Philly Homeowner who "Foreclosed" on Wells Fargo gets High Level Meeting

I very much enjoyed stumbling upon this article as I went through my morning ritual of google news and cereal.  The Consumerist today published a guide of sorts to how Philly resident, All Patrick, initiated a Sheriff's sale of a local Well's Fargo Branch.  I won't give away too much because you really should read the full story, but basically after months of unreturned calls to Wells Fargo about unfair charges on his mortgage account, Patrick used the RESPA law to take Wells Fargo to court.  He won a small judgement in small claims court, but was still not able to get Wells Fargo to speak to him.  At that point, he started the legal proceedings that eventually resulted in Sheriff's Sale proceedings.  Today, at 12:00 p.m. a Wells Fargo Representative will meet with Patrick.  I am eagerly awaiting word on what happens.


Photo: The Consumerist

City of Philadelphia to Sell Two Vacant Lots Used as Northern Liberties Community Spaces

The Inquirer reported this morning on the anger and frustration of Northern Liberties neighbors who have cared for and utilized two vacant lots in their neighborhood.  The lots at the center of attention are 1114 N. 4th and 1015 N. Leithgow.  According to the article, the neighbors have used these lots for Halloween festivities, Easter celebrations, birthday parties, etc.  One neighbor also said the property owner adjacent to the lot pictured above, has tried for ten years to purchase the lot.  The neighbors met last night to discuss the matter and may scramble to put together the money to bid on the lots themselves.  The frustration over the process of purchasing vacant city lots has often been in the headlines.  In a previous post I discussed the Blighted Property Conservation Act which developed out of a court case in which a non profit was awarded conservatorship over vacant lots they were trying to improve.  Since the Northern Liberties lots are scheduled to be auctioned, it is probably too late for the neighborhood association to take this route.  You have to wonder if the city gave the neighborhood enough notice to consider options such as this.

Philadelphia School Buildings Reborn

Photo: Plan Philly

Plan Philly in collaboration with the Philadelphia Public School Notebook recently produced a piece on abandoned school conversions.  The following locations/building projects were featured in the article.

The picture above is of Tony Rufo's project at 12th and Fitzwater.  The old Nathaniel Hawthorne School Building (1909) was converted into 56 lofts.  The building is the most dramatic development in Rufo's Hawthorne portfolio that includes multiple rehabs and new construction.

According to the article, A school at 8th and Lehigh has gone under contract for $600,000 and there are plans for a grocery store and senior housing.

A West Philadelphia school building at 51st and Race was converted into a large Church.

The article also highlighted the battle that took place between Independence Charter School and a condo developer for the old school at 16th and Lombard.  It seems community activism won that battle, but not before the hefty price tag of 6 million was forked over.

The article was written in the wake of the school district's recent announcement that there are 70,000 empty seats this year.  With other urban districts like Kansas City and Detroit shuttering nearly half the schools, it seems developers and community organizations in Philadelphia may soon have a lot more inventory to choose from.

Best and Worst Housing Markets

A new list predicing growth and decline in real estate markets has come out.  Here is the break down, according to Housing Predictor:

The Best 10 Markets                  The Worst 10 Markets
1. Portland, ME +3.6%               1. Bend, OR -11.5%
2 .Kansas City, KS +3.5%         2. Las Vegas, NV -10.8%
3. Tri-Cities, WA +3.4%             3. Atlantic City, NJ -10.8%
4. Omaha, NE +3.3%                4. Miami, FL -10.8%
5. Fargo, ND +3.3%                   5. Medford, OR -10.5%
6. New Orleans, LA +3.2%        6. Manhattan, NY -10.3%
7. Iowa City, IA +3.2%                7. Ocean City, NJ -10.3%
8. Columbia, MD +3.1%             8. East Providence, RI -9.5%
9. Bellevue, NE +3.1%               9. Jacksonville, FL -9.3%
10. Bismarck, ND +3.1%           10. Orange Beach, AL -9.3%

Notable nearby areas, not in the top 10: Bethesda MD and Silver Spring, MD both made best list with 3.0% increases.  Rounding out the top 25 worst list were Wilmington, DE at 14th worst with a decrease of 8.9% forecasted, and Newark DE at -8.6%. 

Nonprofit Spotlight: Save Our Sites

saveoursites.org

A newish non profit is focusing on historic sites in Philadelphia.  S.O.S, or Save Our Sites was recently featured on Plan Philly and the detailed article is worth reading.  Plan Philly notes that this group's list of endangered locals is a bit "quirky" and even includes a parking lot.  The group's website is still under construction and the link to the list didn't seem to be working, so check out the Plan Philly article for the endangered locations.  My favorite quote from the website: "A city without old buildings is like a person without a memory" -Konrad Smigielski

The Group's purpose as stated on their website:
Save our sites will advocate for the preservation of sites and structures within the City of Philadelphia deemed valuable. These sites include historic ones, though they may not always be certified or in historic districts. The modern, the vernacular and those properties not fitting into any particular category, will be the focus of Save Our Sites as well. . Therefore, Save Our Site's mission goes beyond historic preservation in the narrow sense, with the intention of preserving Philadelphia as a highly livable, traditional city.


Save Our Sites, in addition to its focus on preservation, will advocate for new development that is appropriate to each site and that is compatible with its surroundings.
Save Our Sites will stress the link between preservation and sustainability.

Tuesday Links

Philadelphia Inquirer
Major Snowstorm to Arrive by Evening Philadelphia Inquirer
Sheriff's Office May Owe Millions in Unclaimed Auction Proceeds Daily News
Robbins Diamonds Closes Two Stores Philadelphia Inquirer
Unlisted: West Philadelphia Title and Trust Field Notes
Foxwoods Team asks PGCB to Renistate its License

New Restaurant Two Weeks from Opening in Old Paesano's Location at 9th and Christian

Photo: Grub Street Philadelphia

Things are happening at what is to be the "only real Sicilian food in town".  Paesano's will be moving a couple of blocks south to Bebe Barbeques old location to make way for Peter McAndrew's new project.  McAndrews is lining up his staff and there is a lot of action in preparation for the opening.