Market Insights  /  Rittenhouse
Development Watch · Rittenhouse

1909 Walnut StDelivered

265-unit residential new construction, zoned CMX4.

1909 RittenhouseDeveloperSouthern Land CompanyArchitectSolomon Cordwell BuenzStatusOpened to residents in late 2022Official site →
Rendering of 1909 Walnut St — Southern Land Company Celebrates Completion of The Laurel Rittenhouse Square and 1909 Rittenhouse with Ribbon Cutting Ceremony
Southern Land Company Celebrates Completion of The Laurel Rittenhouse Square and 1909 Rittenhouse with Ribbon Cutting Ceremony
Rendering of 1909 Walnut St — Crown of The Laurel Rittenhouse Square Set to Light Up Philadelphia Skyline
Crown of The Laurel Rittenhouse Square Set to Light Up Philadelphia Skyline
Published renderings · via southernland.com. Shown for informational purposes; rights belong to the original creator.See the source →

The 30-story tower at 1909 Walnut Street in Rittenhouse has delivered 265 residential units, marking the completion of one of the neighborhood's more significant recent high-rise projects. The building includes ground-floor and second-floor commercial space in a low-rise component connected to the residential tower, plus 177 below-grade parking stalls. Cleared to build in mid-2019, the project went through a couple of revisions during construction, including lobby and unit layout adjustments and finishes tweaks on several upper floors.

The site spans nearly 200,000 square feet and sits in a CMX4 zone, making this kind of density straightforward by-right. 1911 Walnut Street LLC acquired the property in 2022, though construction was already well underway by then. The tower uses cast-in-place concrete for its frame, with steel supporting the low-rise retail component—a window-wall and metal-panel exterior wraps the residential floors, while the commercial base is clad in masonry.

This delivery fits neatly into a broader wave of Rittenhouse infill. The immediate area has added more than 200 units within a half-mile radius recently, including a 121-unit project at 2012-14 Chestnut and an 84-unit building at 1813 Ranstead. The Walnut Street corridor between Broad and 20th continues to tighten, absorbing older low-rise parcels into taller residential use as investor appetite for central Rittenhouse sites holds steady.

The successful lease-up here—assuming it tracks with comparable recent Rittenhouse towers—reinforces the case for similar conversions on neighboring blocks where surface parking or older commercial stock still lingers. The mechanics are proven, the zoning is permissive, and the market has shown it can absorb this scale of inventory without flinching.

📄 View the project's plan drawings (PDF)
Schematic massing — illustrative of the ~30-story by-right envelope, not the developer's design.
Units
265
Zoning
CMX4
By-right envelope
~30 stories
Lot
197,413 sq ft
Last sale
2022
Cleared to build
May 7, 2019
For developers & investors

Underpriced parcels near this project

As this density arrives, InvestPHL is tracking 61 under-built parcels within a half-mile that a developer could still acquire and build — each carrying a builder's max bid. Addresses and figures are members-only.

~89buildable units
████████ Street
CMX3 · 0.39 mi away
Max bid to a builder $5.2M · Opportunity Score 99
Unlock →
~43buildable units
████████ Street
RM1 · 0.37 mi away
Max bid to a builder $2.4M · Opportunity Score 98
Unlock →
~372buildable units
████████ Street
CMX5 · 0.40 mi away
Max bid to a builder $6.3M · Opportunity Score 98
Unlock →
~372buildable units
████████ Street
CMX5 · 0.35 mi away
Max bid to a builder $6.3M · Opportunity Score 98
Unlock →
~308buildable units
████████ Street
CMX5 · 0.33 mi away
Max bid to a builder $5.2M · Opportunity Score 97
Unlock →
Unlock the 61 nearby opportunities →
The block

What else is rising nearby

Major (8+ unit) new-construction projects filed within a half-mile since 2022 — the density gathering around this site.

121u2012-14 Chestnut St0.10 mi
84u1813 Ranstead St0.17 mi
In the news

What we're hearing about this project

Southern Land Co. completed The Laurel, a 48-story tower with 1909 Rittenhouse (184-unit multifamily community spanning floors 3-25) and The Laurel Rittenhouse Square (65-unit condominium component on uppermost floors).
Southern Land Company announced completion of the 48-story tower rising 599 feet, designed by Solomon Cordwell Buenz, as Philadelphia's tallest ultra-luxury residential tower.
The 48-story tower was designed by Solomon Cordwell Buenz and built by Hunter Roberts Construction Group, with interiors by Faulkner Design Group; 1909 Rittenhouse opened in fall 2022.
The 48-story condo and apartment tower was built on the last available parcel of land on Rittenhouse Square, with 1909 Rittenhouse as the rental apartment portion.
The Laurel/1909 Rittenhouse is a mixed-use project with The Laurel (65-unit condominium community on floors 27-48) and 1909 Rittenhouse (184-unit apartment community on floors 3-25), developed by Southern Land Company wi
News items are compiled automatically and may be approximate — verify before relying on them.
Progress

How this project is moving

Cleared for occupancy ~78% complete
Estimated from the construction permit sequence — an approximation of stage, not a precise schedule.
Every logged milestone appears here — highlighted ones are the headline stages; the rest track interim construction activity. Checked daily.
Compiled by InvestPHL. Unit counts, scope, and ownership are as recorded and subject to revision; the massing figure is a schematic illustration of the by-right envelope, not the developer's design or a marketing rendering. Verify zoning, status, and title with counsel before acting. InvestPHL does not list, market, or represent any property, buyer, or seller.