This must a record- two visits to the area around Temple in one week, and nothing about student housing. Today, we come back to a project that we first told you about two and a half years ago. On the southwest corner of 16th & Oxford, a large old building was last used as a community center, run by the North Philadelphia Seventh Day Adventist church. When we last checked in on the property, it was under construction with plans for twenty-five apartments, church offices, and continued use as a community center. But work was moving very slowly.
You'd think, with the time that's passed, the project would be finished by now. But you'd be incorrect. Yes, there's been some progress, with the front wall now stuccoed over, but there's still a fence around the building and a bunch of windows missing on the first floor. Several violations came up last year, some of which are still outstanding.
Does anyone know what's going on with this project/why it's taking so long? In general, we're very glad that this building is getting preserved, especially in a neighborhood with so much unfortunate looking new construction. We wish the brickwork could have been preserved, but it seems we'll have to live with the stucco. Of course, the northern side of the building is still waiting for stucco, and when that appears on the scene perhaps it will mean that the building is approaching completion. Sometime soon, we can hope.