The other day, we were excited to share the news that a row of vacant lots on Amber Street near Frankford Avenue could be redeveloped, but a reader comment gave us the indication that the proposal isn't coming to fruition. Fear not, it seems a new project will soon emerge for the property and it won't sit vacant much longer.
Nearby though, it appears as though a different vacant property could soon get redeveloped, this time on Frankford Avenue. 2551-55 Frankford Ave. has also been vacant for many years, despite the rousing success of the surrounding commercial corridor. Next door is a mixed-use building that houses a skate shop and we've covered the new businesses and newer buildings across the street.
According to the L&I Map, developers are planning a pair of seven unit buildings at this address. The map indicates that the parcels are zoned for commercial use, but they were zoned for multi-family use until earlier this year, when parts of the area underwent remapping. We wonder whether the developers submitted the application prior to remapping and are only refused for density, or whether they applied after remapping and are also dealing with refusals for a lack of retail. We have to imagine that the property went before EKNA at some point, did anyone attend that meeting?
While it would be a bit better for this project to include a retail component, it's still encouraging to hear that these properties will seemingly get redeveloped. Then again, we thought that the properties nearby on Amber Street were getting developed imminently, but that doesn't appear to be the case. With these properties scheduled for the ZBA next week, we should find out for sure soon enough.