The first phase of the Martin Luther King

The first phase of the Martin Luther King development, a HOPE VI project designed by Torti Gallas & Partners, opened in Philadelphia in April. Phase 1 features 49 rental townhouses. The total project will have 247 houses, 109 of which will be for sale. Most of the houses are being built on land where “four decaying, crime-ridden, public housing high-rise towers stood,” says the Philadelphia Housing Authority. PHA Executive Director Carl Greene says that of the many redevelopment projects underway in the city, this project may have the most dramatic effect. “With the Avenue of the Arts to the west and South Street not far to the east, we believe the new MLK will create a spectacular residential neighborhood in between,” he says. The units are designed to blend in with simple, Victorian-era townhouses in nearby neighborhoods.