South Square Town Watch

From Naked Philly. Read more here.

You Could Own An Indoor Pool in Rittenhouse Friday, June 30, 2017

But that's probably not gonna happen

Mr. Fox

The Lombard Swim Club is a wonderful place, offering sparkling waters, an open bar, and the occasional sighting of the former Mayor/Governor that now talks about football on television. But it has its drawbacks too. It's pricey, costing roughly four grand per summer for a family of four. And that's assuming you can even get in the door, as people can find themselves on the wait list for membership for almost a decade. If you're short on cash and patience like us, it's a good thing to have a couple of friends that are members that are willing to drag you along from time to time. But today we can provide you with an alternative, if you're not feeling the vibe of the swim club. You can start your own!

View at the NE corner of 20th & Lombard

View on 20th Street

We brought 429-31 S. 20th St. to your attention several years ago, wondering how an overgrown one-story building found itself at the desirable corner of 20th & Lombard. We told you that the corner and the building next door were both owned by a gentleman named Rudolph Masciantonio since at least the early 1970s and commenters confirmed that the buildings were connected inside and that the corner property had a small indoor pool.
Sadly, Mr. Masciantonio passed away last year. And now his estate is selling off the two properties, having listed them just yesterday. The corner property is listed for $450K, while the interior building, which is set up as a duplex, is listed for $725K. It's probably safe to assume that the duplex needs a ton of work and the property at the corner surely needs some tlc as well.
Ideally, we'd like to see someone purchase both of these properties, fix them up, and maintain the odd pool at the corner as an amenity for their home. Or perhaps as a little competition for the Lombard Swim Club. More than likely though, developers will snap up the properties, demolish the corner, and build a $1M+ home with parking in the back. It will be a sad day for us when this happens, as the neighborhood will lose a little bit of its personality. Such is life though, in our ever evolving city.