Jefferson Apartment Group and Haverford Properties have closed on a long-term ground lease of one of the largest parcels fronting the Delaware River as well as secured construction financing that will pave the way for the development of a mixed-use project along the waterfront.
Aside from being one of the biggest, the site is one of the linchpins of the waterfront. A project of this scale will be a significant anchor for the waterfront and continue activating a part of the city that is experiencing growth all around it in Old City, Northern Liberties and Fishtown. There has also been an uptick in private development along the river.
The development also adheres to a master plan established to guide development along the waterfront that had the goal of taking a post-industrial brownfield and turning it into a dynamic new community with high-quality public space that is accessible, connected and integrated into a well-designed, mixed-use development.
Plans call for the construction of a two-building complex that will have 470 apartments and 45,000 square feet of retail space anchored by the Sprouts. It will also include public spaces focused on the extension of the Spring Garden Street corridor from Delaware Avenue through to the river’s edge. The development will also have a new Sprouts Farmers Market, adding to the growing retail options along the Delaware River waterfront.
The lease and financing come seven years after the JAG and Haverford Properties venture was selected to develop the 9-acre site at 501 N. Christopher Columbus Blvd. and includes what was formerly known as Festival Pier. It is located in the Northern Liberties neighborhood of Philadelphia and is one of the largest publicly owned sites fronting the central Delaware River in Philadelphia. The partnership is leasing it from the Delaware River Waterfront Corp. Bernardon is the architect.
In 2020, DRWC selected Durst Organization, a New York real estate company, to develop Penn’s Landing and an adjacent site with a proposed $2.2 billion, 3.5-million-square-foot mixed-use project.
Philadelphia Business Journal, Natalie Kostelni
