It’s not a dream, people. The long-planned transformation
of the Divine Lorraine Hotel into a luxury apartment building starting to
become a reality. It’s now fully funded and Chris Cordaro, vice president with
EB Realty Management (EBRM), has let us in on some tantalizing tidbits of
information regarding the mother of all redevelopment projects, as well as a
few others EBRM properties.
Though Billy Procida, the investor behind the project,
said that construction could start on the Divine Lorraine by the end of July,
Cordaro tells us they’re currently planning a groundbreaking event of sorts at
the site, “probably in early August.”
As you know, New York-based developer RAL is planning a
large scale apartment tower/grocery store directly next to the Divine Lorraine
on Ridge Avenue. Cordaro said the the two groups have been collaborating
closely to make sure the buildings work with each other. As such, a shared
green wall will be erected alongside the "Garden Veranda" level of
the Divine Lorraine.
That brings us to the retail portion of the project.
Cordaro mentioned that they've identified restaurateurs for the commercial
space, which will now be four new restaurant concepts "of the
Vetri-caliber" and not high end retailers.
Cordaro wouldn't dish on specific names or even cuisines,
but EBRM is bringing chef Josh Mims to their Studebaker project and has the
aforementioned Marc Vetri's Osteria at their Lofts at 640 building.
Two large restaurants will be located at street level,
with what he called a "grand bar" in between them in the lobby as the
hub of the project. The bar would be a place where people could order fine
drinks and tapas-like dishes from each of the four restaurants. The two
remaining dining options would be located in the Garden Veranda and in the
annex to the east, respectively.
Mural Lofts:
As for a project that is nearing completion, Cordaro said
that they're 75 percent done with the construction at Mural Lofts at Broad and
Spring Garden. The plan is to have it ready to go by October and a model unit
should be coming online "soon." The demand for an apartment at Mural
Lofts has been high. Billy Procida told us in June that they have well over 600
people on the waiting list for 57 apartments.
Abbotts Square:
The action isn't only on North Broad Street, either. EBRM
is swapping the upper level garage at Abbotts Square for 47 apartment units,
said Cordaro. The garage was mainly used for monthly parking space, but had
seen numbers decline recently.
Source: Phillymag.com
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