PHILADELPHIA, PA (September 17, 2026) — In the Bridesburg section of Northeast Philadelphia, a vacant, century-old chocolate factory has reopened as the Chocolate Factory Community Hub, a 66,600-square-foot home for community-oriented social service, education, and healthcare organizations. The project, designed by ISA, transforms the 1922 Blumenthal Bros. building — once the birthplace of candy brands like Sno-Caps, Goobers, and Raisinets — into a case study for how historic industrial buildings can be reactivated in service of the neighborhoods that surround them.
Designed originally by the Ballinger Company for Blumenthal Bros., manufacturers of chocolate liquors, cocoa powder, and candy, the building had sat dormant for decades after Nestlé relocated operations outside the city. D3 Development LLC acquired the 2.25-acre site and engaged ISA to lead a full core-and-shell rehabilitation of the building's 3-story, reinforced concrete structure, restoring the red brick and glazed terra cotta facade, the grid of 34 vertical window bays, and the 80-foot water tower that has long served as a beacon along I-95 and the adjacent Amtrak line.
Rather than wait for construction to finish before engaging the neighborhood, ISA and the project team organized a free public activation while the core and shell work was underway — a vendor market, creative workshops, and live music that drew hundreds of Philadelphians into the building in its raw, unfinished form.
“This building asked us to work with what was already there — the light, the structure, the memory of the place,” said Alex Gauzza, Principal and Studio Director at ISA. “The Chocolate Factory shows what's possible when adaptive reuse isn't just about preserving a facade, but about giving a building back to the neighborhood it was built in — this time as a home for the organizations that serve it every day.”
The rehabilitation leaned on preservation as much as reinvention. Most of the building's original multilight steel-frame windows had been hidden behind plywood for decades; ISA's team infilled the openings with energy-efficient glazing, restored the terracotta detailing and original signage, and repointed deteriorated masonry to improve water tightness — a $1.3 million window package supported by federal Historic Tax Credits and funding from the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development. A 1912 structure and a 1950s connector previously on the site, demolished by an earlier owner, gave way to a preserved brick wall that now screens surface parking from Margaret Street, while a one-story garage and boiler house were stabilized and mothballed for future use.
"The Blumenthal Chocolate Factory adaptive reuse project is a model factory-to-commercial conversion project, repurposing a well-built but long vacant and decaying historic industrial building into productive and attractive workspaces. The project was impressive enough to earn a Grand Jury Award from the Preservation Alliance in 2026,” noted Paul Steinke, Executive Director of the Preservation Alliance for Greater Philadelphia. "We hope that it serves as an example for owners of other similar historic buildings in Philadelphia and elsewhere.”
Inside, ISA organized tenant spaces, including a 46,000-square-foot suite for Concilio, a Philadelphia social services nonprofit and the oldest organization in the city serving as a family service provider and advocate for the Latino community, around the building's huge, south-facing windows, with open-plan desking and social areas pulled toward the light and private offices enclosed in partial-height walls so daylight continues to reach deep into the floor plate. A palette of pale blues, yellows, and oranges — drawn from the tenants' own branding — brings warmth to the exposed concrete columns and restored factory sash. The building now also houses The Madden School, a Keystone Star 4 affordable childcare center; Gateway Community Action Partnership; and a touchdown space for BAYADA Home Health Care.
“ISA did an exceptional job of understanding both the opportunities and challenges presented by this historic building. Their team thoughtfully worked with the existing architecture and site conditions to preserve the character of the former factory while transforming it into an amazing, highly functional space for our nonprofit tenants," remarked Greg Hill of D3 Development, LLC "The end result exceeded our expectations and has given this important Philadelphia building an entirely new life.”
The Chocolate Factory Community Hub adds to a growing body of Philadelphia adaptive reuse projects that treat historic industrial buildings not as obstacles to redevelopment, but as assets — their daylight, structure, and civic memory reused rather than replaced. For ISA, the project reflects a broader practice of context-driven design that reads a building's history before proposing its future.
Project Details
About ISA
ISA is a nationally recognized architecture and research practice based in Philadelphia, led by principals Brian Phillips, Deb Katz, and Alex Gauzza. Known for creating innovative, context-driven urban spaces, ISA approaches each project as an opportunity to work with the grain of existing architecture and neighborhood identity — preserving history while imagining new possibilities. The firm's work spans adaptive reuse, civic and cultural buildings, and community-centered design across Philadelphia and beyond.
About the Chocolate Factory Community Hub
The Chocolate Factory Community Hub is the adaptive reuse of the historic 1922 Blumenthal Bros. chocolate factory in the Bridesburg section of Northeast Philadelphia. Designed by ISA, the project restored the building's original Art Deco-style facade, water tower, and factory windows while reorganizing its interior as a home for community-oriented social service, education, and healthcare organizations, including Concilio, The Madden School, Gateway Community Action Partnership, and BAYADA Home Health Care.
Media Contact
Sara Griffin
sara@griffinprny.com
+1-917-656-6348
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