9th Street Lofts

My most recent Wilmington post was about the destructive forces of Colonial Parking and their quest to turn Market Street into smooth black asphalt, so today I decided to look at the more creative forces we have in our city.

I went to look at two lofts that are available at 218 and 222 W. 9th Street by Preservation Initiatives. They are walk up lofts with plenty of good light, well proportioned space, refinished old floors, high ceilings, and character. The kitchens are efficient but well equipped and the bathrooms are pleasant.

Chris Winburn, of Preservation Initiatives, who was showing me around, says the company is involved in some other buildings in the Market Street area, including the properties on the 400 block of Market, across from Orillas. Right now, all those buildings have are some facades and front rooms, but they are planning 14 loft apartments along with retail/commercial space and somehow they are going to attach in the back of the buildings to new construction.

Seeing that effort cheers me up. We could have ended up with more office tower/ curtain wall blech or even surface parking in this area of town. Instead we are going to keep the finely detailed, human scaled, inviting feel of Wilmington's architectural heritage. That is something to be encouraged.