- Philadelphia Business Journal
- June 8, 2007 by Natalie Kostelni, Staff Writer
West Chester, PA
West Chester, the county seat of Chester County that has become a tony little town, is starting to see an uptick in pricey real estate deals.
Last month, the Iron Hill building, which houses the Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant and is credited with kicking off the revitalization of the college town, was sold to Pearl Properties for $4.6 million. The 26,800sf structure is at 3 W. Gay St. Fox Chase Bank bought a 6,908sf bank branch at 137 N. High St. for about $1.4 million.
Now another bank has bobbled up a building along High Street. First National Bank of Chester County bought 1-3 N. High, a 19,000-square-foot building, from TD Banknorth for more than $3 million. First National already owns 1-9 N. High, and the purchase of the other structure adds to its presence and will allow it to expand its services. Jackson Cross Partners arranged the transaction.
Another building along High Street recently hit the market. The Green Tree, a 56,309-square-foot mixed-used property at 111 N. High is on the market for $10 million. The structure, about 100 percent occupied, has 64 apartments, three stores and a cell tower, which generates income. It was built in the 1920s and renovated by its owner, Victor Abdala of West Chester, in 2002. Abdala was the former owner of the Iron Hill building. Marcus & Millichap is handling the listing.
Work began on the Radian, a $50 million apartment building in the 3900 block of Walnut St. in University City. The 14-story complex will have 150 units as well as 40,000 square feet of retail space. University Partners, a Dallas firm that focuses on student housing projects, signed a log-term ground lease with the University of Pennsylvania for the construction of the project. The Radian was designed by Erdy McHenry Architecture of Philadelphia. It is scheduled to be completed August 2008.