The 600 block of Moore Street has seen some serious changes since our last visit, which was back in the fall of 2019. At that time, an old industrial building took up the entire block bounded by 6th, 7th, Moore, and McClellan Streets. This hulking edifice was ugly as all get-out, and housed a cabinet manufacturer for many years. We were enthused to share the news of the building’s imminent demise, as just about anything would have represented an upgrade.

At the time, the plans called for the demolition of the building and a two-phased project in its place. On McClellan Street, developers were planning a row of 25 townhomes, each with two-car parking. On Moore Street, the plans called for 23 duplexes, bookended by small mixed-use buildings at the corners. Let’s check in on how things are looking these days…

On McClellan Street, exterior construction is just about wrapped up, with a few homes yet to be finished on the inside. And sales of the homes have been moving along as well, with 20 of the homes now sold. Sale prices have ranged from the mid-$500K price point up to just over $600K. At this time, a few homes are still available, at a $590K list price. But given how the homes have moved, we don’t imagine you’ll be able to buy one of these homes for much longer.

Construction is underway on Moore Street, where foundation work is done, steel is in place, and initial framing work is underway. The plans have shifted some on Moore Street since our previous story though, as the duplexes have been axed in favor of an apartment building. The concept now calls for 52 units in an apartment building in the middle of the block, and keeps the original plans for small mixed-use buildings on either side. Those buildings will each have a retail space on the ground floor and three units in each building. In the end, the Moore Street side will have a total of 58 apartments, 2 commercial spaces, and 32 parking spots. CANNO is still the architect on the project, and their buildings are gonna look great:

We are enthusiastically awaiting the construction of this building, which will complete a remarkable transformation for this previously junky block. As we mentioned previously, this wasn’t a terribly intuitive location for a major development, as it’s a few blocks away from Pennsport and about half a dozen blocks from Passyunk Avenue. And yet it appears that this project has been quite successful thus far, selling 80% of the homes and now moving onto the second phase. We wonder whether this will inspire other projects in this pocket, which has more than a few oversized parcels for South Philly which could accommodate some more density. It’s certainly worth keeping an eye on, as this area has a ton of untapped potential.

Disclosure: OCF Realty is the broker for this development.