Two Mount Airy Landmarks to be Rehabilitated
[August 12, 2005] Last spring the Preservation Alliance joined community organizations in Mount Airy in opposing the demolition of two landmark buildings on Johnson Street: the 1896 Chateauesque-style Nugent Home for Baptists, and the adjacent 1914 Presser Home for Retired Music Teachers. A local congregation wanted to tear down the properties to construct a new church and related structures. Demolition was thwarted when the Philadelphia Historical Commission designated both properties as locally protected resources. The Alliance prepared and submitted the designation nomination for the Nugent House, while community activist Stephen Anderson prepared and submitted the nomination for the Presser Home.
Defeating demolition was only one-half the battle for preservation, however. Although now protected under the city's preservation ordinance, both buildings still stood vacant and deteriorating. The owners of the properties put them back on the market and fortunately received several offers to purchase and rehabilitate the historic buildings.
As the following reprinted article describes, developers have now stepped in to convert both buildings to market-rate apartments, a proposal which will both preserve the structures and use them in a manner acceptable to the neighborhood.
DEVELOPERS PARTNER TO REHAB HISTORIC MT. AIRY SITE
by MICHAEL MISHAK [reprinted with permission from the August 4th edition of the Chestnut Hill Local]
Two Philadelphia-area developers have partnered to purchase and renovate the Mt. Airy site at the heart of last year's preservation controversy. Nolen Companies, of Manayunk, and Visionary Development Company, of Wallingford, Pa., are drafting plans to convert two historic buildings on West Johnson Street into market-rate apartments, said principals of both firms in interviews last week.
The Nugent Home for Baptists (top) and the Presser Home for Retired Music Teachers (historical view)
While the developers are designing a series of preliminary plans to present to the community at an Aug. 16 meeting, James A. Nolen IV, of Nolen Cos., said one of the buildings, the former Presser Home for Retired Musicians, would house about 50 units, while the other, the former Nugent Baptist Home, would house about 30. Apartments will be one-bedroom, two-bedroom and studio, he said.
Both buildings were designated historic by the Philadelphia Historical Commission last fall after three area community groups formed a coalition to oppose the plans of another prospective buyer.
Impacting Your World Ministries, a nondenominational Germantown church, had sought to move its operation to the 5.6-acre site in West Mt. Airy, but encountered community opposition when it was revealed that part of its plan involved demolition.
The strictures of historic designation rendered the church¹s project cost-prohibitive, and its agreement of sale with the property owner later expired. Nolen Cos. and Visionary Development Company entered the picture earlier this year and won a three-way bid for the property.
Both developers have expressed a commitment to restoring the historic buildings to their original grandeur. An on-site carriage house, which is also set for renovation, will initially serve as a management office and could later be converted to two or three additional units, said Sean McDougall, of Visionary Development Company.
"I don't find the historic guidelines too restrictive," Nolen said. "It's pretty much what we would have done anyway. For the most part, we're [the government oversight agencies and the developers] trying to accomplish the same thing."
The Johnson Street project will also involve new construction, which the developers plan to build on a vacant lot between the two existing buildings, he said. The design and density of the structure has yet to be determined.
According to McDougall, the new construction will have the architectural "flavor" of Germantown and Mt. Airy without mimicking the adjacent historic buildings. The Philadelphia Historical Commission, one of several oversight agencies monitoring the project, prefers new construction to be "clearly distinguishable" from older counterparts, he said.
While the Presser and Nugent buildings will house apartments, Nolen said he has not ruled out the option of condominiums for the new construction.
Both developers have experience with historic renovation projects. In 2003, Nolen converted the old AB Wiper building in Manayunk into a $7 million state-of-the-art storage facility. The redevelopment of the 100,000-square-foot structure, which dates back to the 1920s, won the firm national recognition. Visionary has undertaken a number of historic renovations, the most recent of which involved the conversion of an 8-story building in Center City into a 58-unit apartment complex.
"I love historic renovations," Nolen said. "I think that's what scared other developers away from the [Johnson Street] properties. It's easier to build from scratch than it is to take someone else¹s problems and fix them."
The developers have hired the Washington, D.C. -based William Calomiris Company as the project architect. The firm has a strong record of historic renovation work, Nolen said.
All are factors that have led to the initial support of the area's three community groups. The developers discussed their vision with representatives from the Pomona-Cherokee Civic Council, West Mt. Airy Neighbors and West Central Germantown Neighbors at a meeting brokered by City Councilwoman Donna Reed Miller last month.
"We're pleased that they're going to restore the buildings, as closely as possible, to their original appearance and preserve the landscaping," said Jim Foster, vice president of the Pomona-Cherokee Civic Council.
Jarma Frisby, president of West Mt. Airy Neighbors, agreed. "Everything we've seen so far is impressive, " she said.
Still, the project, which the developers estimate could cost between $30 and $40 million, presents a unique challenge. Because the buildings were originally designed as retirement homes, "no two units will be the same," McDougall said. "It's great from a marketing standpoint, but difficult when it comes to construction."
The wide hallways in both the Presser and Nugent buildings represent between 45 to 50 percent "wasted space, " twice the normal amount of new construction, he said. The situation, the developers said, requires building another structure to make the project cost effective.
McDougall said if the city permitting process proceeds without any hitches, workers could break ground by January.
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