Please enjoy this week’s edition of Capstone Law’s Philadelphia Real Estate Trends:

• Toll Brothers announced that it will not acquire the large empty lot that sits directly across from Rittenhouse Square at 1911 Walnut Street. Castleway Properties of Ireland has permitted this property to sit vacant in the middle of Philadelphia’s most upscale neighborhood for many years despite the opulence developing around it. Toll Brothers hoped to acquire the property and finally put it to productive use by constructing a condominium, hotel, and ground floor retail space. Toll’s announcement is yet another setback for the property. Over the last 20 years, developers planned to construct numerous projects on the land including a movie theatre, a parking garage, and residences. Now it is back to the drawing board for Castleway Properties as weeds continue to sprout from this highly underused vacant ground.

• Procida Funding & Advisors of North Jersey provided a lifeline to North Broad Street’s iconic but blighted Divine Lorraine hotel this past week. Procida, who specializes in funding troubled projects, agreed to provide Eric Blumenfeld’s EB Realty with $31.5 million in financing to enable EB Realty to convert the 120 year old iconic vacant building into 126 apartments and 21,000 square feet of retail space. Procida believes that the financing will close within 45-60 days with construction commencing shortly thereafter. If actually completed, the project may propel additional developments in the area and better connect Temple University’s campus with Center City.