Between the cross streets of East Passyunk Avenue, Washington Avenue, and South 8th Street lies an eyesore. Before it became a triangular vacant lot in 2016, it was home to Captain Jesse G. Crabs Inc. Besides live crabs and other fresh seafood, the crab shack and its concrete surroundings also sold produce and had a parking lot. A parking lot! Now unheard of in the area. So, what’s going on?
Rumors swirled in 2020 that a property development company had bought the lot and was going to build condos or luxury apartments. I would have preferred a community garden and free library within the space, but after hearing that developers already had their greedy capitalist hands on it, and not being in the business of owning anything, I gave up on my fantasy. But I lived right across the street from this lot for nearly three years, and nothing was done with it, besides what community members did.
You may remember in 2023 and early 2024 when not one, but two guerilla-esque art installations popped up in the lot. The first one was something referred to as “Boob Garden”, an arrangement of vintage and antique wooden chairs that were donned in handmade stuffed boobs. The boob chairs were awesome, and remained there until Independence Day when someone decided to set off fireworks either right underneath them, or at least too close to them. I remember hearing it and looking out my window to see pieces of wood and cotton stuffing reaching 10 feet in every direction. RIP Boob Chairs. If you are bewildered by this, let us not forget hitchBOT, the friendly hitchhiking robot that made his way across Canada and Germany, before being decapitated in Philadelphia while en route from Boston to San Francisco. RIP hitchBOT (you are the only robot I will ever mourn. F*** all other robots and their creators).
The second art installation displayed on the lot was a “Rave Coffin”, which is exactly what you’d imagine. It was a real coffin that stood approximately 4’ tall and was covered in rainbow tie-dye fabric. There was a stool to match, a guitar hero guitar inside, and dozens of small stuffed animals on the open cover of the coffin. As the days went by, more stuffed animals appeared inside the coffin, as well as trash.
Boob Garden and Rave Coffin are basically the only things that have been on the lot within the last five years, besides the yearly beer cans, feathers and spray paint cans left behind by Mummers. Regardless, it seems many people see potential in the triangle of uneven cement.
According to an article published in 2019 on Curbed Philly, a news site centered around architecture and real estate, developers and architecture firms definitely had their eyes set on buying this plot of land and, of course, turning it into a much worse eyesore with much less personality. 39 units within a six story building, with no parking and only 15 bike spaces. Theoretically it is named “Market House” and the design makes it look like it was dropped from outer space. Who came up with this?
None other than OCF Realty, the union-busting housing monopoly that was sued for housing discrimination. Their plans to build this monstrosity were last mentioned in late 2020. OCF had also previously set their sights on the lot located a block away where Anastasi Seafood stood for decades, but they 86-ed it, according to their website. The property search tool on the City of Philadelphia’s website says that the lot is currently owned by 1100 Passyunk Partners LLC and that it was bought for $2.85 million on October 9, 2020.
The “Market House” Project was also listed in the 2022 Center City District and Central Philadelphia Development Corporation’s Report, which also featured 76 Place at Market East.
According to a 2023 post by PhillyYIMBY.com “Permits list HC Pody Company as the contractor and specify a construction cost of $52 million.” HC Pody’s Google Reviews are not inspiring.
The acronym “YIMBY” stands for “Yes in my backyard” which is a response to “NIMBY-ism” which means the opposite, the two groups are dug into an eternal feud over housing policy.
The future will tell if 1100 Passyunk Partners LLC will make their dreams a reality.
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