January 06, 2021
Street View/Google
The 7-Eleven at 23 West Girard Avenue in Fishtown could be replaced with an apartment building, maximizing density around SEPTA's Girard Station on the Market-Frankford Line.
A growing emphasis on transit-oriented development around SEPTA's Market-Frankford Line could result in new apartments near Girard Station, potentially replacing the 7-Eleven less than a block from the station.
Philly development blog Rising Real Estate reported Monday that a 97-unit apartment building will be proposed at the site of the one-story 7-Eleven near Front Street and Girard Avenue.
Given Fishtown's steady growth as a destination neighborhood, it's not surprising that higher aspirations for the property would eventually surface around the appeal of a short walk to the El.
In recent years, City Council has given more attention to incentivizing developers with density bonuses for projects near SEPTA stations. These are areas that should take advantage of their proximity to public transit, greatly reducing the need for vehicles among residents at these properties.
The 7-Eleven location was previously a Long John Silver's and KFC.
Rising Real Estate's Kyle McShane said it's likely an eventual project would include ground-floor retail, though it's unclear whether 7-Eleven would remain in those plans. It's a busy store for the same reason it's attractive to residential developers — SEPTA riders stop in before and after catching the subway.
"With approximately 100 feet of frontage on Girard and more than 200 feet of lot depth, there’s a huge opportunity to build a special retail space here," McShane wrote. "We imagine the owners will build out a sizable commercial space with high ceilings and large street-facing windows in order to attract a premium tenant. Time will tell."
Renderings for the reported project are not yet available, but they'll follow when the proposal is submitted to the Civic Design Review process.
As for the 7-Eleven, it's been the textbook definition of convenience during its time there. There's a Dollar Tree next door, 3J's Food Market is on the opposite side of the street, and Acme and Family Dollar are a short walk from the El. Of course, they don't have taquitos and single slices of pizza, so that would be a loss.
If 7-Eleven doesn't remain on the site, ideally the ground floor retail would include a place offering similar convenience.
