Poised on the boundary between Northern Liberties and Kensington, this sprawling 15-acre site was home to Schmidt's, Philadelphia's largest and most famous brewery, established in 1860. Schmidt's was the last survivor of Philadelphia's brewing industry, closing down in 1987 after over 125 years and leaving Philadelphia without a brewery for the first time in 300 years. Schmidt's Beer — and its tenacity — was a point of pride for all Philadelphians. The Schmidt's closure signaled once and for all the end of Philadelphia's industrial era. In 2000, a developer purchased the complex at sheriff's auction for almost two million dollars, and demolished all of its 26 buildings. The huge empty lot lay dormant for years as several plans for redeveloping the site were proposed, protested, and stalled. After years of delays and battles between residents and the developers, the Piazza at Schmidt's, a mixed-use complex, opened in May of 2009.