Other than one particularly notable building (yes the one you’re thinking about) we haven’t spent much time covering development in Nicetown. To be frank, we haven’t had many opportunities, given the paltry number of projects in the neighborhood. So we were pleasantly surprised to see zoning permits approved at 3725-37 Pulaski Ave., where we should soon see 30 units rise.

Previously a gas station, the site has been vacant for decades, sitting in the middle of the block composed primarily of rowhomes. Thanks to plans from Designblendz, we can see plans for a four-story building that will noticeably rise above many of the two story houses on the block, but certainly won’t tower over them. The more noticeable incongruity will be the board and batten fiber cement siding that will be used for most of the building, as the masonry will stop at the first floor. While we wouldn’t have been sad to see more brick, the economics of development in this pocket of town surely drove the choices of materials for this project.

The rendering above doesn’t clearly show what we’d say is the coolest design feature of this project: a small courtyard on the southern end of the building. Residents will enter through this courtyard, which will include some seating, green space, and a pad mounted transformer. Hopefully, the buzz won’t be too bad and the building’s residents will get to enjoy some attached outdoor space as an amenity for the building.

Away from the major arterial roads, most of Nicetown is zoned exclusively for single family detached homes, but this stretch of Pulaski Avenue is zoned for apartments. Some neighbors might complain about a new apartment building without any off-street parking, but there are several bus routes along Erie Avenue and the Broad Street subway line is only a few blocks away. As always, we’re delighted to see added density, especially in an area that doesn’t see much construction.

We should add: if the developers here were required to add some parking, we can’t imagine the project would pencil out. And then this overgrown lot would remain vacant indefinitely. For a neighborhood that has faced generations of disinvestment and population loss, a little more competition for parking spaces seems like a worthwhile trade. To be honest, we’d make that trade in just about any neighborhood in the city.