By Paul Schwedelson – The Philadelphia Inquirer
Published March 17, 2026
Metropolitan Bakery is sold, we search for quiet dining, and Craig LaBan finds two solid Chinese restaurants in the burbs.
A 61-year-old Fishtown property housing a post office on the bustling Frankford Avenue commercial corridor is being listed for sale as a development opportunity.
The asking price for the 12,000-square-foot development site at 1602 Frankford Ave. is $5.5 million. The property is on the southwest corner of Frankford Avenue and East Columbia Avenue, between acclaimed restaurants Kalaya and Suraya.
The post office’s lease is set to expire on July 31, 2027, and the United States Postal Service intends to relocate the branch, MPN Realty listing agent Josh Nadel told the Business Journal.
The 0.28-acre property is owned by the Ricciardi family, which developed the post office building in 1965.
The property is zoned CMX-2, meaning it can accommodate a mix of commercial and residential uses. Nadel said a future development could have a ground-floor retail tenant with apartments above, or a full-building commercial tenant. He’s marketing the property as a chance to join one of Philadelphia’s most attractive commercial corridors.
“This site is in a premier location,” Nadel said. “It’s one of the last premier Frankford Avenue development sites now.”
Fishtown development site
National chains such as Van Leeuwen, Shake Shack and Sweetgreen also occupy space nearby along Frankford Avenue.
The single-story post office building spans 7,000 square feet and has an eight-car parking lot in the rear of the property. The site spans 100 feet fronting along Frankford Avenue and 120 feet fronting along Columbia Avenue. Nadel believes the building will likely be demolished to allow for a ground-up development.
“That’s what makes the most economic sense,” Nadel said. “Developers base their interest on numbers. The highest and best use is as a development site. Interestingly the development market has picked up.”
The boom in development, which has pushed farther north, has coincided with thousands of new residents arriving in the area, adding to retailers’ desire to expand to Fishtown.
The surge in new residential units forced developers to the sideline in recent years for fear of overbuilding. Momentum is now starting to shift, with signs pointing to development starting back up as the new housing stock starts to fill up.
The post office building at 1602 Frankford Ave. in Fishtown is up for sale. It sits on the southwest corner of Frankford Avenue and Columbia Avenue.
Emma Dooling / Philadelphia Business Journal
With the marketing process in the early stages, Nadel said the property has already garnered interest from out-of-state developers.
“Philly is a stable market and it’s a growing market too,” Nadel said. “It’s become a restaurant town. Fishtown has been a huge driver in that. The restaurant market for new stylish and interesting restaurants has been growing and growing for the last 10 years.”
Several development projects are in the works nearby. In January, local developer Roland Kassis and his Fishtown Collective broke ground on a 40-unit apartment building at 1716 Frankford Ave., a block north of the post office. Late last year, Philadelphia-based Eclipse Development purchased the vacant lot at 1400 Frankford Ave. with plans to build a 20-unit apartment building. Both projects are planning to include ground-floor retail.
The property at 1602 Frankford Ave. could become the next development project in the pipeline along the corridor.
“This is considered where everybody wants to be,” Nadel said. “Developers who have developed elsewhere are now wanting to develop here. It’s a very important listing. There’s a scarcity to development sites in that market now.”
