Prices range from $350,000 to $2.5 million, and John Turchi,chairman and CEO, tells GlobeSt.com, "at least one buyer is takingtwo penthouses and turning them into a single unit." The conversionincludes adding two floors to create a 12-story building anddemolition of the building's central core to make way for a 75- by75-ft interior courtyard. Construction cost, Turchi says, isapproximately $40 million. Architect is locally based Cope Linder.Completion is scheduled for September 2005.

The property is at the edge of University City, a neighborhoodof high current activity. Brandywine Realty Trust's Cira Centre,the first new office tower built here in a decade, for example, isunder construction nearby. In addition, the University ofPennsylvania and Drexel University are both planning extensionsthat will further link the area west of the Schuylkill River withCenter City. 23: A Condominium's proximity to 30th Street Stationis another plus that Turchi says is attracting "commuters from NewYork." He cites new projects at Rittenhouse Square and theupgrading of Chestnut St. as additional contributors to theneighborhood's revitalization.

New York City-based Amalgamated Bank is providing $30.5 millionin construction financing from its Long View Ultra ConstructionLoan Investment Fund, which is available only for projects that use100% union labor. The project receives the 10-year tax abatement,instituted here in 1997 for new residential construction andconversions of vacant office and industrial properties intoresidential facilities.