We were passing by yesterday, delighting in the unusually warm weather, and noticed that 1248 S. 10th St. is for sale. This property has been home to South Philadelphia Florists for as long as we can remember, which goes back about ten years in this neighborhood. From the looks of it, the shop has been there way longer than we can remember.

The building

The property is quite large, and has four apartments in the building, along with the shop. The apartments, two studios and two 1-bedrooms, are all occupied (at pretty low rents), on month-to-month leases. The asking price for the building is just under $590K. The listing says that the purchase of the flower shop can be negotiated separately from the purchase of the building, but a “Retirement Sale” sign in the window suggests that the shop owners might be willing to sell for a very low price.

Capitolo is across the street

This property is across the street from Capitolo Playground, and a block away from Pat’s and Geno’s. So if you enjoy baseball and/or the constant smell of fried onions, you will clearly love the location. The asking price for the building is high if you ask us, but if you’ve always dreamed of owning and operating your own flower shop it might be just the right place for you. Alternately, a condo play could possibly work here, but we’re not confident that people are buying condos in this neighborhood at a high enough price to justify the expense.

Ultimately, the sale of the building will likely come down to the owners lowering their asking price or an up-and-coming florist with a dream falling in love with the building at any price. We shall see.

And now we want a cheesesteak. Great.