You love the commercials: "Many of you feel bad for this lamp. That is because you are crazy. It has no feelings, and the new one is much better."
You love the stuff: stackable shelves, folding chairs, space-saving desks and loads of unique gadgets.
Now, it could be coming to a location near you.
Ikea, the popular and affordable Swedish furniture store, has announced plans to establish a branch in South Philadelphia -- only a few miles from Penn's campus. These plans, however, could fall through if the city does not pass zoning legislation within the next month.
According to Philadelphia Department of Commerce Director James Cuorato, Ikea's presence could greatly benefit the city.
"It's great news for us," Cuorato said. "It's a regional attraction and would mean 500 new jobs and $80 to $100 million in sales."
The proposed site is a 44-acre rail yard on Delaware and Snyder avenues that is currently owned by CSX Corporation, a railway company. Before CSX can sell the land to Ikea, the City Council will have to issue an ordinance to change the zone from industrial to commercial.
"We looked at a number of sites in Philadelphia," said Patrick Smith, Ikea's manager of North American real estate. "We chose this site because it is a large site, proximate to Center City and is right in the middle of our customer base. It's a very nice location for Ikea."
Ikea has given the city until Dec. 19 -- the end of the City Council session -- to make the necessary zoning change.
"We promised the board in Sweden that we would have the new store built by the spring of 2004, and we need to have 13 to 14 months for construction, which would begin next spring," Smith said. "So in order for that to happen we need to have a decision by Dec. 19."
Should that fall through, Smith said, Ikea will instead move forward with plans to build a location in Cherry Hill, N.J.
So far, there have been a few obstacles in passing the needed legislation, namely squabbling between Mayor John Street and Councilman Frank DiCicco.
Despite its economic benefits, DiCicco has held off introducing the legislation to the City Council -- which, under the city's tradition of home-district courtesy, would fall under his responsibility. According to city officials, DiCicco and the Philadelphia Regional Port Authority, which owns marine territory on the Philadelphia side of the Delaware River, believe that the land Ikea wishes to purchase is needed for future port development.
The mayor, however, is pushing hard for the passage of the zoning change and argues that the land is not vital.
"That site is the only site, and if we don't make this deal happen -- and Ikea isn't asking for any special favors -- we'll all lose out and be kicking ourselves later," Street spokesman Frank Keel said.
Despite the bantering, however, Keel says the mayor is optimistic that the legislation will be passed.
"We believe that logic will prevail and that we will get this done," Keel said. "It would be a shame to lose Ikea in a squabble over dormant and vacant land."
According to Cuorato, CSX Corporation owns several other land ports that the PRPA is interested in purchasing, and negotiations for the purchases of these properties may occur in exchange for the Ikea deal.
"No one wants to see Ikea go," Cuorato said.
