Shopping complex planned for Northern Liberties in Philadelphia

Today a well-known and controversial Philadelphia developer is breaking ground on his latest project in Northern Liberties. Some Northern Liberties residents credit developer Bart Blatstein with revitalizing the community – by bringing apartments, boutique stores, and an open-air plaza to the neighborhood. Others say he’s brought crass commercialism and undermined the community’s historic character.

Today a well-known and controversial Philadelphia developer is breaking ground on his latest project in Northern Liberties. [audio:100216LFSCHMIDTS.mp3]

Some Northern Liberties residents credit developer Bart Blatstein with revitalizing the community by bringing apartments, boutique stores, and an open-air plaza to the neighborhood. Others say he’s brought crass commercialism and undermined the community’s historic character.

With Liberties Walk and The Piazza at Schmidts under his belt, Blatstein is moving forward with a 100,000-square-foot retail center at the still undeveloped part of the old Schmidt’s Brewery site at 2nd Street and Girard Avenue.

Blatstein says residents will love the complex he calls The Shops at Schmidts.

Baltstein: It provides the services: supermarket, drugstore, hardware store to fulfill the five minute community that we’re creating here. So all within five minutes you can shop, you can pick-up your essentials, you can dine, you can live, and you can work.

The project is slated for completion in late 2010.