Legal Limbo for Locust Club Condo Project
Have you ever wondered why the east side of Broad Street in Center City is thick with construction cranes, while relatively few new condo buildings are rising in the tony Rittenhouse Square neighborhood? My guess is that it has nothing to do with demand, and everything to do with the per capita population of lawyers.
The latest residential project to run into the brick wall of lawsuits is a 17-unit condo project proposed for the site of the formr Locust Club, on the 1600 block of Locust Street. Judge Matthew J. Carrafiello, who is one of the few people in City Hall who thinks the Zoning Board of Adjustmust ought to follow the law, last week revoked the project's building permit on technical grounds. Judge Carrafiello faulted the Department of Licenses and Inspections for mis-measuring windows and driveway ramps. But his real beef was that the ZBA neglected to post the required legal notices advertising a hearing on the project. Needless to say, it's not the first time.
It's true that the methods are flawed. But as condo projects go, the eight-story apartment house by Agoos-Lovera is one of the most benign in town. Yet it has been stuck in legal limbo for over a year because it happens to be on the same block as Berger & Montague, one of Philadelphia's most successful litigators. They contend that the modestly modern mid-rise will ruin the historic block.
They're not the only ones working to keep the Rittenhouse Square neighborhood from changing. The group that calls itself Save Our Square is awaiting another ruling from Judge Carrafiello on the Robert Stern tower at 18th and Walnut, behind the former Rittenhouse Club. It's due any day. Meanwhile, the Cope Linder tower at 17th and Rittenhouse is also mired in legal wrangling, as are the dueling towers on the former Meridian site at 15th and Chestnut Streets.
The latest residential project to run into the brick wall of lawsuits is a 17-unit condo project proposed for the site of the formr Locust Club, on the 1600 block of Locust Street. Judge Matthew J. Carrafiello, who is one of the few people in City Hall who thinks the Zoning Board of Adjustmust ought to follow the law, last week revoked the project's building permit on technical grounds. Judge Carrafiello faulted the Department of Licenses and Inspections for mis-measuring windows and driveway ramps. But his real beef was that the ZBA neglected to post the required legal notices advertising a hearing on the project. Needless to say, it's not the first time.
It's true that the methods are flawed. But as condo projects go, the eight-story apartment house by Agoos-Lovera is one of the most benign in town. Yet it has been stuck in legal limbo for over a year because it happens to be on the same block as Berger & Montague, one of Philadelphia's most successful litigators. They contend that the modestly modern mid-rise will ruin the historic block.
They're not the only ones working to keep the Rittenhouse Square neighborhood from changing. The group that calls itself Save Our Square is awaiting another ruling from Judge Carrafiello on the Robert Stern tower at 18th and Walnut, behind the former Rittenhouse Club. It's due any day. Meanwhile, the Cope Linder tower at 17th and Rittenhouse is also mired in legal wrangling, as are the dueling towers on the former Meridian site at 15th and Chestnut Streets.
posted by Inga Saffron at 2:37 PM
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