A zoning demolition permit was issued to Philly’s Sigma Sound building. What does that mean?

A zoning permit for demolition of the Sigma Sound Studios building – the home of the famous “Philly Sound” – was issued Friday, prompting outrage among some community members and music preservationists. But according to experts, the permit does not actually allow for demolition, and several more difficult steps are required before demolition would be approved.

The former studio, which drew the likes of Stevie Wonder, Gladys Knight, David Bowie, and other legendary musicians in the 1960s and ’70s, was acquired by private investors in 2015. The owners, listed as Youming Ye and Junbao Chen of 210 N 12th St Investment LLC, sought to turn the building into a 10-story condo property. However, community organizations like the Preservation Alliance for Greater Philadelphia, Brewerytown Beats, and the Philly Sound Archive helped secure the property’s spot on the Philadelphia Register of Historic Places in 2020, thus protecting the landmark from demolition.

Jon Farnham, executive director of the Historical Commission, said a zoning demolition permit is issued by L&I upon the owner’s request if the owner ensures that a property will satisfy the existing zoning requirements after the building is demolished. However, the zoning permit alone doesn’t give owners permission to tear down a building, he said.

Farnham said zoning permits are valid for three years. Upon receiving one, owners then apply for a building demolition permit. The building demo permit indicates that all of the city’s zoning, historical, site safety, environmental, and other requirements have been met, and gives owners legal authorization for demolition.

As of Tuesday morning, no further steps had been taken by the owners in this process. The owners of the building and the construction company listed on the permit did not respond to requests for comment. The lawyer who represented the owners during the historical preservation process told The Inquirer he was no longer involved.

Paul Steinke, executive director of the Preservation Alliance, said the Sigma Sound building can’t be razed without further approvals from the city. While the zoning permit for demo was issued by the Department of Licenses and Inspections, he said a building demolition permit for a historically designated property would need to be approved by the Philadelphia Historical Commission, and so far, one hasn’t been sought.

The Historical Commission is prohibited from approving the demolition of a historic building except when it’s necessary for public interest or the owner demonstrates unreasonable reuse for the building. Generally, Farnham said, approvals for demolitions under these policies are uncommon.

“I do not know enough about the Sigma Studio situation to estimate the likelihood of approval, but generally, the numbers of demolitions approved by the Historical Commission are very low,” Farnham wrote in a statement. “One or two under the public interest provision – almost always for imminently dangerous buildings – and maybe one every two or three years under the reasonable reuse provision, out of 2,500 applications or so annually.”

Sigma Sound was founded in 1968 by engineer Joe Tarsia, who shaped the city’s sophisticated and sultry brand of soul and R&B. The hits rolled in with the help of producers and songwriters Kenny Gamble, Leon Huff, and Thom Bell, known as “The Mighty Three,” who oversaw the careers of the O’Jays, Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes, and the Stylistics. Tarsia died in November 2022.

According to music critic Dan Deluca, “The studio was also where David Bowie famously recorded Young Americans at Sigma in 1974. Bruce Springsteen took the bus from New Jersey to meet him, and teenage fans of the British rock star attained legendary status as the ‘Sigma Kids.’”

“It was Black music in a tuxedo,” Tarsia told The Inquirer in 2018 at a 50th-anniversary celebration. “There was the Motown Sound. The Memphis Sound. The Muscle Shoals Sound. And there was the Sigma Sound.”

Given the history of the building and how the “Sigma Sound” changed the music industry, Steinke said it should remain a standing artifact and sign of the city’s influence.

“The Philadelphia sound changed popular music and culture in significant ways, and a lot of people have strong and happy associations with what took place there,” Steinke said. “It can and should be a monument.”

Music preservationist Max Ochester, cofounder of the Philadelphia Sound Preservation Project, said he and others will continue to fight against possible demolition efforts to ensure the building remains a pillar of Philly music history.

Through his organization, Ochester, who is also the owner of the Brewerytown Beats record store and label, hopes to one day turn the gutted-out space into a multicultural creative hub for the city’s music community. And while the zoning permit doesn’t appear to have an immediate effect on the property, he said it doesn’t make his goal any easier.

“It’s the wrong direction and not something that we had hoped for. But it also shows the urgency for the music community and for Philadelphia, in general, to support these sites like this. It would be tragic if a building like this was lost.”