It’s only been a few weeks since we last checked in on some of the new construction around 44th and Lancaster Avenue and we already have a reason to return. Today we will draw your attention to 4402 and 4404 Lancaster Ave., two distinct properties that were once used together. Back in 1960, the three story building at 4402 and the one-story building at 4404 were home to Pat’s Steaks (not to be confused with Pat’s King of Steaks). You can see in the image below, the upper floors at 4402 Lancaster Ave. were covered with plywood, likely used for storage for the hoagie shop.

In recent years, the commercial space at 4402 has been used by a shoe store and the space at 4404 has been occupied by a hair braiding business. Both of these businesses sit on this commercial corridor with terrific transit access, but the two buildings are not remotely approaching the highest and best use at this location. The one-story building is obviously lacking any residential component, while the three-story building hasn’t been used for residential purposes for decades. The relatively new nine-unit mixed-use building at 4408 Lancaster Ave. provides something of a template for the type of project that makes much more sense here in 2024.

Because the properties are zoned CMX-2, there are significant limits placed on height, density, and required open area that would make a by-right development impossible. As such, the developers went to the ZBA seeking relief and got approval for a four-story building with seven apartments and ground-floor retail. While the design from KJO Architecture looks pretty good, we would have pushed for a 5th floor, especially in light of the new building down the block.

The unit mix will include 6 one-bedrooms and 1 studio, which leads us to believe that the project will target students and recent grads from Penn and Drexel. It will be interesting to see how long it takes to lease the space on the first floor and what kind of retail tenant ends up in the space. Lancaster Avenue is a very active commercial corridor, but new businesses have it tough in this area, with limited density nearby. Then again, as we see new buildings rise in the area, the number of folks living nearby will start to creep up, which will make the commercial space more and more attractive. Fortunately, there are plenty of other vacant or underused properties nearby, so we can reasonably expect some more density on the horizon.

Of course, having all of these projects go through the zoning process dramatically slows the pace of development on this corridor. As we’ve said in other parts of town, up-zoning this stretch of Lancaster Avenue from CMX-2 to CMX-2.5 would allow for greater height and density and a much quicker approval process. While this specific project would have still needed a variance even if the property was up-zoned, we’d guess that the developers would have made the small changes needed to make the project by right, eliminating a major risk factor.