A new development called 4224 Baltimore will be coming to 43rd Street and Baltimore Avenue in the coming months. The building will be mixed used — housing both 10,000 square feet of retail on the first floor and condominium options.
Credit: Courtesy of Cecil Baker PartnersEven more development is coming to Baltimore Avenue in the next few months.
A plan is in the works for a 140 to 150 unit mixed-use building on 43rd Street and Baltimore Avenue. The space is also planned to include 10,000 square feet of retail on the first floor that will house four businesses.
About five months ago, the site developers U3 Ventures began a community engagement process to determine what the neighborhood wanted from a new building.
“We had a tremendous level of enthusiasm from the neighbors,” U3 Ventures founder and CEO Omar Blaik said. “Our basic question was, ‘Do you want the building to take shape as designed by the zoning code or do you want to see something more inspiring?’”
The developers are no strangers to University City. Blaik was the vice president of Penn Facilities and Real Estate Services from 1996 through 2006. U3 Ventures’ current Vice President of Development Tom Lussenhop was also the director of real estate for FRES.
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U3 Ventures held three public meetings to discuss the project, with about 40 to 60 community members attending each one. The meetings, along with comments on the project’s online forum, helped determine the building’s layout. The apartments to be offered will mainly target young professionals with an additional 25 to 30 condominium units aimed at empty nesters. The units are not designated for undergraduates or families.
Building amenities will include a roof garden, a concierge, 65 parking spaces and a fitness center with open membership to the public.
“The neighborhood wanted what we wanted, which was to build a much more intelligent building,” Blaik said.
The developers are working with the owners of the building, the city-planning department and the Spruce Hill Zoning Committee to begin moving forward with the project, entitled “4224 Baltimore.”
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Once U3 Ventures develops a concrete proposal, they will ask to come before the Spruce Hill Zoning Committee, which will invite the public to hear their plan. Then, the committee will make a recommendation to the Spruce Hill board on whether to approve “4224 Baltimore.”
Spruce Hill Zoning Committee Chair Barry Grossbach said he was optimistic about the project since the developers have been open with the community from the early stages about the development.
“I think the process has been constructive, it’s been inclusive and it’s been public,” Grossbach said. “It’s fair to say that for the project to be successful, it has to have strong community support and the developers understand [that].”
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So far, “4224 Baltimore” has received support from various West Philadelphia organizations. The University City Historical Society gave a letter of non-objection and the Friends of Clark Park issued a letter in support of the project.
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