8th and Market site to remain a parking lot—for now

Despite the sheer amount of development and construction underway just down the street, the large parking lot at 8th and Market will remain that way—for now.

Philadelphia Business Journal reports that the parking lot’s owner Goldenberg Group hopes to develop the site into something more, but not for another three years.

On July 25, the Zoning Board of Adjustment (ZBA) granted the developer’s request to receive a three-year extension on its parking lot permit, which allows for 292 parking spaces. The variance is needed because the site is zoned CMX-5, which allows for the highest and most dense development.

The extension is set to expire on January 21, 2021.

That’s when Goldenberg Group hopes a development deal will come up to turn the site into something more, with the idea that it’s one of the last remaining development sites on the Market East corridor. Goldenberg said:

"We believe the right project has to combine a fabulous retail and entertainment hub that activates the street frontage for pedestrians, with significant tower components that add vitality to the corridor and neighborhood."

By that point, both the two towers at the $600 million mixed-use development East Market and the renovation of the Gallery into the Fashion Outlets of Philadelphia across the street will have opened.

• 8th & Market parking lot owner tight-lipped about long-term plans [PBJ]