Here are a couple current examples happening right now. On Edgmont and 3rd street a property was recently subdivided to make way for a single family home.
On East 6th Street a rancher style home is being gutted and built with a second floor. A driveway is also being installed.
How much development is too much? Politicians won't touch the subject but they should address infrastructure, traffic and parking concerns. Where things go from here and at what point do homes become overvalued will ultimately be decided by the economy and housing market.
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Shame about 3rd and Edgmont, the existing home is one of my favorite pieces of architecture in town. Trashing up the wonderful lawn with a new home kills the charm of the view off of that porch.
ReplyDeleteIn either case, that's why I'd continue to support the borough buying up vacant lots for pocket parks.
Edgmont and 3rd was not "recently subdivided" - it was subdivided more than a dozen years ago. The prior owners of the land opted to sell off the vacant lot for an rather exorbitant amount last year.
ReplyDeleteThe lot on third was two parcels. There was no new subdivision. When the new owners bought the existing house, they had the option to purchase the adjacent lot as part of the sale. They chose not to, knowing that it if they didn’t it would be sold separately. If someone on here waned to give those new owners an extra +200K to purchase the lot, then by all means, you should have donated those funds to the owners so that they could have preserved the lot. Or, the option was there to buy the lot yourselves and donate it to the borough as open space. It is easy to say that you wish the lot remine open, but the economics are hard to argue with…it was a valuable parcel in the borough, sold appropriately for a new dwelling.
ReplyDeleteCan you imagine how up in arms people on here would be if the borough intervened to change the zoning or deny the ability to legally sell the land for its existing zoned use? There would be outrage that the borough intervened on a legal private sales. It would be the 5th street pocket park argument all over again. Seems like there are a lot of schizophrenic opinions on this board, depending on the project…either you want private individuals/businesses to be able to operate within the laws of the borough without improper borough interference (Wawa, Hotel)....or you want to borough to intervene and block (or slow down) development (West End development, new housing, traffic easing). Which is it? Free economy or government regulation?
Thanks, Anonymous.
DeleteAs the relatively new owner of that existing home, I am happy to add that we are still willing to accept +200K donations in memory of that formerly vacant lot. Your donation will entitle you to a beer on my porch during the next Media 5 Mile Race ��
EXACTLY!!! YOU ARE SPOT ON!! Seriously surprised we dont have Mr. Pennoni on here ... telling us exactly how good this is ... I don't get it, other than I assume Vince thinks he could have made more money on the 5th and Broomall property rather than this one lot because he woulda been able to build even MORE houses!!
DeleteSo, I'll say it -- thank you Council for actually trying to preserve an open lot and giving Media a park in the NW corner instead of trying to infill. Luckily, the Borough has closed on the 5th St park property, and since it was designated as a park at close, per Pennsylvania Law, it can only ever be a park... thank god.
Ah, unbiased facts, thank you!
DeleteThe 'too much development' complaint happens all the time, everywhere, and it's hilarious. The development that attracts you to a location is good economics, desirable, and never adversely impacts traffic. The development that draws OTHER PEOPLE to your location is questionable economics (are we on the bubble??), ruins the history, culture, and beauty of the location, and will create gridlock traffic everywhere.
Agree with the schizophrenic opinions too. I really wonder if the politics were different would we be reading about how borough council 'held firm' and deftly negotiated for a beautiful gateway Wawa with appropriate infrastructure improvements included in the deal. And how the clever politicians secured a 'great deal' on a potentially beautiful park within the borough, where green space is so rare.
Pat -- your house is awesome -- welcome to you and your family to the Borough. Would love to have a beer with you on your front porch, do you enjoy IPAs?
DeleteAnonymous - I could not agree with you more. The simple point is this... if YOU want to control how a piece of real estate is developed, there is one way to accomplish it, BUY IT!!! Otherwise, you have no beef!
DeletePretty much done w/ Media; If I wanted to live in the city I would.
ReplyDeleteYeah...great. When it's gone, it's gone. Pretty soon you won't be able to tell the difference between Media and Philadelphia.
ReplyDeleteYes, that certainly seems like a big worry.
DeleteTedmano -- any word on what is going on with the basically empty mansion at 8th and N Jackson? Appears there is a demo going on... Would be interesting to find out more on it since that plot is one of the largest in the borough...
ReplyDeleteFollow up -- appears that was Media Real Estate's Walter Strine Sr's mansion... been empty since 2009, based on an article I just read... But it appears there's some movement/demo going on on the property... Be great if you could find out Tedmano.
ReplyDeleteYes, it was recently sold. The new owner will be knocking it down in the next few weeks. I'll do a post about it tomorrow, but don't be surprise if 6 units are proposed.
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