacant) properties are being redeveloped, the area's rich housing stock continues to be refurbished and the commercial corridors are getting a facelift.
"The neighborhood has come a long way in the past 20 years," says Noah Krey with
Philly Office Retail, a local community-minded developer and Flying Kite's landlord in Germantown. "We’ve made leaps and bounds."
The proof is apparent -- we’ve covered a number of impressive projects changing the face of Germantown.
- The Waldorf School of Philadelphia is taking over the long-abandoned St. Peter's Episcopal Church at Wayne Avenue and Harvey Street.
- Germantown’s long-vacant YWCA site might finally be coming back to life as a mixed-use senior housing project.
- The Kendrick Mill building at 6139 Germantown Avenue has been rehabbed and now enjoys high occupancy rates -- tenants include local artists and designers.
- GreatnessIsInYou!, a local non-profit, is moving into the chapel at the abandoned Germantown Settlement Charter School on Germantown Avenue, with plans to utilize the space as a performing arts venue.
- The City of Philadelphia is actively implementing a series of beautification and streetscape improvements along Chelten and Germantown Avenues.
Krey believes these projects and many others (both private and public) are occurring all at once because of the neighborhood’s location -- investment on all sides of the area in the past 10 years is finally converging on Germantown. With the
$33 million Wayne Junction SEPTA Station renovation underway, Krey thinks the neighborhood might get the push it needs to pass the tipping point.
Flying Kite’s current space at 322 W. Chelten is being shopped around to restaurant tenants (along with a space at 6734 Germantown Avenue). According to Krey, both locations have received a significant amount of interest.
Meanwhile, in Lower Germantown, Philly Office Retail is in negotiations with a major national tenant, hoping they'll move into 5847 Germantown Avenue, a 30,000-square-foot facility. "We’re a long way away -- and unable to divulge details -- but we hope to have a tenant for the property," says Krey. "It would be a major boon to Germantown."
These developments fit the development patterns taking hold in the neighborhood. Lower Germantown around Wayne Junction, with its large stock of warehouses and industrial buildings, is looking to become an office, industrial, medical and residential hub. Meanwhile, Chelten and Germantown Avenues are aiming for an entertainment district feel, complete with restaurants, arts venues and commercial properties.
"We’ll always invest in Germantown," says Krey. "There’s tremendous opportunity for growth."
Source: Noah Krey, Philly Office Retail
Writer:
Greg Meckstroth