We were meandering around South Kensington the other day, and as we were traveling on the 500 block of Montgomery Avenue, some construction construction caught our eye on a nearby block. This construction is taking place on the 500 block of Morse Street, a block that we bet you’d struggle to find on the map if we didn’t already tell you it was near the 500 block of Montgomery.

Upon closer inspection, the north side of this block was sitting largely intact, with over a dozen two-story homes. There has been, however, a large gap in the middle of the block on the north side, and that’s now being (mostly) filled in.

What do you know, it’s V2 Properties, a developer that seems to be building homes all over town these days. You may recall, we told you like a week and a half ago about a twelve-home project they’re doing in Brewerytown, and this developer has most famously done a ton of new construction in South Philly, south of Pennsport. The project on Morse Street is relatively straightforward, with new homes under construction at 531, 535, and 537 Morse St., and some notable continued vacancy at 533. Unsurprisingly, that lot is owned by PHA. Maybe they’ll sell it at their next auction, eh? While they’re at it, maybe they can sell their vacant lots on the south side of the street too.

On an unrelated note, do any of the city planners out there have any insight into how streets like Morse came to exist? This street is especially interesting, as it exists for just this one block, then it comes back for half a block at 19th Street, then returns in Strawberry Mansion and again in West Philly. Does anyone know why this phenomenon happens for Morse Street and some others?