Goldman Still Going

by Amy L. Webb

Four years ago, development visionary Tony Goldman promised Philadelphia a chic neighborhood similar to Manhattan’s SoHo and Miami’s South Beach. Since then, it may seem as if Goldman has packed up and moved out of town.

Actually, he just moved down the street.

Goldman Properties is relocating to a new office at 121 S. 13th St. The space, a 2,000-square-foot corner on the building's fourth floor, will be Goldman's permanent Philadelphia office.

"Our office here was always temporary -- it's just an old warehouse with no windows," says Glenn Boyer, who heads design and construction for Goldman in Philadelphia. "We're moving our office in January to where we'll be in the heart of the neighborhood."

That neighborhood, a two-block radius around 13th and Walnut, is now known as the B3, or "Blocks Below Broad." In the 1990s, Goldman came to Philadelphia promising to turn the seedy porn houses along the B3 -- formerly, and casually, known as the Gayborhood -- into hip retail and residential space.

"Goldman never left," Boyer says. "It takes time to create a neighborhood. Work doesn't get done without hiring the architects, going through the design, modifying the design, negotiating the contracts. The process, depending on Tony's vision for that building, can take over a year just to do the design."

Goldman was also waiting for the market to grow -- the past four years in Philadelphia haven't been a model of economic growth. The city's population, jobs and wealth continued a 30-year decline and development around the city slowed.

"All real estate is finance-driven," Boyer says, "so until the financial pro forma makes sense to move forward with certain projects, things don't progress. Now we do have a lot of projects on the table. A lot of the development that was originally spoken of four years ago will happen in the next 18 months."

Already, the B3 landscape has started to transform. Last week, restaurateur Stephen Starr opened El Vez, the latest in his series of trendy nightspots. Starr, who is credited for breathing new life into Old City, is the mind behind Buddakan, Morimoto and the Continental Martini Bar and Restaurant.

Designer Matthew Izzo, who brought his own line of home decor to Antique Row, is slated to open a clothing boutique next month.

In addition, Boyer says that loft-space construction at 107-119 S. 13th St. started at the beginning of October, and should be occupied by May. "They're based on the New York model," he says. "High ceilings, exposed ductwork, hardwood floors, granite countertops, stainless steel appliances, open space and lots of light. We're also carving out a courtyard in the back of all those buildings."