Atlantic Building bought by Post Brothers

The Atlantic Building, a 1920s office tower standing at Spruce and South Broad, has been sold to Post Brothers. Yes, that Post Brothers, Matthew and Michael Pestronk. The ones converting the old Goldtex building into loft apartments using a lot of nonunion labor. Word is that Post Brothers wants to convert the Atlantic to residential use.

PhillyDeals reports that the Atlantic was sold to Post for more than $22 million (though how much we don’t yet know). Columnist Joseph DiStefano writes: Post Brothers “has been negotiating since last summer with the Wall Street lenders and servicers who had foreclosed on the tower; the property had been used to guarantee mortgage-backed securities, which means a series of people had to be satisfied before the deal went through.”

The Atlantic Building (260 S. Broad Street) was built for the Atlantic Richfield Oil Refining Company’s offices, with a terra cotta exterior and rich Art Deco flourishes. Today the building is about 60% vacant, the Business Journal notes.

The Atlantic Building’s lobby has fabulous, highly stylized period murals featuring different modes of transportation that are absolute knockouts – refreshed recently by Atkin Olshin Schade. The murals, like the terra cotta exterior, are protected by an easement held by the Preservation Alliance of Greater Philadelphia.

Here’s a peek at the lobby murals:

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