We were rumbling through Francisville the other day, and happened upon a 'For Sale' sign on an oddly shaped building across from the Francisville Playground. 723 N. 19th St. has been home to Joy Chinese Food for the last couple of years, and before that another restaurant called a Lucky Wok made its home here. Once upon a time, we feel like this place was a hot dog stand, but we couldn't tell you for sure.
The property was listed for sale for $160K and went under agreement in less than two weeks. Now its future is unclear. According to the listing, the old restaurant equipment remained in the building, so a turnkey restaurant operation could be in store. Alternately, a developer could demolish the building and construct something mixed-use, maybe with three apartments over commercial. A purely residential play could also be in store, with the possibility of a single family home or a duplex. We're pretty sure that just about any change to the site will require a trip to the ZBA because of the unusual shape of the property.
The property is zoned for commercial use, but we'd argue that a residential project would probably be most appropriate at this location. Across the street, condo buildings have sprung up in the last few years, replacing one-story single-family homes. And Fairmount Avenue is just half a block away, with the sorts of amenities that many residents are looking for, at least in terms of coffee shops and restaurants.
People of Francisville, what would you like to see happen here? Would you like the new owners to maintain a commercial operation here, or would you be okay if the property became purely residential?