November 2022 Philadelphia Mastermind Group Key Take Aways!
- Philadelphia’s Department of Planning and Development oversees the realm of the built environment. Divisions within it include the Division of Planning and Zoning, Development Services, and the Division of Housing and Community Development. (Catherine Califano – City of Philadelphia)
- Planning and Development has recently been restructured, pulling eight departments into two and creating a more efficient process. (Catherine Califano – City of Philadelphia)
- There have been more properties registered as historic than any other previous administration. They want to keep the character of communities and neighborhoods. (Catherine Califano – City of Philadelphia)
- Produced over 3000 new units of affordable housing with 2500 more anticipated before the end of administration. (Catherine Califano – City of Philadelphia)
- Philadelphia has less of a homeless problem than other large cities, in part due to the availability of workforce housing at different price points. (Catherine Califano – City of Philadelphia)
- They are working with companies and other organizations to support residents with only a high school diploma to work in labs. There is a lot of lab work that can be learned as part of a training program. (Catherine Califano – City of Philadelphia)
- Recent report on the Council for Growth website that lists Philadelphia as the 2nd best hub for cell and gene therapy. They are hoping to get to #1. (Catherine Califano – City of Philadelphia)
- There is a new program called Turn the Key with the goal of adding 1000 units of affordable housing in the next 3 years. City is providing land to developers, but free land isn’t always enough. They’re also working on financing options. (Catherine Califano – City of Philadelphia)
- The Philly First Home program has helped many homeowners in the city, offering $10K toward a down payment or other fees related to the purchase of a home. (Catherine Califano – City of Philadelphia)
- A portion of their funding is also going to developing commercial corridors. (Catherine Califano – City of Philadelphia)
- Philadelphia stands out as a life sciences hub due to their significant workforce, large number of similar companies, educational institutions, access to venture capital and affordability. CHOP also contributed by continuing research cut off by the federal government during the previous administration. (Catherine Califano – City of Philadelphia)
- Philadelphia’s industrial past has been an advantage, with buildings that are able to be converted to meet the needs of life sciences companies. (Catherine Califano – City of Philadelphia)
- There is movement to improve infrastructure. The city is working with SEPTA on a new program called the Bus Revolution, aimed at getting more people to the train lines faster, among other programs working toward improving transportation options. (Catherine Califano – City of Philadelphia)
- A letter of intent was sent with Philadelphia, NJ and Delaware for a proposed hydrogen hub. The Chamber is holding conversations in December. (Catherine Califano – City of Philadelphia)
- SEPTA has new leadership in place and is exploring more ways to improve things. There are federal incentives for transit-oriented funding. (Catherine Califano – City of Philadelphia)
- Community Preservation Alliance – Act 135 allows people in the commonwealth to take aim at blighted properties. (Stephen Arrivello – Axcel Capital Group)
- Deals are slow to close. Owners are waiting for interest rates to go down and material and labor prices to come down which has left them in a holding pattern. Expects ‘23 should be a good year, but ‘24 is uncertain. (Michael Mostochuk – EisnerAmper)
- Old City is experiencing more foot traffic, growth in residential and good vacancy numbers in retail. But a lot of offices remain empty, and many of those employees are not coming back. (Job Itzkowitz – Old City District)
- Recent parking study from Econsult suggested even with residential growth, there is enough available street parking. They eliminated parking minimums to facilitate development. (Job Itzkowitz – Old City District)
- Noticing a lot of hybrid working in offices, which hurts the city as a whole. (Ed Opall – EisnerAmper)
- There is a liquidity crisis in real estate that hasn’t been seen in a generation. Some deals are being restructured and construction financing has been grinding to a halt. NASDAQ biotech is down 40% and investors are encouraging companies to conserve. (Paul Garvey – Cushman & Wakefield)
- ICSC (International Council of Shopping Centers) met recently in Orlando for a law conference. There are elements of the retail sector doing quite well. (Bart Mellits – Ballard Spahr)
- Deals are happening but slowly, and there are a lot of projects sitting in limbo. (Matt Musilli – Johnson, Kendall & Johnson)
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