There are countless homes under construction around Philadelphia at any given time, and in an effort to avoid driving ourselves crazy, we try to limit our coverage of one-off projects. Simply put, there’s usually not a whole lot to be said about a single family home getting built on a random lot in town, so we generally don’t waste anyone’s time reporting about those sorts of developments. Sometimes though, a small project crops up that demands coverage, and the new home at 160 W. Laurel St. is one such project. For many years, this property was sitting vacant, though it contained a well tended little green space.

If you pass by this property today though, it’s a very different scene.

So yeah, that’s pretty cool. The current owners bought the property back in 2001, which might explain why it’s been generally well taken care of over the years. After all this time, they’re now building a single family home on the property, and as you can see from the image above it will stand as one of the more unique homes in the neighborhood. A sign is posted, which indicates that Bright Common did the design work for the project, and a visit to their website presented us with a name, the Alone House, and some concept drawings that give us an idea of what to expect when construction is finished. The website also indicated that this project will meet the passive house standard, which means it’ll be cool looking and eco-friendly to boot.

Speaking of cool architecture and the passive house standard, the Capital Flats II project, just on the other side of Hancock Street, appears to be finished. We told you about this Onion Flats project about a year ago, as framing was wrapping up, mentioning that it would include 25 apartments and 13 parking spots. Now that it’s done, you can appreciate the ultra-contemporary architectural details, and we’re especially fond of the fact that the two sides of the building feature different color schemes.

Once it’s finished, the Alone House will stand as another strong architectural addition to this block, joining the Capital Flats II and the Thin Flats project across the street. And don’t forget, there’s a relatively new Alchemy Coffee right at the end of the street, providing the block with further cache in terms of trendiness. Whether you like trendiness or coffee or neither, it’s still a win, because like the corners of Hancock & Laurel, the coffee shop location was previously sitting vacant for a really long time.