Did anyone happen to catch a segment on Fox "News" last night regarding a supposed dead-beat developer at 18th and Christian? It seems from what I've heard that the network reported the story without regard for the facts, and I'm upset by it and wish I could somehow see the TV segment.
The gist of it is that a friend of mine has been struggling valiantly with the Zoning Board for almost a year to get the appropriate permits to redevelop a 20-year abandoned post office into condominiums, and the building has appeared to languish during this process. Meanwhile, Fox news reports that the developers "abandoned" the project and that it's now a public nuisance. The funny thing is that my friend finally did just get the zoning permit, so work will begin immediately.
This sounds like what the University of Pennsylvania did with the failed Sundance Theater project -- by letting the property sit there "abandoned" for six months or so after the original partner went Bankrupt and while they searched for a new partner, the University was able to get the block declared "blighted" by the City and therefore eligible for all kinds of different "considerations" not available to the "non-blighted."
One wonders if the driving force behind such a news report was exactly that -- an attempt to get a "blighted" designation for the property ... to get the Zoning Board to approve the permit.
That would be the typical Philadelphia Way.
T.T.F.N. William H. Magill [EMAIL PROTECTED] [EMAIL PROTECTED] [EMAIL PROTECTED] [EMAIL PROTECTED]
---- You are receiving this because you are subscribed to the list named "UnivCity." To unsubscribe or for archive information, see <http://www.purple.com/list.html>.
