In 2002, when Stephen Patron, President & CEO of Paradigm, was Executive Vice President and Partner of Matrix Residential Properties, he became aware of a collection of property anchored by the landmark “National Products Supply” building.  Consisting of approximately 2.5 acres in Old City’s most desirable area, the properties were intensely sought after by major urban developers.  All who sought to advance development plans met with stiff opposition and saw their plans fail.  Mr. Patron knew, however, this was an incredibly important real estate package and would be vital to the continuation of Old City’s revival. These vacant lots and abandoned buildings represented the largest blight in an otherwise vibrant and sought after neighborhood.

(In August of 2006, Paradigm, with their joint venture partner, The Robertson Douglas Group, purchased all of Matrix’s remaining interest in The National.)

“When I was first introduced to the property that is now labeled The National,” states Steve Patron, “I quickly realized that this would be a very special project. The land and buildings of The National are interwoven into an area of Old City that is surrounded by such historical and cultural landmarks as Elfreth’s Alley – our nation’s oldest residential street; the Betsy Ross House; and the Fireman’s Museum.  It is adjacent to numerous important residential condominium buildings such as Smyth Stores, The Malt House and The Iron Works and neighbors some of Philadelphia’s most significant boutique galleries and art studios. Given all of the special interest surrounding the site, we knew that The National would only succeed if we approached the development as a public-private joint venture. We had to commit, up-front, to investing the man hours and dollars necessary to understand all that we could about the ongoing evolution of Old City.”  

After interest and dedication to the project was established, we embarked on a “fact finding” mission to fully understand the neighborhood in which the investment was being made.  The journey took us through the region’s rich history, present concerns, and future initiatives.  It was important to understand how Old City has changed, how it is continuously changing, and how we could be an important part of its evolution and affect the future. Ultimately, we had to ask some very important questions:

• Is it possible to deploy intelligent urban planning principles to a collection of property that is so highly scrutinized by a variety of influential special interest groups?
• Is it possible to bring to market a project that exceeded any other new construction in this neighborhood by 1000%?
• Will we be able to bring consensus to a neighborhood that by its very nature has so many different interest and perspectives?
• Can we convince the City of Philadelphia that this is an initiative worthy of the numerous variances necessary to build such an important and ambitious project?
• In fifty years, will Old City look back at the process deployed while planning The National and consider it an important step in Old City’s progression?
• Could we develop The National to an overall, comprehensive plan or would it fall fate to a plan to “break up the pieces” that was being threatened?