From what we can tell from looking at the architecture and considering the history of the area, we have to think that 906 N. Broad St. was originally built as a car dealership. Today, the rather large but boring one-story building has been chopped up and is home to a Family Dollar, a seafood restaurant, and a mini market. As locations go, it’s loaded with potential. It sits on the edge of Francisville, it’s not far from Temple University, and the Metropolitan Opera House is just a few steps away.

It seems we aren’t alone in the opinion that there’s potential here. Developers bought the property a couple years ago and are working on a plan to build a five story addition atop the existing building. The project would include 100 apartments, 8 parking spots, and 33 bike spaces, along with three vacant retail spaces. It’s set to go to the ZBA, but will also need to go to Civic Design Review. Once it appears on the CDR agenda, we’ll learn some more details and will also get our mitts on some renderings. Until then, we’ll just hope that it holds a candle, architecturally, to the nearby Met.

Once the Met renovation starts moving forward, it should only accelerate the momentum on North Broad that’s stemmed from the renovation of the Divine Lorraine. And of course, how can we forget those light masts in the middle of the street. They sure are, uh, something, as well.