It’s likely you’ve never seen this building in person. 1021 Ridge Ave. sits almost on top of the Reading Viaduct, surrounded by other Eraserhood-type buildings. Last week, owners PA Ridge Associates went before the ZBA to get a permit for 28 residential units in this rather large, 54K sqft building.

The building

Closer look

We’re guessing that the residential conversion took place a few years back, and that this is merely an effort to legalize the existing apartments. In addition, there appear to be commercial spaces on the first floor, but none appear to be filled at this time.

Looking at the GW Bromley Philadelphia Atlas from 1910, the building apparently contained a furniture manufacturer at some point. The Industrial Directory of Pennsylvania, Volume 3, identifies Prouty Co., L.A. Inc as the business located at this address. Has anybody heard of this company?

In 1910

This property is a great example of an adaptive reuse of a building that we can only imagine is built like a tank. And with the opening of the Trestle Inn a block away and Union Transfer just a little further away to the north in the last year, there’s a real sense that the area is moving in the right direction. Now let’s just imagine how much more desirable this address will be if the Viaduct ever turns into a park, as we most certainly hope it does.

Does anyone out there have any more information about this building? Does anybody what happened here in the last hundred years? When the apartments were added? Whether a business could succeed on the first floor?