Renderings of Townhomes to Replace St. John the Evangelist at 3rd and Reed

Yet another house of worship goes the way of all Philly churches: this time, it’s St. John the Evangelist at Third and Reed, which cannot withstand the power of the wrecking ball. Hidden City Daily broke the story that a developer purchased it quickly after closure to demolish it and use the land for town homes. When Naked Philly wrote about the demolition, a commenter bemoaned the church’s fate:

I had my first communion, confirmation and first wedding in this church. My family was a active member for years. I remember holiday shows, Bingos, Easter services, the Christmas Bazaar, fundraising shows that I participated in, my grandparents funerals……all of the truly important events in my life happened at this church. I wish I had known it was coming down, I would have asked to maybe take some of the glassware or stained glass windows. My father served on the alter and I was in the children’s chior. I loved this church….I am truly saddened to see it go.

Despite the personal history, the church had no historic designation, and Naked Philly has obtained renderings of the homes that will take the church’s place. Designed by Harman Deutsch Architecture, “this project will have homes on either side of a drive aisle,” writes Naked Philly.

This is a positive thing in the sense that the homes fronting 3rd Street will have a street presence rather than garage fronts, though the other six homes in the development will not have any street frontage at all. Also, the Reed Street side of the project won’t exactly be pedestrian friendly, but that’s kind of the price you pay for only having one curb cut for twelve homes.

• Update: RENDERINGS OF THE HOMES REPLACING THE PENNSPORT CHURCH CURRENTLY BEING DEMOLISHED [Naked Philly]