Loft District/Callowhill

**Pitt** · 05-13-2011, 11:56 AM

The board for this neighborhood is titled Spring Garden/Fairmount/Francisville. Just a suggestion to replace "Spring Garden" with Loft District or Callowhill. I bet it would get more traffic that way.

**CallowHood** · 07-29-2011, 02:13 PM

Agreed.

**eldondre** · 07-29-2011, 04:27 PM

more people live in spring garden

**desolate** · 08-01-2011, 09:03 AM

Let's make up more names for the area and call the thread North Chinatown or Northern Lofterlies.

If were using fake realtors names... let's go full out.

**eldondre** · 08-01-2011, 09:06 AM

Originally Posted by desolate

Let's make up more names for the area and call the thread North Chinatown or Northern Lofterlies.

If were using fake realtors names... let's go full out.

not to mention it's part of spring garden as it is

**Titus** · 08-01-2011, 09:35 AM

Originally Posted by eldondre

not to mention it's part of spring garden as it is

Perhaps historically, but let's face it few if anyone living there calls it such. I have yet to see the board for Swampoodle or Paradise.

**eldondre** · 08-01-2011, 11:48 AM

Originally Posted by Titus

Perhaps historically, but let's face it few if anyone living there calls it such. I have yet to see the board for Swampoodle or Paradise.

there's no board for allegheny west either so I'm not sure that's a valid comparison. why would you replace spring garden with something that's aprt of spring garden? maybe we should change the name of Philadelphia to center city.

**Titus** · 08-01-2011, 12:31 PM

Originally Posted by eldondre

there's no board for allegheny west either so I'm not sure that's a valid comparison. why would you replace spring garden with something that's aprt of spring garden? maybe we should change the name of Philadelphia to center city.

I'm not suggesting one for every ancient neighborhood but surely the Loft District could be added along with the SG Fairmount Francisville board rather than being subsumed into SG.

**Pitt** · 08-02-2011, 12:49 AM

I have never once heard it referred to as Spring Garden in everyday conversation. And the term is out of use in modern times. Do you know people who say they live in Spring Garden?

**Dayman** · 08-02-2011, 12:50 AM

I've never heard it referred to as Loft District.

**Pitt** · 08-02-2011, 01:21 AM

Originally Posted by Dayman

I've never heard it referred to as Loft District.

I've never heard of it referred to anything but the Loft District and I've been here going on 8 years. For the record, its a stupid name.

I've seen it referred to in very old periodicals as Callowhill with the most frequency with some Spring Garden and even (incorrectly?) Helltown, the historical nickname for Old City.

**BarryG** · 08-02-2011, 01:27 AM

I thought it was just called Eraserhead district.

**Pitt** · 08-02-2011, 01:39 AM

Originally Posted by BarryG

I thought it was just called Eraserhead district.

Eraserhood. Too bad his place is gone. It was right where the U-Haul parking lot is on the east side of 13th.

**Brooke** · 08-02-2011, 07:16 AM

I kind of agree with the OP. It's not really a walkable neighborhood (there's nothing in it to walk to) so it doesn't sometimes look like people live there but most of the many, many buildings there are occupied with condo dwellers. It definitely feels much different that the rest of Spring Garden.

**eldondre** · 08-02-2011, 08:26 AM

Originally Posted by Brooke

I kind of agree with the OP. It's not really a walkable neighborhood (there's nothing in it to walk to) so it doesn't sometimes look like people live there but most of the many, many buildings there are occupied with condo dwellers. It definitely feels much different that the rest of Spring Garden.

its far more sparsely populated than the rest of spring garden. doesnt make sense to rebame spring garden the loft district

**Brooke** · 08-02-2011, 08:29 AM

That's really bad spelling even for you, Eldondre.

But I'd just ask how you know that it's more sparsely populated? You can cram a lot more people in a block of former warehouses than in a block of rowhouses.

**eldondre** · 08-02-2011, 11:04 AM

Originally Posted by Brooke

That's really bad spelling even for you, Eldondre.

But I'd just ask how you know that it's more sparsely populated? You can cram a lot more people in a block of former warehouses than in a block of rowhouses.

sorry, posting from my phone does that.
maybe, there aren't that many former warehouses, the area is smaller, and you can see it at the ground level (fewer people). remember, spring garden runs from basically the tracks to the park including the philadelphian, 640, 600...among others. the buildings may be mostly 3 and four story but there are far fewer vacant lots. I don't believe that "the loft district" has its own census data. do they?
the area in question has come a long way from basically being completely abandoned. I've mostly heard it called the loft district but that still doesn't mean it has more people (let alone even more Psers) than the area it is part of. area definitions are difficult. just because something happens (like the post brothers renovation) there doesn't mean it doesn't affect center city or spring garden (it'll be nice to not have the area be so dumpy when I walk through it)...and when something happens in spring garden, does it not affect the areas to the north?
sure, the goldtex building will add 163 units, but how many will the SOB add? the areas are clearly growing together and something I said way back in the PB days when I lived there, the area will benefit more directly from an improving spring garden street than north broad. east spring garden is now improving much more rapidly. you have to wonder how long it will be before the press building and the samuel building get bought up.

**BadRomance** · 08-02-2011, 12:04 PM

Originally Posted by Pitt

I have never once heard it referred to as Spring Garden in everyday conversation. And the term is out of use in modern times. Do you know people who say they live in Spring Garden?

I live in Spring Garden & it's spectacular - but it's "far" from the Loft District... I'm at 17th & SG....

**apfeltree** · 08-02-2011, 06:24 PM

The way I see it, there are three fundamentally different neighborhoods, separated by miles at their extremities, that are being lumped together as Spring Garden.

First, there is the stately, leafy 4 and 3 story rowhome neighborhood west of broad, south of Fairmount, north of Spring Garden. This neighborhood, once a Puerto Rican enclave, has long since gentrified, and is home to some of the city's most expensive real estate.

Second, there is the 'Loft District', south of Spring Garden, north of Vine, west of Broad, east of the trestle. This neighborhood is filled with abandoned factories and warehouses, some of which have been nicely renovated, and some of which have not. There are hardly any traditional houses to be found. Much of the warehousing is now being re-used by businesses in Chinatown.

Thirdly, there is the historically multiracial, slowly gentrifying, but very overlooked neighborhood east of Broad, north of Spring Garden, south of Brown, west of the Trestle. While the housing style is the same as it is west of Broad, there are more empty lots and empty houses than on the other side, and this neighborhood can hardly be called 'fashionable'. And yet, there's a decent amount of infill going on, and alt-types are beginning to flock- 'The Institute', the neighborhood bars, seems to be one of the most highly-regarded in the city.

So which of these are the 'true' Spring Garden?

**desolate** · 08-03-2011, 09:30 AM

Originally Posted by Pitt

I have never once heard it referred to as Spring Garden in everyday conversation. And the term is out of use in modern times. Do you know people who say they live in Spring Garden?

No, becuase they fell for the Developer's lies and tricks.

It's cheap and effective to play on suburbanites ideals and jam them into substandard, and cheap to convert factories in blighted areas.

That way they feel like they are living "urban"

and the city gets to pay for all the demands they have to now make it livable. (ie, all the people who chose to not live there get to pay to make it nice)

all you need to do is give it a hip cool name like "Loft District" or "Midtown Village" or "Port Fishington"

and the residents of suck places will try to defend their mistake by claiming they live in a unique area vastly different than those "other areas" all the less intelligent chose to live in.

So therefore, I now live in North Port Richmond or Richmond Heights.

so I'm better than the actual "Port Richmond" right?

No?

Let's just go with the actual name. Spring Garden.

(This is really directed at all the people who refuse to think they live in just "South Philly"...that wasn't good enough..they needed their own "neighborhood" Bella, Midtown, G-Ho, et al...same goes for Faimount...now it's "Logan Square, Brewerytown, etc)