Construction Complete at Drexel University Health Sciences Building at 3601 Filbert Street in University City, West Philadelphia

Philadelphia YIMBY visited the recently completed Drexel University Health Sciences Building at 3601 Filbert Street in University City, West Philadelphia. Also known as the Drexel College of Nursing and Health Professions or the Wexford Drexel Academic Tower, the building rises 14 stories, with 12 primary plus two mechanical floors, and is designed by Ballinger and developed by Wexford Science & Technology, with Turner Construction as the contractor. Upon its anticipated completion later this year, the structure will span over 450,000 square feet and will house Drexel University’s College of Nursing and Health Professions as well as a significant portion of the functions of the College of Medicine. The building is a part of Wexford’s and Drexel’s 14-acre, jointly-developed uCity Square complex, which is rapidly transforming the northern section of University City.

YIMBY last checked in on the site in February 2022, when exterior work was nearing completion. Since that time, construction has wrapped up and no evidence remains of the recent work.

3601 Filbert Street. Photo by Jamie Meller. April 2023

3601 Filbert Street. Photo by Jamie Meller. April 2023

Developers of the Drexel University Health Sciences Building aimed to secure a minimum of LEED-Silver certification for the project. The building holds laboratories, offices, classrooms, simulation spaces, and physical therapy rooms, among other facilities. Tenants include the College of Nursing and Health Professions moving in shortly thereafter and the College of Medicine. Drexel’s goal is to consolidate the majority of its medical sciences services within a single structure, while moving all College of Nursing facilities out of various Center City locations as their leases expire.

The architects managed to craft a design that is at once restrained yet distinctive. The conservative, slab-like form, which matches the scale and massing of nearby buildings, makes an individual gesture with a dramatic slanted notch at the north facade. The staggered cascade of alternating transparent and opaque panels mimics that of the high-rise building to the south, yet maintains a distinctive identity via the brown-beige coloring of the solid panels. Furthermore, both transparent and opaque panels appear to share the same degree of reflectivity, creating a mirror-like effect without resorting to the all-too-common “blue glass box” formula. The final design appears to have been somewhat simplified from the razzle-dazzle edifice seen in initial renderings, although the structure still retains a pattern of vertically staggered, cascading panels.

Drexel College of Nursing and Health Professions at 3601 Filbert Street. Rendering via Wexford Science & Technology LLC

Rendering of the tower via Wexford Science And Technology.

3601 Filbert Street. Photo by Jamie Meller. April 2023

The Drexel University Health Sciences Building makes up what is currently the northern vanguard of a dense cluster of broad high-rise structures. Aside from One uCity Square, a similarly recently built tower of a slightly greater height nearby to the northwest, the Health Sciences tower overlooks a landscape of parking lots and vacant properties. However, in the coming years, the area will be transformed into a vibrant neighborhood with laboratory, commercial, residential, and retail buildings, connected with a network of green space and public plazas.

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