Nearly 20 years ago, a 890-foot-tall, 50-story skyscraper was proposed at 1739 Vine Street in Franklintown, North Philadelphia (or, by an alternate definition, in Logan Square, Center City). Located just to the north of Vine Street, at the intersection with North 17th Street, the tower would have dominated the northern edge of the skyline core. Designed by Hillier Architecture, the project featured a major setback on the north side and a taller, curved section at the south side, with a spire extending above the main structure. Renderings show a façade of light turquoise glass with white metal highlights.
17th and Vine in the Philadelphia skyline looking east. Model by Thomas Koloski
17th and Vine in the Philadelphia skyline looking southeast. Model by Thomas Koloski
The building would have stood three blocks to the north of the 734-foot Bell Atlantic Tower, standing prominently away from the main skyline mass. The tower, located just to the right of the 370-foot-tall Alexander Apartments (built in 2018), would have been prominently visible from the Philadelphia Museum of Art. The building’s curved façade and spire have come into direct view from the restaurant at the top of the Bell Atlantic Tower.
17th and Vine in the Philadelphia skyline looking northwest. Model by Thomas Koloski
17th and Vine in the Philadelphia skyline looking northeast. Model by Thomas Koloski
The skyscraper was planned in the early 2000s, at a time when high-rise residential development was growing in Philadelphia. High-rises such as the Symphony House, Residences at Ritz Carlton, 1706 Rittenhouse Square, and 10 Rittenhouse Square were all proposed at the time. The building was eventually cancelled, never having moved into the construction phase.
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Why was the building cancelled?
I remember this proposal ages ago.
An office building that couldn’t secure financing because they couldn’t recruit a major tenant.
Reminds me of 2 World Trade Center.
You can’t expect a bank to loan the capital if you can’t pay it back. No bank is going to finance an empty building.
Nobody who lives in the neighborhood calls it Franklin Town (and certainly not North Philadelphia). The neighborhood is Baldwin Park. See https://www.baldwinparkphilly.org/franklin-town for the first part of the story and https://www.baldwinparkphilly.org/franklin-town-2-0 for the second part. Many of the people eminent-domained out of their homes by “Franklin Town,” still live in the neighborhood.
Boy, those were the days! Had 1739 Vine been built, the Mormon Church would’ve never been built. While I don’t necessarily wax nostalgia about this tower in comparison to the late, great proposal known as the American Commerce Center, nonetheless, it would’ve done a great job further expanding our skyline northward. I believe that GSK was supposed to be the intended corporate tenant, but it never happened, and 1739 bit the dust.
The only difference between 1739 Vine and the ACC was that the ACC was privately funded by a pension fund, which is the reason why it was able to stay so long for three years from 2008 to 2011 while 1739 Vine didn’t have any such fund. Plus the ACC was a multi-use building (office, retail, transportation, tourism, green roof) while 1739 was solely an office tower. Both towers would’ve made a great addition to the skyline in comparison to the Mormon Church and the CITC, especially the ACC.
I remember their being controversy about the large showdow the building would cast in the neighborhood — it resulted in opposition from the property owners who would have been affected and helped cause the buildings doom.