2110 E. Norris St. is a pie-slice-shaped property that sits a few steps away from Front Street, behind the Liberty Choice convenience store and Five Sisters ice cream. It’s possible you’ve noticed the warehouse building on the property as you’ve traveled down Norris Street, but it’s even more prominently viewed from the field next to the Kensington CAPA High School. Someone painted ‘Kensington Football’ on the side of the building that faces the field a few years back, a reference to the Kensington Tigers team that pulls participants from a number of high schools in the area.

But it seems rather likely that the sign will soon disappear, as a reader recently tipped us off that 2110 E. Norris St. is getting redeveloped. 2110 Norris LP bought the property last fall, paying $1.5M. Now, it seems this developer is looking to demolish the industrial buildings on the site and build an apartment building in its place. As the property is zoned CMX-3, they’re able to build this project as a matter of right, and the specifics of the permit describe a six-story building with 106 apartments, 16 parking spots, and ground-floor commercial.

This project makes quite a bit of sense at this location, and from the developer’s standpoint, it’s even more attractive because it doesn’t have to go through the zoning process. We’ve seen numerous apartment building projects come through the pipeline on Front Street over the last few years, with developers shrugging off the possible negative impact of the El rumbling past. As this property is half a block away from the El, the units will be even more attractive than anything available on Front Street. While the distance from Front Street is beneficial for the residential units, it might not have the same positive effect for the commercial space. The retail space might be very tough or even impossible to rent, but that might be just fine with the developers. Even if that space was just included for zoning purposes with no expectation of ever finding a tenant, we suspect this building makes financial sense, given the (relatively) low acquisition cost and the high unit count.