Plans for new homes have
Northwood residents smiling

By Tom Waring
Times Staff Writer

The hard feelings in Northwood toward a proposed housing development near Castor Avenue and Wingohocking Street are over.
Members of the Northwood Civic Association were angry back in 2004 when the city Redevelopment Authority used eminent domain to seize seven properties located between Castor Avenue and the Frankford Creek, from Wingohocking Street to Cayuga Street.
Their anger was directed at then-City Councilman Rick Mariano, who sponsored the ordinance that claimed the properties, and the Frankford Community Development Corp., for allegedly denying to two prominent business owners that housing would displace them.
In addition, some wondered why a parking lot for Romano’s Catering survived the wrecking ball.
Then, there were the rumors that low-income housing would be brought to the site.
Three years later, Mariano is in federal prison on an unrelated corruption charge and the Frankford CDC is no longer the prime partner with the development company.
Last week, in a special meeting at Romano’s, OKKS Development partner Michael Schurr detailed his company’s plans and clarified false rumors.
"This is not a project. This is not going to be a slum," he told the crowd, which included aides to state Reps. John Taylor and Tony Payton.
Schurr explained that OKKS, based in Bensalem, is a division of Orleans Homebuilders. The offshoot firm was created to provide affordable housing after the parent company had positive experiences working with Habitat for Humanity.
OKKS is partnering with Impact Services Corp., a highly regarded non-profit agency, to develop the six-and-a-half-acre site.
An acre and a half will be preserved as green space, with plans for a chipping range as a complement to the nearby Juniata Golf Club. That area will be fenced off from the creek, the houses and the street.
On the remaining five acres, there will be a total of 50 twin houses. To accommodate the new residents, O Street will be extended from Wingohocking to Cayuga and lined with trees. There will also be sidewalks.
Forty-four of the houses will feature three bedrooms and two-and-a-half baths. The other six will be reserved for the disabled. They will have four bedrooms and two baths and adhere to the Americans with Disabilities Act.
All of the houses will include central air conditioning, driveways, garages and large yards.
There are income guidelines to purchase a house. Twenty of the houses will be guaranteed for people making up to 80 percent of the median income in Philadelphia. In other words, the buyers must make no more than about $50,000 a year.
The other 30 homes will be occupied by individuals who earn from 81 percent to 115 percent of the median income. Those folks generally earn $51,000 to $85,000 a year.
These houses will be real bargains. The homes for the lower-earning buyers will sell for about $130,000. The others will be priced at about $150,000. In addition, there’s a 10-year tax abatement that will require homeowners to pay only about $300 in property taxes per year.
The new residents will be moving into homes that cost $250,000 apiece to buy.
"If I put this house in Bucks County, it’s $375,000," Schurr said.
Len Williams, a member of the Northwood Civic Association board of directors, stopped short of calling the houses a "giveaway," but noted that they were well under market value.
Williams also questioned whether local residents would have first crack at the houses. They won’t.
"It’s America," Schurr said, adding that anyone can bid on a property.
Schurr said current homeowners in the area should be happy with the proposal.
"If anything, it’s going to increase the value of their property," he said.
Originally, the development was going to be called "The Twins at Frankford Creek." But Historical Society of Frankford president Debbie Klak and Northwood Civic Association president Joe Menkevich preferred a name that highlighted the fact that a powder mill once sat on the site and was a key component of winning the Revolutionary War.
OKKS will grant them that wish, with the new name likely to be "The Twins at Powder Mill."
Menkevich, who was angered at the city’s use of eminent domain, jokingly said the site should be called "The Twins at Nino’s," since the venerable Nino’s Farmers Market was among the businesses seized.
The outspoken civic leader was satisfied with Schurr’s presentation.
"I’m not going to oppose it," he said.
Others in favor of the deal include Marnie Aument-Loughrey, a Democratic candidate in the 7th Councilmanic District, and her mother, Donna Aument, Democratic leader of the 33rd Ward.
Aument described the proposal as "very, very bad" when Mariano and the Frankford CDC were involved. She has changed her view after meeting with OKKS and Impact Services.
"I just want this project to go forward," she said.
The houses must remain single-family dwellings, meaning no duplexes or businesses. There is a provision that requires each house to be owner-occupied, as opposed to a rental, for 15 years.
When the Frankford CDC headed the project, it accepted about two dozen deposits. That, and a quarter, will get those folks a cup of coffee.
"They were never valid," Schurr said of the reservations.
Schurr said he expects the City Planning Commission to approve the final plan, assuming minor environmental issues are resolved. Signs and advertising marketing the new homes will begin in 90 to 120 days, and Schurr expects a high demand.
Now that the buildings have been demolished, construction should begin in October or November, with the first group of houses ready nine months later.
"We want to beat the frost," Schurr said. ••
Reporter Tom Waring can be reached at 215-354-3034 or twaring@phillynews.com