The former Spring Garden School is coming back to life! We first thought about this blighted building during the summer of 2012, and told you that it had been sitting vacant since the 1980s, slowly deteriorating despite joining the National Register of Historic Places in 1986. The building sits at 843 N. 12th St., in the middle of the massive Richard Allen Homes PHA development, and we wondered whether the building could possibly attract a market rate developer, or whether affordable housing was a more realistic hope. It turns out that it'll be redeveloped as affordable housing and this makes all kinds of sense.
We got a press release last week, advertising a groundbreaking ceremony for the reuse of this building into an affordable housing development for seniors and veterans. It's a partnership between PHA and HELP USA, an non-profit that focuses on helping the homeless population. The funds for the $14.5M project, the 5th for HELP USA in Philadelphia, come from Historic and Low Income Housing Tax Credits, debt, and philanthropic dollars. When finished in the middle of next year, the property will house 37 apartment units, with 12 of those units reserved for homeless vets.
Around the corner from the soon-to-be-revived former school building, you may recall we told you a couple years ago about plans for the expansion of the 11th Street Family Health Services building, a nurse-managed health center run by Drexel at 11th & Parrish. That addition is now finished, greatly expanding the capacity of the health center. This should be a great amenity for the entire community, along with the people who move into the converted school.
Sure, this square block is a mish mash of architecture, with a mix of the Deco school building, the late-1990s health center, and the contemporary addition. But we'll take it, especially with the knowledge that the former Spring Garden School should at least get several more decades of productive use. It was reasonable to fear its demolition by neglect until very recently, so this is really a pretty big deal.