Former St. Joseph’s Hospital building gets transformed into apartments

A former Francisville hospital that closed in 2016 is getting the adaptive reuse treatment.

The building at 16th and Girard, once home to St. Joseph’s Hospital, is currently undergoing a $24 million renovation process. By August or September, it should be transformed into an apartment building called “The Civic,” complete with 88 living units and 33,000 square feet of retail, according to David Waxman of MMPartners, the group behind the project.

Since 2001, MMPartners has been developing in and around Brewerytown, with the latest project on their horizon being the Red Bell Brewery renovations. Waxman says the former hospital is a natural next step for the group.

“It sat vacant for a year,” Waxman says of the building, adding that it was a sort of “dead zone” in the heart of the neighborhood. He’s eager to bring that dead zone back to life through new retail and commercial space, especially.

The apartment portion of the building will include amenities like a roof deck, club room, and game room, according to The Civic website. It will also have a yoga room, fitness center, and pet grooming station.

They’ve already started listing apartments, with the smallest unit—a micro—starting at 350 square feet for nearly $1,050. The largest units, which are two bedrooms, reach 1,800 square feet for $2,500 a month. Waxman said the building is already 20 percent leased out, and the group is holding an open house on April 26 from 4 to 7 p.m.

MMPartners bought the 167,000-square-foot apartment in 2017 for $8 million, according to the Philly Business Journal, who first reported the news about The Civic. They have tenants planned for the retail space but haven’t revealed the names of those retailers yet.