It was roughly two and a half years ago that we pointed a finger at the warehouse on the northwest corner of 17th & Annin, noting that it was not long for this world. We explained that the ZBA gave their blessing to a plan to demolish the building and replace it with a quintet of new homes with rear access parking. A year later, the warehouse was gone and foundations had taken its place. The project proceeded from there in fits and starts, but has picked up steam of late and looks like it’s going to be done sometime this summer. Somewhere along the line, and perhaps contributing to the construction delays, the project picked up an adjacent property and therefore a sixth home in the development.

In many cases, it’s very problematic for developers when projects take longer to coalesce than originally expected. But in this case, it probably worked out for the best. The heat of the real estate market in Point Breeze is such that prices have exploded in the time since this project first came down the pike, and as a result the homes are selling at prices far higher than the developers could have projected a few years ago. How high, you might ask? A couple of the homes are under agreement at a list price of $800K, with others under contract at an $809K list price. One home is still available, listed at the same $809K. Unreal.

While we’re here, we might as well comment on two other noteworthy properties nearby. A few years back, we indicated that the building housing a laundromat at 1700 Annin St. would seem like a logical development opportunity and speculated that developers would come forward with unsolicited offers until the owners decided to sell. Hasn’t happened yet, but given the sale prices across the street, those offers are only going up.

Meanwhile, just to the south, there’s absolutely nothing happening at 1701 Federal St., which may come as something of a surprise. Remember, about a year and a half ago, we told you that the same developers building 17th & Annin also bought this property and were planning to build an addition onto the building and create several apartments on the upper floors. But alas, that hasn’t happened. In fact, the building has been listed for sale for several months and it’s currently listed for $950K. Even with the homes selling for big numbers up the street, it seems the price will need to come down before someone buys the building and ultimately moves forward with a project here.