PHILADELPHIA | Highrise Development Thread IX

[summersm343]

Whoa. Slightly different 1919 rendering and some more info from Curbed

You won't have to wait for construction on this bad boy, it's expected to begin immediately.

It's a mixed-use project that will combine the luxury apartments with 24,000 sq. ft. of ground floor retail. Brandywine says that 90% of that space is already leased up by CVS and Independence Blue Cross, 1919's taller neighbor.

"...rooftop amenities that include fitness center, club room with demonstration kitchen, outdoor roof garden with fire pit and ledge pool, and fully-equipped game room including golf simulator."

http://philly.curbed.com/archives/2014/1...rket-st-project-to-begin-immediately.php

[Philly Fan]

Originally Posted by summersm343

Whoa. Slightly different 1919 rendering and some more info from Curbed
http://philly.curbed.com/archives/2014/1...rket-st-project-to-begin-immediately.php

I was using the corner balconies on the previous rendering to count residential floors, and those are now gone! But I still count 23-24 residential and amenities floors if the facade details are any clue, which would leave 5 or so lower floors for lobby, retail, and offices, despite the statement in the Curbed article that "90% of that [ground floor retail] space is already leased up by CVS and Independence Blue Cross." Again, my guess is that Blue Cross and CVS have leased 90% of the available retail and office space, which would include the 3-4 floors above the ground floor. In the rendering, those floors look more like office space than apartments when compared to the rest of the building, again if the facade is any clue.

[christof]

Originally Posted by Philly Fan

I was using the corner balconies on the previous rendering to count residential floors, and those are now gone! But I still count 23-24 residential and amenities floors if the facade details are any clue, which would leave 5 or so lower floors for lobby, retail, and offices, despite the statement in the Curbed article that "90% of that [ground floor retail] space is already leased up by CVS and Independence Blue Cross." Again, my guess is that Blue Cross and CVS have leased 90% of the available retail and office space, which would include the 3-4 floors above the ground floor. In the rendering, those floors look more like office space than apartments when compared to the rest of the building, again if the facade is any clue.

This needed to be be 50 stories taller. Wasted opportunity...

[Philly Fan]

Originally Posted by christof

This needed to be be 50 stories taller. Wasted opportunity...

Or even just 50 stories period.

But, since we're not the ones investing in this, that's about as much say as we get.

[josef]

I always forget which UC building this is going up, but I love that you can see it behind 30th Street Station. This is from Juniper & Filbert.




"East Market" scaffolding along Market Street.

[Philly Fan]

Originally Posted by josef

I always forget which UC building this is going up, but I love that you can see it behind 30th Street Station. This is from Juniper & Filbert.

The Summit at University City (formerly Lancaster Square).

[josef]

Originally Posted by Philly Fan

The Summit at University City (formerly Lancaster Square).

Ahh right, thanks.

[summersm343]

22nd and Walnut - Walnut Estates

Found a small rendering of it from Philly.com article.

Looks like the 5 story building with ground floor retail will face Walnut. Behind it will be the six four story, 5,000 sq ft +, $1 million+ homes.

http://articles.philly.com/2014-10-26/real_estate/55451066_1_center-city-old-city-new-construction

Also a bonus, a rendering of Blatstein's new home at 1914 Rittenhouse:
http://www.atriumllcdesign.com/wp-conten...1Ba.jpg&w=960&h=600&cc=000000&zc=2&q=100

[VikingDutchman]

Originally Posted by summersm343

22nd and Walnut - Walnut Estates

Found a small rendering of it from Philly.com article.

Looks like the 5 story building with ground floor retail will face Walnut. Behind it will be the six four story, 5,000 sq ft +, $1 million+ homes.

http://articles.philly.com/2014-10-26/real_estate/55451066_1_center-city-old-city-new-construction

What's the zoning there? It sounds to me like the developer would have been open to something much larger if the zoning had been more accommodating.

IMO, everything in that part of town ought to be at least CMX-4

[Parkway]

I was walking around Society Hill today after work and I had a thought: what would the city look like today had Edmund Bacon been run over by a taxi and some other dude gave Society Hill the North Philly treatment?

Would Old City and Northern Liberties have happened? What would have redeveloped instead? Would anything have developed instead?

[aro1419]

Article on the office construction market in the city. It doesn't really add any new information to what we already know, just basically reaffirming the growth of University City. It also mentions CITC, a project that none of us would have known about without this article

http://www.philly.com/philly/business/ho...yDeals__Are_more_towers_on_horizon_.html

[Flyers2001]

3 for 1!

[Flyers2001]

Demolition full steam ahead!

[Londonee]

Originally Posted by Parkway

I was walking around Society Hill today after work and I had a thought: what would the city look like today had Edmund Bacon been run over by a taxi and some other dude gave Society Hill the North Philly treatment?

Would Old City and Northern Liberties have happened? What would have redeveloped instead? Would anything have developed instead?

Interesting question. I think Bacon's legacy is a bit mixed. For all the good, there is a lot of 1960s city-think that have truly set the city back. Honestly, we're only now kind of reclaiming our city back from his era of flawed urban thinking. The demolition of dozens of prime city blocks to make way for one of the least utilized spaces for residents in indepdnence mall. 676, I-95, waterfront isolation, and the icing on the cake: the gallery. Many of his decisions we' re still trying to recover from, and will ultimately spend hundreds of millions of dollars rectifying the damage he did. He's our Robert Moses.

[VikingDutchman]

I've always thought that the fact that his legacy is mixed is precisely the best thing about Bacon.

So many other cities got absolutely trashed by their own versions of Bacon. That the original article merely left us limping badly and with some pretty tough handicaps is true praise given so many of his contemporaries.

[shadowbat2]

Originally Posted by summersm343

Fuuuuuckkkkkk.

We all know which NIMBYs they are.

http://www.williampennhouse.com/

Don't you just love the fact that the worst NIMBYS live in the straight up *ugliest* buildings....

*EDIT* If I remember right didn't somebody say the main NIMBY group consisted of some residents in a turn of the century building or something??

[Jawnadelphia]

Article on the new Market East side streets from Plan Philly -

http://planphilly.com/articles/2014/10/2...und-for-a-new-kind-of-center-city-street


"The significance of 1100 Market is that it will prove whether the pedestrian-oriented retail street works in the heart of Center City as well as a smaller neighborhood commercial corridor. Many Philadelphians have long memories and invoke the failure of Ed Bacon's Chestnut Street Transitway concept in the 1970's to insist on universal access for cars to all streets....

Cars won't be allowed on Chestnut Walk though, and the success or failure of that street's retail offerings will be closely watched as a proof of concept by livability advocates who have been eyeing other narrow older streets in Center City like Sansom, Drury, Chancellor, and Juniper for restricted car access or full pedestrianization."

[VikingDutchman]

Originally Posted by TallCoolOne

Article on the new Market East side streets from Plan Philly -

http://planphilly.com/articles/2014/10/2...und-for-a-new-kind-of-center-city-street


"The significance of 1100 Market is that it will prove whether the pedestrian-oriented retail street works in the heart of Center City as well as a smaller neighborhood commercial corridor. Many Philadelphians have long memories and invoke the failure of Ed Bacon's Chestnut Street Transitway concept in the 1970's to insist on universal access for cars to all streets....

Cars won't be allowed on Chestnut Walk though, and the success or failure of that street's retail offerings will be closely watched as a proof of concept by livability advocates who have been eyeing other narrow older streets in Center City like Sansom, Drury, Chancellor, and Juniper for restricted car access or full pedestrianization."

I hope the experiment proves a success!

So many of Philly's narrower streets would be great for this if we can work out the execution piece.

[josef]

Originally Posted by TallCoolOne

Article on the new Market East side streets from Plan Philly -

http://planphilly.com/articles/2014/10/2...und-for-a-new-kind-of-center-city-street


"The significance of 1100 Market is that it will prove whether the pedestrian-oriented retail street works in the heart of Center City as well as a smaller neighborhood commercial corridor. Many Philadelphians have long memories and invoke the failure of Ed Bacon's Chestnut Street Transitway concept in the 1970's to insist on universal access for cars to all streets....

Cars won't be allowed on Chestnut Walk though, and the success or failure of that street's retail offerings will be closely watched as a proof of concept by livability advocates who have been eyeing other narrow older streets in Center City like Sansom, Drury, Chancellor, and Juniper for restricted car access or full pedestrianization."

Wow. I'm as excited about this Chestnut Walk thing as I am the tall buildings. I've been to so many pedestrian streets in different cities, and they do so much for the urban fabric. If they can replicate something like that here and actually get people to use it, I'd be impressed.

[Baconboy007]

Originally Posted by josef

Wow. I'm as excited about this Chestnut Walk thing as I am the tall buildings. I've been to so many pedestrian streets in different cities, and they do so much for the urban fabric. If they can replicate something like that here and actually get people to use it, I'd be impressed.

Hopefully another office building with pop up on this side of Market East and help add traffic to that area. I can see a lot of tourist shopping there as well.