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Birdnest Group

@birdnestgroup

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We buy old Philadelphia buildings, small and large, and turn them into beautiful places to live — simple as that. Est. in 2012 🏙️
John Cunningham

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Built in 1918. Saved in 2026. 🔩

1/9: Eight original steel columns, holding this building up for over a century. Here’s what it took to keep them standing for the next one. Swipe →

2/9: Four of the eight were rusted clean through at the base. A hundred years of moisture sitting at the floor line will do that. From a distance they looked fine. Up close, they were carrying the building on borrowed time.

3/9: Before touching a single base, we shored every one of them. Heavy steel bracing took the load off the column so we could safely cut out the bad steel. No shortcuts here.

4/9: Locked off. Load transferred, everything secured, and the damaged sections came out.

5/9: New bases, fabricated and loaded on the truck, ready to give these columns another hundred years.

6,7, 8 & 9/9: The final product!

We could have torn them out. Instead we kept the bones of the building, because that’s the part you can’t replace. ⚙️

The Broadcloth · coming soon to Germantown

#birdnestgroup #thebroadcloth #germantownphilly #adaptivereuse #historicrenovation structuralsteel philadelphiarealestate buildingrestoration beforeandafter construction phillyhistory multifamiy taken in Germantown, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania by @birdnestgroup

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5 days ago

BREAKING: The Broadcloth is finished! 🎉

Just kidding. This is a CGI rendering with a little AI magic, and I still have a long way to go. Funny timing, too, because apparently the whole internet decided to go analog at the exact same moment. Vinyl, film cameras, flip phones, handwritten notes.. We get it, though. This 100-year-old Germantown textile factory is our own ode to Philadelphia’s analog past, rebuilt as 19 homes for its future.

The renderings are digital. The stone is real. 🧵

#thebroadcloth #adaptivereuse #germantown #philadelphia #historicpreservation phillyrealestate analog taken in Germantown, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania by @birdnestgroup

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23 days ago

Welcome to my archeological site! I still can’t believe we found this basement on day 1 of construction! The boiler must be from 1918, when the building was built. 🤯 Excavation and underpinning started 2 days ago. We found that some of the foundation went down 6’, not 4’, so we don’t have to underpin those sections! Hopefully the positives will outweigh the negatives during this first phase! by @birdnestgroup

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a month ago

Built 1959, 500 South Broad Street. The former Health Center No. 1 designed by Montgomery and Bishop.

Most people drive past buildings like this without a second look. But that blue terra cotta facade tells the story of Philadelphia's post-war optimism. Public buildings meant something then.

Every neighborhood has structures worth preserving. The question is whether we see them before they disappear. via @city_of_architectural_love

#birdnestgroup, #philadelphia, #architecture, #preservation, #midcentury, #broadstreet, #montgomeryandbrigham, #phillyarchitecture, #institutionalarchitecture, #terraacotta, #1950s, #repost by @birdnestgroup

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4 months ago

Every wall tells secrets.

Strip back enough plaster and you find the real story. Old electrical wrapped in cloth. Newspaper from 1954. A kid's marble in the corner.

This is the archaeology of renovation.
You don't just fix what's broken. You uncover what was forgotten.

#birdnestgroup, #philadelphia, #renovation, #germantown, #historicbuilding, #construction, #restoration, #philly, #multifamily, #oldhouse, #renovation, #birdseyeview by @birdnestgroup

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4 months ago

My soul yearns for the embrace of this cabin life 🏡. Tinyleaf, nestled in Washington's Methow Valley, whispers tales of harmony with nature. Its clever design, from hidden corners to the expansive glass, invites the wild in 🌲✨.
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Architects @go_c_studio
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Photos @benlindbloom Via @opumo
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#cabin #tinyhome #tinyhouse by @birdnestgroup

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5 months ago

Provenance (go check them out 👉 https://www.instagram.com/provenancecompanies/) is easily one of my favorite places in the city—and calling it just a “store” doesn’t really do it justice. It’s more like a warehouse of incredible architectural salvage, reclaimed wood, and one-of-a-kind design elements.

For our project at 218 Mercer Street — the “Urban Lodge” — we sourced two standout pieces from Provenance: the reclaimed red oak flooring and a set of swivel schoolhouse chairs dating back to the early 1900s.

The iron swivel hardware on the chairs gives them a beautiful weight and presence, and the character in the red oak floors—the imperfections, the history—is something you just won’t find in a standard showroom.

In some of the later photos, you’ll notice a few other unique design elements throughout the house as well—those came from different sources, but all contribute to the story of the space.
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#BirdnestGroup #UrbanLodge #218Mercer #ManhattanRealEstate #BespokeInteriors by @birdnestgroup

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6 months ago

For nearly two centuries, ships that powered a nation were built at the Philadelphia Navy Yard.

Today, those same docks tell a different story — one of innovation, design, and adaptive reuse.

What was once an industrial engine of American seapower has become a thriving campus for companies, research institutions, and creative industries. Historic buildings are being reimagined rather than erased — proving that great cities evolve by building on their past.

Adaptive reuse isn’t just preservation.
It’s transformation.

At Birdnest Group, we believe the most exciting urban environments emerge when history, architecture, and new ideas meet.

#AdaptiveReuse #PhiladelphiaNavyYard #UrbanDevelopment #HistoricPreservation #philadelphiarealestate by @birdnestgroup

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7 months ago

Fantastic Tiny House with Harmonious Interiors and Lush Garden Retreat🤍

Credit @tinyhouseperfect 🏠
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#tinyhouseperfect #tinyhouse #tinyhome #tinyhousemovement #tinyliving by @birdnestgroup

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8 months ago

This project was about unlocking hidden value.

Birdnest Group reimagined the asset in two phases — first through smarter unit layouts, then by expanding the building and bringing it fully up to modern code. The result is a safer, stronger property built for long-term performance.

Thoughtful redevelopment like this is a core part of how we grow our portfolio.

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#BirdnestGroup #RealEstateDevelopment #AssetPositioning #UnlockingValue #PortfolioGrowth by @birdnestgroup

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8 months ago

This building almost didn’t survive. Under Councilmember @marksquillaphl’s proposed changes to the Historic Preservation Ordinance, the Edward Corner Marine Merchandising Warehouse could have been demolished in just 30 days.

More importantly, it’s a reminder of why preservation matters. Edward Corner started as a rag man and built a business supplying new and salvaged rope to the maritime trades. This unassuming streamline warehouse — complete with incredible ghost signage — was the last marine merchandising warehouse left on Philadelphia’s waterfront.

It wasn’t flashy architecture, but it told a real story about how the city worked. Thanks to the current ordinance, communities had time to protect it — and that time made all the difference.

📸 + research credit: Oscar Beisert

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#HistoricPreservation #AdaptiveReuse #PhillyHistory #PhiladelphiaArchitecture #WhyILovePhilly by @birdnestgroup

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9 months ago

A quiet structure in a loud landscape.
Timber stretched low, stone holding the ground, glass dissolving the edge between inside and winter. Everything moves slower here light, heat, thought.
Not a retreat to escape the world, but one that asks you to arrive fully.

It’s the kind of place where days stretch without effort, and doing nothing feels intentional.

Could you imagine disappearing here for a while?

These are pure concepts and ai generated images testing the limits of contrast, texture, and emotion — before ever touching the real world.

Genrated by @matitectura using Midjourney and Nano Banana from Gemini

#architecture #concept #aiart by @birdnestgroup

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9 months ago