CASE STUDY: SHERIDAN WEST ACADEMY PETER CHOMKO + ELANA TAUBMAN
SHERIDAN WEST SITE STATISTICS ORIGINAL NAME: GEORGE L HORN SCHOOL YEAR BUILT: 1902 BUILDING SIZE: 90,000 SF PARCEL SIZE: 0.82 ACRES DEMOLITION COST: $500,000 FACILITY CONDITION (FCI): 0.6052
3701 FRANKFORD AVENUE
PROPOSED USE: LOCAL FOOD HUB + AQUAPONICS + KOMBUCHA (TEA) “BREWERY” + MICRODISTILLERY COMMUNITY EDUCATION + EVENTS SHARED OFFICE + ADMINISTRATION SPACE
CONTEXT FOR REUSE The redevelopment proposal for the Sheridan West Academy builds on the unique industrial legacy of its surrounding neighborhood, the progressive outlook of new residents moving into the River Wards, and an engaging vision of Philadelphia as a sustainable and innovative twenty-first century city. Market rents for conventional uses in this neighborhood do not justify a conventional redevelopment strategy for Sheridan West, or for many other closed schools. In order to not sit vacant, these sites demands a more creative, contextualized, and out-of-the-box approach. Sheridan West is an important case study to demonstrate how one site can house a new use that builds community cohesion, generates revenue, and helps to advance many of Philadelphia’s citywide goals for the coming decades. Originally constructed in 1902 as the George L Horn Elementary School, Sheridan West is located at the intersection of Castor and Frankford Avenues in Port Richmond. Built to serve the growing working class population that lived along the Delaware River during the industrial era, the school changed with the neighborhood. Though it is over 110 years old today and listed on the National Register of Historic Places, recent renovations have enabled Sheridan West to continue to serve a population far more diverse than originally populated Port Richmond.
PHILADELPHIA SCHOOL REUSE STUDIO
Today, Sheridan West sits at key juncture between dense, residential Port Richmond to the south and west and a variety of industrial and big-box retail land uses to the north and east. The school’s current zoning - half of the parcel is zoned residential, half industrial (see Appendix for furhter detail)- is the best illustration of its potential to play a keystone role in linking these disparate land uses. Sheridan West also sits at the nexus of several important transport routes. The site has good access to three major local arterials (Frankford, Castor and Aramingo Avenues), as well as to Interstate 95 and the Betsy Ross Bridge to New Jersey. The site is located within a block of two bus routes, and just half a mile from both the Tioga and Erie-Torresdale El stations. The Tioga Marine Terminal, just 1.5 miles to the southeast, is a major food distribution node for the East Coast. Port Richmond itself is a relatively stable, young, ethnically diverse, and growing neighborhood. Housing and land vacancy rates in the area are very low, distinguishing it from many other neighborhoods in Philadelphia’s Lower Northeast. Between 1990 and 2010, the surrounding area saw 8% population growth, which is projecte to continue.