Council bill would narrowly extend the full 10-year tax abatement, benefiting planned Jewelers Row tower
The bill would cover Old City, Society Hill, and Washington Square West historic districts, but the principal project it would benefit is Pearl Properties Jewelers Row tower.
Councilmember Mark Squilla introduced legislation Thursday that would give a full 10-year property tax abatement to Pearl Properties’ 34-story residential tower planned for Jewelers Row.
The bill would cover any residential and mixed use “new construction project” of at least 125,000 square feet in the Society Hill, Old City, and Washington Square West historic districts that sent its application for a property tax abatement before Dec. 31, 2021.
Squilla was not immediately available for comment, and Pearl Properties did not respond to an interview request.
City Council passed a law in 2019 weakening Philadelphia’s 10-year property tax abatement beginning on Jan. 1, 2022. Under the law, new construction properties would get a full property tax abatement the first year and then would see 10% reductions annually for the next decade before zeroing out.
Squilla’s latest legislation would preserve the original full 10-year abatement, providing substantial incentive to affected developments — namely the long delayed residential tower on at Jewelers Row, which got its permits originally under the Toll Brothers.
Before that, Toll Brothers had sparked a preservation controversy by demolishing several venerable buildings on Sansom Street in January 2020.
But the Fort Washington-based homebuilder pulled back from Jewelers Row following the COVID-19 pandemic. Pearl Properties, which is known for luxury high rise towers, took over the project.
The latest details for the project show 99 high-end rentals, including two penthouses, 1,500 square feet of commercial space, and 50 parking spaces on the second-to-fourth floors.
The project is designed by DAS Architects.
Thursday’s bill is the latest sign that Pearl Properties is moving forward with the Jewelers Row tower, despite a difficult development environment with heightened interest rates and soaring construction costs.
In July, the developer sought permission from the Historical Commission to alter two neighboring protected buildings — the first sign of momentum after two years of silence.
In September, Pearl submitted new zoning permits for the project. In October, the Philadelphia Business Journal reported that Pearl had acquired three more nearby buildings for $3 million.
Pearl Properties is also working on a 24-story, 267-unit high rise on the other side of Center City, Harper Square in the Rittenhouse neighborhood.
The city’s tax abatement has been in the news for other reasons. Mayor Cherelle L. Parker has promoted legislation to create a 20-year property tax abatement for renovating vacant office, industrial, and school buildings. But no legislation has yet been introduced to City Council.
