While many areas of Center City, notably Center City West, are budding with development, Chinatown still has a surprisingly high number of underdeveloped lots. A two-building proposal is slated for one such site at 800 Vine Street and 830 Vine Street. The Equal Justice Center Towers, developed by Pennrose Management Company and designed by Robert’s & Todd Design, will span a 3.2-acre lot and consist of a nine-story office building and a mixed-use 13-story structure with 132 market rate units, 53 affordable senior units, and 150 hotel rooms. A large public plaza will sit at the corner and run between the two buildings at a diagonal angle.
The proposal was first revealed in early 2017 with a different design for the office building, which was to stand 12 stories high and feature a façade with mullions of varying thicknesses that created a wave-like effect, somewhat similar to the terracotta façade of 111 West 57th Street in New York. After the redesign, the office building now features a light gray façade with square windows, maintaining the angled corner facing the plaza. The residential building’s design hasn’t been changed, and still features staggered off-white cladding with a blocky crown stepping to the top of the south façade. The structure is apparently scheduled to start construction this year after several delays over the past few years.
Past design of Equal Justice Center. Photo by Wallace, Robert & Todd Design
The buildings are projected to be completed by 2022, if construction proceeds without further delays.
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PlanPhilly reported on September 29th that this project is dead.