On
Tuesday, the Preservation Alliance for Greater Philadelphia faced another
defeat in its months-long campaign to protect a portion of historic Jewelers’
Row, now the site of a high-rise condo planned by Horsham-based Toll Brothers.
The
historic preservation advocacy group waged its latest battle before the Board
of L&I Review. This body considers appeals to decisions made by the
Department of Licenses and Inspections (L&I) and the Historical Commission.
The Preservation Alliance appealed the demolition permit issued for Toll’s
project.
The
centerpiece of the advocacy group’s claim is that a historically-protected
property at the edge of Toll’s development—a three-story rowhouse at the corner
of Sansom and 7th streets from the early 1800s Carstairs Row —extends to
several adjacent buildings that Toll plans to demolish in order to build its
tower.
The
Preservation Alliance argues that the protection afforded to the old rowhouse
covers the entire tax parcel, which stretches back to an alley and includes
four smaller commercial buildings along 7th Street. These one-story buildings
would be demolished as part of Toll’s plan, and replaced with a loading dock
for the proposed condo tower.
The
Preservation Alliance initially made its case on March 28th, but the Review
Board decided to push off its decision until April. Tuesday afternoon it ruled
in favor of the city’s lawyers, who argued that the building at 700 Sansom, and
not its tax parcel, was the relevant factor in the case.
The
advocacy group’s argument hinged on the long and confusing history of the
protections surrounding 700 Sansom Street, which dates from the turn of the
19th century.
Go
to PlanPhilly.com for more details
on the argument made against the Preservation Alliance's view.
Source: Philadelphia
Business Journal
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