PHILADELPHIA-CAMDEN-WILMINGTON-ATLANTIC CITY-READING | Metro Development Thread

[mglan80]

Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington-Atlantic City-Reading | Metro Development Thread

This thread is for development updates for the surrounding Delaware Valley counties of the Philadelphia Metropolitan Area.

Wikipedia link to the Delaware Valley (Greater Philadelphia) Page:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delaware_Valley


Cities in the Metro with multiple highrises encompassed in this thread:

City - Number of Buildings Over 12 Floors - Tallest Building in that city

Atlantic City, New Jersey - 57 buildings - Ocean Resort Atlantic City, 53 floors, 710 FT
Wilmington, Delaware - 41 buildings - 1201 North Market Street, 23 floors, 330 FT
Reading, Pennsylvania - 11 buildings - Berks County Courthouse, 22 floors, 275 FT
Cherry Hill, New Jersey - 10 buildings - Mark 70 Apartments, 18 floors, 220 FT
Camden, New Jersey - 7 buildings - Camden City Hall, 18 floors, 371 FT
Conshohocken, Pennsylvania - 7 buildings - Eight Tower Bridge, 16 floors, 214 FT
King of Prussia, Pennsylvania - 5 buildings - Radisson Hotel Valley Forge, 15 floors, 183 FT
Ventnor City, New Jersey - 4 buildings - 5000 Boardwalk, 20 floors, 214 FT
Newark, Delaware - 2 buildings - Christiana Towers Dormitories East, 17 floors, 207 FT
Chester, Pennsylvania - 2 buildings - Stinson Towers Apartments, 13 floors, 156 FT
Margate City, New Jersey - 2 buildings - Island House, 18 floors, 184 FT

All Counties & Cities/Towns encompassed in this thread:

Pennsylvania Counties

Montgomery: Conshohocken, King of Prussia, Ardmore, Norristown, Bala Cynwyd, Bryn Mawr, Narberth, Ambler, Jenkintown, Pottstown, Lansdale, Bridgeport, Collegeville, Hatboro, Royersford, Souderton, Skippack, Plymouth Meeting, Willow Grove, Villanova, Wynnewood, Abington, Glenside, Horsham, etc.

Delaware: Chester, Media, Upper Darby, Wayne, Swarthmore, Haverford, Radnor, Newtown Square, Chadds Ford, Glen Mills, etc.

Chester: West Chester, Coatesville, Phoenixville, Kennett Square, Exton, Malvern, Downingtown, Berwyn, Devon, Paoli, Oxford, etc.

Bucks: Doylestown, Newtown, New Hope, Quakertown, Bristol, Perkasie, Sellersville, Yardley, Warrington, Bensalem, Langhorne, Morrisville, etc.

Berks: Reading, West Reading, Wyomissing, Kutztown, Boyertown, Hamburg, Fleetwood, etc.


New Jersey Counties

Camden: Camden, Cherry Hill, Collingswood, Haddonfield, Westmont, Gloucester City, Audubon, Oaklyn, Haddon Heights, Merchantville, Voorhees, etc.

Burlington: Burlington, Mount Holly, Moorestown, Bordentown, Maple Shade, Mount Laurel, Palmyra, Marlton, Riverside, Riverton, etc.

Atlantic: Atlantic City, Pleasantville, Hammonton, Ventnor City, Margate City, Egg Harbor City, Brigantine, Somers Point, etc.

Cape May: Ocean City, Wildwood, Cape May, Stone Harbor, Avalon, Sea Isle City, etc.

Gloucester: Glassboro, Woodbury, Pitman, Paulsboro, Westville, Swedesboro, etc.

Cumberland: Vineland, Bridgeton, Millville, etc.

Salem: Salem, Penns Grove, Woodstown, etc.


Delaware Counties

New Castle: Wilmington, Newark, New Castle, Middletown, etc.

Kent: Dover, Milford, Smyrna, etc.


For the Philadelphia Highrise Development Thread, please visit here: http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/showthread.php?t=239026
For the Philadelphia Lowrise/General Development Thread, please visit here: http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/showthread.php?t=160247

Here is the full rundown of the many of the larger current and proposed projects in the Philadelphia Region over 12 floors.

____________________________________
RECENTLY COMPLETED
____________________________________

Atlantic City Gateway
Town/City: Atlantic City, New Jersey
Architect: Elkus Manfredi Architects
Developer: Stockton University and the Atlantic City Development Corporation
Floors: 13
Height: 170 FT

Click image for larger version:

____________________________________
UNDER CONSTRUCTION
____________________________________

Camden Tower
Town/City: Camden, New Jersey
Architect: Robert AM Stern
Developer: Liberty Property Trust
Floors: 18
Height: 285 feet

Click image for larger version:


Official Building Thread:
http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/showthread.php?t=218964

Sora West - 2 towers
Town/City: Conshohocken, Pennsylvania
Architect: Gensler
Developer: Keystone Property Group
Floors: 12 & 12
Height: 185 & 160 FT

Click image for larger version:


Official Building Thread:
http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/show...66#post6305366

____________________________________
APPROVED/ PROPOSED
____________________________________

Knight's Crossing - 4 towers
Town/City: Camden, New Jersey
Architect: Cooper Robertson
Developer: Brandywine Realty Trust
Floors: 25, 15, 15 & 14
Height: 380, 228, 228 & 170 FT

Click image for larger version:


Official Building Thread:
http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/showthread.php?t=228198

Future Camden Waterfront Tower
Town/City: Camden, New Jersey
Architect: Robert AM Stern
Developer: Liberty Property Trust
Floors: 22 
Height: 350 feet

Click image for larger version:


Official Building Thread:
http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/showthread.php?t=218964

Seven Tower Bridge
Town/City: Conshohocken, Pennsylvania
Architect: SOM
Developer: Oliver Tyrone Pulver
Floors: 14
Height: 190 FT

Click image for larger version:


Official Building Thread:
http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/showthread.php?t=208103

400 Barr Harbor
Town/City: Conshohocken, Pennsylvania
Architect: Gensler
Developer: Avison Young
Floors: 12
Height: 165 FT

Click image for larger version:


Official Building Thread:
http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/show...t=Conshohocken

M Residences
Town/City: Atlantic City, New Jersey
Architect: Elkus Manfredi Architects
Developer: Boraie Development
Floors: 13
Height: 160 FT

Click image for larger version:


Official building thread:
COMING SOON

[Pluto]

I thought I'd start a new thread to broadly cover the new construction and redevelopment in downtown Wilmington. There's a few new projects beginning to get underway so I'll start with a rundown:

Ship's Tavern Garage - Construction Underway



Architect: BSA+A (Wilmington)
Height: 7 1/2 Stories (Roughly 5 Stories)
Parking Spaces: 455
Retail Space: 15,200

Renaissance Centre - Currently Under Construction (scaled down)

This building will fill a gaping hole in the "dead zone" between the established and more or less vibrant Rodney Square/Delaware Ave. area of downtown and the burgeoning riverfront area.

Original Rendering


New Rendering


Architect: Tevebaugh Associates (Wilmington)
Height: 10 Stories
Parking Spaces: 325
Office Space: 140,000
Retail Space:

Christina Landing - Currently Under Construction



Architect: Kling (Philadelphia)
Height: Residences at Christina Landing - 23 Stories, River Tower - 25 Stories
Parking Spaces: Attached 455 Car Garage
Retail Space: ~1,500 sq. ft. (educated estimate)
Other: 64 Three Story Townhomes Are Also Part of This Project

See this thread.

Juniper Bank Headquarters Expansion - Currently Under Construction



Architect:
Height: 6 Stories
Parking Spaces: 1,150
Office Space: 260,000 sq. ft.
Retail Space: 20,000 sq. ft.

WSFS Bank Center (aka Gateway Plaza) - Currently Under Construction



Architect: Gensler (San Francisco)
Height: 15 Stories
Parking Spaces: 525
Office Space: 350,000 sq. ft.
Retail Space: 2,980 sq. ft.

See this thread for construction information.

800 Delaware Avenue - Currently Under Construction



Architect:
Height: 12 Stories (being constructed upon existing 5 story garage)
Parking Spaces: Garage Currently Exists
Office Space: 131,554 sq. ft.

Justison Landing - Currently Under Construction

Project includes:

Residential Units: 700 units (one, two and three bedroom units in flats, lofts, and townhomes)
Retail Space: 75,000 sq. ft.
Parking Spaces:
Office Space: ~ 300,000 (to be developed in a future phase)



Two Christina Center - Proposed

This project is being developed by Brandywine Realty Trust, a large local real estate development and holding company out of King of Prussia. Unfortunately, the Wilmington market is not strong enough for this project to move forward at this time.



Architect: Ceasar Pelli
Height: 22 Stories
Parking Spaces:
Office Space: ~ 500,000

---------

Word 'round the Campfire

A large regional builder is interested in putting a townhouse project together on the 7th Street peninsula near the old Fort Christina marina. There was an RFP for a redevelopment of the marina and immediate area, and the city received two proposals. Unfortunately, everyone is mum on who or what may or may not happen out there.

For those of you unfamiliar, the 7th Street peninsula is a chunk of land hemmed in by the Christina and Brandywine rivers on the east side of Wilmington. Most of the area was a city dump in the 19th century, and more recently an industrial area. There's currently some new development, but only light industrial. Here's a map:

Two Christina Centre could be the sister of Cira Centre in Philly!

[volguus zildrohar]

Wilmington I?

Are you expecting something to happen to this thread to necessitate a Wilmington II?

[Xing]

Woohoo! Go birth-state!

[frank_pentangeli]

Not good enough for Philly IV eh?

[volguus zildrohar]

Well why can't Wilmington have their own development thread?

[mglan80]

Originally Posted by volguus zildrohar

Wilmington I?

Are you expecting something to happen to this thread to necessitate a Wilmington II?

No, I just wanted to give a nod to the Philadelphians' passion for their city. This thread won't get off the first page!

Come on Frank, you know how massive that thread is. These little projects will get lost in the crush over there. Besides, volguus is right, Wilmington gets its own marquee.

--Is anyone else having problems with images loading? Two are off of my site and should not be over bandwidth.

[Joey D]

Matt. Another Great Page. I don't see why you put the 2CC so late. I say they start frickin' around with the lot in summer. Or is that just hope?

[frank_pentangeli]

I guess I needed a --->

[Joey D]

I stumbled across this pic after many drunken clicks upon mine google.



It situates 2 Christina Landing (River Tower) closer to the other guy.



I smashed a few of the renderings together and made this:

The last one is the WSFS Gateway Plaza, which needs to be built already.



A Wilmington Casino. They're scared shitless, no?

A Delaware group is proposing a more than $300 million gambling and entertainment playground for 50 acres on Wilmington's Seventh Street Peninsula.

The project, called Diamond Casino Resort, would include up to 4,000 slot machines in several themed settings, a 400-room hotel, dinner theater, restaurants, shops and a public marina.

Legislation that would allow the opening of a casino not related to a racetrack is being drafted and is expected to be introduced next month. The 1994 law that legalized slot machines in Delaware tied gambling to the state's horse-racing tracks. The stated purpose of the law was to save the horse-racing industry.

The project promises to bring 2,000 jobs to the city by creating a regional entertainment attraction known in the industry as "casinos-plus," according to the developer, Diamond Entertainment Group LLC of Wilmington. The developers said they have not yet estimated revenue or overall economic impact from the project.

The developers are modeling the resort project after the Mohegan Sun gaming and entertainment venue in Uncasville, Conn. They are promoting the project as a way to combat the coming competition from slots in Pennsylvania and, possibly, Maryland. Plans are already in the works for a Harrah's casino and racetrack in Chester, Pa., about 15 miles from Wilmington.

"It's a question of maintaining competitiveness in the expanding mid-Atlantic market," said Mark Kleinschmidt, president of MAK Associates in New Castle and operations manager for the Diamond Entertainment Group. "We need to upgrade our gaming legislation and move into a second generation of video lottery terminal operations."

Political observers and gaming experts said the project is likely to escalate the public policy debate about the expansion of legalized gambling beyond the original purpose of the 1994 law.

I. Nelson Rose, a professor at Whittier Law School in Costa Mesa, Calif., and an expert in gaming law, said most states don't take the offensive when facing competition from other states. They only open casinos after they begin to lose revenues to other states, he said.

"Once the racinos open in Pennsylvania, the gaming revenues in Delaware are going to drop dramatically," Rose said.

Diamond Entertainment has estimated a loss of more than $130 million in general fund revenue if both Pennsylvania and Maryland legalize gambling. Delaware receives about $190 million a year from gambling, about 8 percent of the state's operating budget.

Still, the developers are likely to see intense opposition from gaming venues at Delaware Park, Dover Downs and Harrington Raceway.

"It's not Diamond Casino Resort that's going to kill the racinos. It's Philadelphia that's going to cream their business," said Claire M. DeMatteis, the lawyer and lobbyist for Diamond Entertainment.

Changed climate

DeMatteis said that, unlike 2003 when Delaware Program LLC proposed a $50 million hotel and casino on the Christina River at Walnut and A streets, the political and economic landscape has changed dramatically. The city desperately needs the additional revenues a casino resort would bring, she said.

Besides wage and property taxes paid to the city by a major entertainment development, the proposed legislation would dedicate a percentage of revenues to the city. No estimates have been made regarding the amount of money the city would receive, she said.

Mayor James M. Baker indicated last week in a letter to Gov. Ruth Ann Minner that some proceeds from gambling - either from the existing venues or through a new casino in the city - would be welcome.

Diamond Entertainment will meet with Merrill Lynch executives from New York next week to discuss project financing, DeMatteis said.

Developers reach out

To sweeten the pot, Diamond Entertainment is trying to be inclusive. One of the two principals in Diamond Entertainment - Sussex Entertainment Enterprises LLC - proposed a racino in Georgetown last year.

Sussex Entertainment Enterprises principals include Ronald E. Schafer of Wilmington, Stephen S. Silver of Wilmington and Constantine F. Malmberg III of Dover.

The other principal in Diamond Entertainment is Peninsula Ventures LLC, which includes David G. Bull of Greenville, Andrew J. Aerenson of Wilmington, David Grayson of Delaware County, Pa., and Thomas B. Payne of Kennett Square, Pa.

Diamond Entertainment also has asked two other developers of proposed casinos in Wilmington to join it in the 120,000-square-foot casino building. The idea is to create a casino with different themed areas and a different mix of gaming machines under one roof.

In 2003, Delaware Program LLC proposed a 2,000-slot casino. Legislation was introduced in 2004, but it never got out of the gaming committee, said H. Hunter Lott III, a partner in Delaware Program. Lott said his group is discussing the peninsula project with Diamond Entertainment.

"I think the proposal they've got is a very exciting opportunity not only for gaming, but as an overall mid-Atlantic entertainment destination," Lott said.

Diamond Entertainment also has contacted a Maryland developer who in 2001 expressed an interest in a riverboat dinner theater with gambling. The developer, Kim Klopcic, owner of the Yin Yankee Cafe in Annapolis, Md., did not return phone calls Monday.

DeMatteis said the peninsula developers plan to introduce legislation called the Video Lottery Competitiveness Act in April. It would create "entertainment zones" for slot machine gambling outside the racetrack venues. The entertainment zones would be located in economically distressed areas ripe for redevelopment.

In addition, the bill would relax restrictions on the location of video lottery terminals so that they could be placed closer to hotels. The legislation would expand operating hours for casinos and relax restrictions on customer amenities, such as bonuses for food, beverages and rooms.

Plans for the Diamond Casino Resort call for the casino to be operated by a national casino operator. The developers said they are already in discussions with several.

Bridging the gap

Diamond Entertainment also is proposing a bridge to the peninsula from the 12th Street exit of I-495. The group is exploring the possibility of public-private financing for the bridge.

If the bill were to pass during this legislative session, work on the casino could begin as early as July. The casino could open by late 2006.

Other development on the peninsula would be phased in over time.

The Three Little Bakers Dinner Theatre in Pike Creek Valley has expressed interest in the proposed dinner theater on the peninsula.

"We think that the group's concept is so exciting - everything they're doing is so spectacular and the city will benefit. You can't help but get excited. We're definitely considering our options," said Victoria Immediato Winton, president of Three Little Bakers.

Besides the casino building, the first phase calls for 350,000 square feet of retail and restaurants. The complex is designed to have a marina and ferry terminal so that visitors could arrive by boat. There also would be a public marina with 50 to 60 slips.

A second phase could include 200 to 250 waterfront condominiums, a 7,000-seat covered arena and a second hotel.




Ehh.. It ain't much.... but then I think of Trenton.. hahahahaha

[frank_pentangeli]

From that picture it looks disconnected from the rest of the city. Is that wrong?

[mglan80]

^Doesn't matter. It'll never come about. I honestly don't understand the mentality that by adding a fourth venue in the state, two in New Castle County only miles apart, that this will help the gambling industry compete with PA and MD. How does further diluting market share help anyone? The state passed expanded gambling laws to help the horse racing industry remain a viable sport, and it has worked. That should be it.

It's funny, these developers brought in a plan a little over a year ago to my bank and it was all industrial warehouse/flex buildings, now this. I definately support the condominiums and marina, but the resort and casino are a poor fit and will ultimately fail. I'm undecided on the retail and restaurants. Wilmington definately has a large selection of restaurants already, and I don't know if there's demand for more. Retailers might like the site because of the direct access off of I-495, and Wilmington could definately use more upscale stores and an alternative to the 202 corridor and the Christiana Mall complex.

Anyway, Joe I'm certain that Brandywine Realty Trust doesn't have enough preleasing to start construction of 2CC. The same goes for Gateway Plaza (hopefully WSFS will move!). I certainly see office space continue to tighten, especially as the sites out in the County continue to age and have very few new buildings to replace them. Again, I'd say summer 2006. I saw that rendering of the two towers on the Kling website, too. Nice.

[Xing]

I'm pretty disappointed in the removal of the "I" from the title of this thread. It was... how should I put it... humorous, yet charming.

[ScreamShatter]

When I drive home to South Carolina from Philly...I love driving through Wilmington. I think it appears to be such a cute city. It definately has a lot of potiential.

[mglan80]

^Me too gniX.

Here's two photos of the Juniper Bank building currently finishing preliminary sitework. There's a very large two to three foot hole that's now filled with water.



A mock up?


These few buildings in the 900 block of Orange Street are fenced off and ready to be demolished. There is one building on the Shipley side of this block that is already demolished. In fact I wanted to shoot this small building before it was pulverized, but it's now too late. The little building had an interesting carved stonework sign that said "Room" and also a roof mounted lattace type sign (a sign on a lattace work of metal, I don't know what that type is really called). Damn shame I didn't get to shoot it. I'll never put off something like that again. I don't know what is going here at all. If anyone has any idea, please share.



The building on Shipley is now a pile of rubble.


And here's a few random shots I took this afternoon:

One of my favorite buildings in downtown. This is on the 400 block of Market Street, which is now fenced off due to the impending construction of the Renaissance Centre office building mentioned above. I'll shoot some more of this site later this week.



The loneliest area in all of downtown on a weekend. Market above 12th Street is as desolate as a ghost town, but I like it.

[mglan80]

echo.........echo........

[Joey D]

Regarding the Casino, I don't think little Sally and Bobby should be anywhere near Eastside with Grandma.
Eastside is as black as my pappy and twice as racist.
(j/k 'bout my pappy)

WTF is the deal with the Shipley Block?

I think I remember hearing it before, but I forgot. Is this gonna be a parking structure thing. or?? I think I remember vaguely hearing something 8-12 storyish. It was in the paper a while ago.

Anyways.. Great pics, dude... I am glad they are mashing those particular two blocks in the ground.

I need to take some more Ghetto pics soon. It's a lot of fun.

[FlyersFan118]

Yay, a Wilmington thread!

I was waiting for our little sister to have a thread.

Nice renderings...2CC looks awesome. That will be a true gem in Wilmington. As far as little skylines in little cities go, Wilmington blows everyone clear out of the park, hands down.

[mglan80]

-Joe, I don't remember reading about that office building, but that's more than likely what is going in there. That's good news. It'll improve the 900 block of Orange and Shipley greatly. Hey, maybe someone will buy the vacant Brandywine Brewing Co. restaurant. I don't see why they'd need a parking structure there since the mid-town garage is underused and half a block down.

Speaking of that garage, I really wish the City would tear that down and start over. That relic is an unattractive eyesore on an already run down looking (really a glorified alley) Shipley Street. That area would benefit greatly from a new and well designed garage. I know the City has no money for this, but they should consider selling that garage, allow a developer to build, and they should just charge land rent or a percentage of parking revenue. They can't be making that much off of that garage. Also, whenever WILMAPCO recommends approval of the Shipley Street beautification, the garage will stand out that much more.

Couldn't agree with you more about the Eastside. I still think West Center City is tougher, though.

-Thanks FF. I hope 2CC jumps off sooner, but I don't think anything will happen until at least 2006.

One thing I didn't include on here is a concept tower adjacent to 1105 Market Street (the Pei building). The bank I work for financed the repositioning of this building, and the purchaser, Keystone Property Group, showed an 18 story glass tower as a future development option. This is at least 5 or 10 years out, and although it is just a concept, the building didn't look very good. Just thought I'd share that.

1105 Market



The building has since been recoated and is more white now. Also the lobby and entire interior have been completely overhauled. The building, before purchase, had an occupancy rate of around 20%, but now is at around 65% (including the space that is still being renovated).

[FlyersFan118]

I think it looks beautiful in that picture.