Philadelphia News Briefs: 4/29/15

1.) A new Wawa will be appearing at Broad and Walnut streets in Center City – and it will feature indoor seating. This marks a new direction for Wawa. Several of its stores have outdoor dining space, but nothing inside. The new store, designated a flagship location, will feature sleek and beautiful design and a bar with stool seating for up to ten people. It will be bigger than a normal standalone Wawa store. The location, which formerly housed Robinson’s Luggage, will grace one of the city’s busiest intersections. Construction is due to start new month and will be finished by the end of 2015.

A flagship Wawa store graces Center City in this artist’s rendering.

2.) A Bloomingdale’s outlet could be coming to the Shops at Liberty Place. There’s a large vacancy at the shopping center and sources report that the upscale department store is eyeballing the space, which has long sat vacant since a Warner Brothers store left some years ago. If Bloomie’s rents the space the store will have its own entrance off 17th and Chestnut at the northeast corner. There have been rumors of a Bloomingdale’s coming to Center City for years. It seems this time could mark the real deal.

3.) Center City’s population has exploded in recent years. Just how much is impressive: the greater Center City metro area now ranks second only to Midtown Manhattan when it comes to people living in the heart of a city. Center City has experienced tremendous urban growth, a changing pattern from all the years when people shunned downtown living in lieu of the suburbs. With that pattern changing, more and more people are flocking to the “big city” – and Philadelphia is no exception.