Another day, another missed Fishtown development opportunity. Yesterday, we told you about a planned conversion of a former convent on Susquehanna Avenue into apartments, noting that we suggested purchasing the property about a year ago when it was listed for sale. Today we direct your attention to 1221 E. Berks St., another property we've covered in the past. We spied 'For Sale' signs on this property four years ago, noting that the price was way too high but suggesting that, at a lower price, it would be a worthwhile development opportunity.
The property is huge, covering almost 15K sqft, but you can see it wasn't very efficiently utilized. Part of the property was being used as a parking lot, while some unattractive buildings covered the rest of the site. Considering the location, half a block off East Girard Avenue, the parcel was clearly ripe for redevelopment. Checking in today, we can see that the buildings have been dropped and construction should be on the horizon. According to a thread on Fishtown.us, developers are planning 29 condos with 23 parking spots.
In case you're wondering what took so long, the property has actually changed hands twice since our initial story. Recognizing that the asking price was too high, the owners eventually sold the property for $900K in 2014. The new owners waited a year and a half before flipping it to another developer at a price of $1.45M, just $50K less than the too high list price in 2012. Not only are we incredibly jealous of the people who made over half a mil flipping the property, but we're also amazed by the rapid appreciation of potential development sites in Fishtown. It just goes to show the heat of the current market, and the ever-increasing desirability of this neighborhood.