Reinventing Brewerytown, one property at a time

via philly.com

Over the years, a number of developers have descended on Philadelphia's Brewerytown neighborhood, often with grandiose promises to revitalize the community.

Some progress has been made following the completion of Westrum Development Corp.'s 144-unit Brewerytown Square town home complex.

But acres of surrounding land Westrum slated for development years ago still sit undeveloped, in part due to the recent recession and still struggling economy.

Yet, thanks to MM Partners LLC, change has, indeed, come to Brewerytown.

Without making overconfident promises, the company - started by two lifelong friends who grew up together in Philadelphia - has been quietly changing the face of Brewerytown, one property at a time.
In 2001, after working in real estate in New York City, David Waxman, 34, saw an opportunity in Brewerytown.

He liked how close the area is to Center City and the ease of access to the highway, and noticed property values were reasonable - often due to blighted and abandoned properties.
Shortly after he had the idea, he contacted his friend, Jacob Roller, 32, and the pair bought up seven properties in the Brewerytown area.

"I just liked the area over here," said Waxman, noting that he was about 25 when he first bought properties in Brewerytown. "I studied urban studies in college. Who knew I'd use it in the real world? It was a little scary."

"It was sort of the classic case for real estate revitalization," recalled Roller during an interview on Friday, July 9, in MM Partners' offices at 2943 W. Girard Ave.

He said that when they bought the properties, they noticed a neighborhood full of friendly residents and families who had to deal with blighted, unused homes that could attract drug dealers and other criminal activity.

The pair set up shop and turned properties all along Girard Avenue into rehabbed, residential duplexes. One building became the company's first office building.

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