Vesper has installed its leasing management team onsite to manage the 15,000 sf of office--the building is about 45% to 50% occupied--that is still available on the upper floors. Current tenants include famed Philadelphia restaurant Brasserie Perrier and local architecture firm Claflen Associates.

Gary Silvi, president of Vesper Property Group, tells GlobeSt.com that an extensive rehab will be made in improving the building's lobby and public areas. The goal is to retrofit the building so it can serve as a boutique office or perhaps a mixed-use facility. The user Vesper has in mind would be a firm that does not need or want to be located in the city's financial corridor but would prefer the smaller feel of a historic building located in a retail center.

In fact, Walnut Street is poised for a retail renaissance similar to when such platinum retailers as Tiffany's was located here, Silvi says. Such a development would also be an attractant for a potential user. "With the demographics here and the widespread development of high-end condos, we believe the future is bright for this location."