PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — The City of Philadelphia is looking for a new restaurant tenant to fill the former LOVE Park Welcome Center.
The space-saucer-looking structure was set to be transformed into a restaurant, called Loveluck, by restaurateurs Marcie Turney and Valerie Saffron. They even held a pop-up event on the lawn last summer.
However, they have decided not to move forward with the project. They did not specify why.
The city now has to re-issue a request for proposals (RFP) for the building. It is expected to be issued by the end of July.
“According to city law and procedures, we have to issue a request for proposal, receive proposals and then evaluate the proposals and select a new concessionaire,” explained Bob Allen, director of property and concessions management for Philadelphia Parks and Recreation.
“The restaurant operation or operator should have three years experience in a comparable food and beverage operation,” he added. “We’d like to have a unique menu. In other words, we want to do something that’s a little bit different than what’s available nearby.”
The building underwent a multi-million dollar renovation that was completed in 2018. It has a brand-new roof, HVAC and plumbing.
“It’s really in a condition now that it’s ready for a restaurant operator to put the finishing touches on,” Allen said.
Maita Soukup, Parks and Rec communications director, said the city hopes to have a restaurant up and running by next year. Anyone who is interested can visit phila.gov/PPR at the end of July to look for the RFP.