Editor’s Note: A version of this story was published in the Fall 2024 issue of Extant, a publication of the Preservation Alliance for Greater Philadelphia.

Monumental Baptist Church

Location: 4101 Ludlow Street

Built: 1884

Threat: Stalled development

On the northwest corner of 41st and Ludlow streets is the former Monumental Baptist Church, a modest, but important African American house of worship. While the building was successfully nominated by the Keeping Society of Philadelphia to the Philadelphia Register of Historic Places in 2017, its future is uncertain as approved development plans have stalled.

The second-oldest African American Baptist congregation in Philadelphia and Pennsylvania and the first in West Philadelphia (then Blockley Township) occupied the site at 4101 Ludlow Street from 1829 to 1967.

During that period, the congregation was an anchor of West Philadelphia’s African American community.

The current building was constructed in two phases in 1884 and 1914. Its brick masonry has been painted a vibrant red and white on the street-facing elevations. As Monumental’s membership increased in the mid-1900s, congregants needed a larger space. In 1967, they moved to 50th and Locust, where they still reside, and sold the 41st property to St. James Pentecostal Church. They occupied the property until 2019, when it was sold to a real estate developer. Prior to this, it was likely the oldest site in West Philadelphia that was continually occupied by Black Philadelphians.

In 2020, a development scheme emerged to adaptively reuse the church as a rock-climbing gym. The Philadelphia Historical Commission approved the plan to repurpose the first floor and mezzanine and construct a four-story addition for climbing. Unfortunately, the property’s commercial building and zoning permits have expired, as construction did not begin within three years. The building is currently vacant and in deteriorating condition.

Big Brothers Big Sisters Headquarters

Location: 230 N. 13th Street

Built: 1945

Threat: Stalled development

William Harold Lee designed the brick, two-story building at the corner of N. 13th and Florist Streets in 1945. The building is a distinctive example of the Art Moderne style, with an asymmetrical façade and horizontal emphasis. The design feature curves at the southeast corner and southern elevation in the projecting bay, canopy, and windows. Warner Bros. used the building for a decade to convey movies from production companies to movie houses. It was constructed during the final years of the golden age of film and is a testament to Philadelphia’s role in the film industry’s distribution sector. Subsequent uses included offices for a law firm, an insurance company and, notably, NFL Films from 1967 to 1982.

In 1983, it was purchased by the Big Brothers Big Sisters Association (BBBSA) and the building served as their national headquarters until 2014. Freestanding Modernistic letters atop the cornice, in a similar style to the original, marked BBBSA’s tenure in the building. In 2008, the Preservation Alliance successfully nominated the building to the Philadelphia Register of Historic Places.

In 2014, a plan emerged to utilize the historic structure as a base for a hotel tower. The Historical Commission approved the 12-story–later revised to 15-story–overbuild. The requisite permits were filed between 2018 and 2021, but limited physical work has occurred except for the addition of signage advertising the development. Earlier this year, the building was listed for sale. As the it languishes, some of the iconic lettering has disappeared due to either theft or deterioration.

Chestnut Street Arcade

Location: 1812 Chestnut Street

Built: 1925

Threat: Demolition

In April, a zoning demolition permit was filed for 1812-14 Chestnut Street. The building was designed by Gravel & Hall in 1925 as the Chestnut Street Arcade. The two-story Beaux Arts building was a covered shopping arcade featuring an arched public walkway that extended from Chestnut to Sansom Streets. It afforded retailers lower rents while being adjacent to the bustling shopping corridor of Chestnut Street.

The ground floor was modified in the late 1960s to house Theater 1812, which featured live performances. In 1983, Budco, later acquired by AMC, took over the theater, and converted it to a movie house. It closed in 1992 and the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers (PFT) occupied the space. Today, Boyds rents the ground-floor windows for displays at both 1812 and 1816, which PFT also owns.

PFT acquired zoning permits for the demolition of both properties shortly before listing them for sale. A zoning permit alone is not enough to bring the buildings down–a building permit for demolition is also required. At the time of publication, PFT is under an agreement of sale with the owner of 1810 Chestnut Street, formerly Freeman’s Auction House, who has plans and permits to construct a 20-story overbuild there. The developer is considering incorporating 1812-16 Chestnut Street into the proposed project. The Preservation Alliance advocates for reusing 1812 Chestnut Street in the scheme rather than demolishing it.

The property contributes to the National Register Center City West Commercial Historic District, but is not on the Philadelphia Register, which regulates demolitions. The original arcade archway is still visible from Sansom Street.

Overseas Motor Works

Location: 1501 Fairmount Avenue

Built: 1930

Threat: Stalled development

The Art Deco commercial building at Fairmount Avenue and 15th Street was designed by architect Samuel Brian Baylinson in 1930 as an automobile showroom. The one-story, cast stone structure, with large display windows and a prominent corner two-story tower, was one block away from the established “automobile row” of North Broad Street, which became a 29-property thematic historic district in 2021 on the strength of a Preservation Alliance nomination.

Baylinson’s design is an architecturally distinctive example of the Art Deco style, with its refined ornament of fluted columns, decorative swags, medallions, floral friezes, and urn finials. It utilized monochromism, with the ornamentation rendered in the same cast stone as the rest of the building, creating sculptural, but uniform elevations. The structure remained connected to the auto industry, containing a foreign auto sale and repair shop from 1981 to 2016.

The Preservation Alliance successfully nominated the building to the Philadelphia Register of Historic Places in 2015. The property was proposed for residential conversion with a four-story addition for 20 residential units. The new addition would occupy the rear portion of the site and be set back 30 feet from Fairmount Avenue. The Historical Commission approved the design, and permits were issued in 2021.

Interior demolition began in early 2023, leaving a stripped skeleton of steel framing behind the stone elevations. Since then, the shell has been left open to the elements, with no signs of the new construction proceeding. There are currently no active permits for the site, leaving the preserved facade supported by wooden bracing.

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