Is there any word on this storied bldg? I know it was bought from Goldman Sachs and I heard a rumored condo/apt conversion but there seems to be no activity. It is Fairmount's best hope to reconnect with Broad. I don;t know if this it the right forum since it is technically Spring Garden but I'm curious. It's long been one of my favorite building. A constant reminder of N. Braod's more glorious days. Also, the school at Spring Garden and Broad has a sign that says Available with "Under contract" on it. what gives?

I think it was sold by Tony Goldman properties, not Goldman Sachs!
I don't knwo of any plans for it----it was hot when there was a chance for the ballpark at 13th & hamilton
The old Smith Kline bldg at 15th & SG under renovations for One Beacon insurance company to move into it...
and the old Inquirer (actually old Readers Digets printing plant on 15th below SG renovated for the School districty HQ move
And the old Nippon bldg is being renovated into apartments across the street....


The Stephens Admin Center---west side of Broad at SG---with the beautiful mural on it---is part of 3 School district properties just sold as they consolidate on 15ht & SG noted above...the parking lot to the west of the Stephens building was the site of the old Moolah Temple and the first Spring garden Institute (moved out to Chestnut Hill and is now a church-owned campus)...and across Broad was the old Central High (now site of Ben Franklin High---a bit different)...and to the east of the Stephens was the "girls normal school" building...now the Stephens parking lot...

I suspect the Stephens building will be made into residential---like the Parkway HQ and the Kennedy Skills center over on the Schuylkill river near Fitler sq.


That's all I know--i think!

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SPM

thanks for all the info. I believe Goldman bought it from a subsidiary of Goldman Sachs. Then sold it to another guy who proposed residential (maybe last year or 18 mos ago) and I never heard anything about it since.
residential at Broad and SG would be great and go a long way to make it feel safer to walk east from the BSL stop there. It might also encourage interest in other buildings around there. there's a nice building that looks like it's from the same era as the PAckard. there is a shopping ctr proposed at 12th a spring garden (although I fear it will be typical).

SPM has good info. I think whoever owns the Divine Lorraine at the moment is sitting on it, waiting to see if those former School Board properties around Broad/SG do indeed get developed into residential. If they do, and if renovation and new development continue to spread eastward on Fairmount Ave., we could see the DL come back to life. However, that corner still has a long way to go before your average condo-buyer would feel comfortable walking around, day or night. Still, I'm hopeful too.

That shopping center sign at 12th & SG has been there at least a year with no signs of progress. I hope something comes of it, ordinary or otherwise, because what's there now is about as ugly as it gets.

Is P Cunicelli still with on this blog? He's a Callowhill resident and might be able to tell us more about what's going on with that property.

I wonder if the DL is haunted...booooooooo Some weird stuff went down in that place.

The Divine Lorraine is owned by EB Realty Managment.

From their website:

They also run the Ciagr Factory, Marine Club & Executive House.

http://www.cigarfactorycondos.com/about_ebrealty.html

thnx Neil & kbns for add'l info---I hope the plans move forward w/ DL....
and some of the other developments in that area....

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SPM

I believe that the school at broad and spring garden was bought by the pennsylvania ballet company. I don't know if it was just the main building or the whole complex.

I am not quite sure what they are going to do with it, but i feel confident saying it won't be residential. Perhaps it will be their administrative center and rehearsal space.

I know someone with the ballet so I'll ask him what is going on with it exactly and post the info here when i get the chance.

well I hope they at least put up some lights. it's pretty dark up there.

It's more of a history & pictorial than any new news, but the DL made the cover of citypaper. It does say that it is to be renovated into apartments and names the owner (whose name escapes me and I just read it).

http://citypaper.net/articles/current/cover.shtml