Philadelphia YIMBY’s recent site visit has noted that construction work is nearing completion at a 32-story, 378-unit high-rise residential building at 204 South 12th Street in Midtown Village, Center City. The structure spans a site bound by South 12th Street to the east, St. James Street to the south, and Chancellor Street to the north. Designed by BLT Architects, with Hunter Roberts as the contractor, the structure will rise to a height of 366 feet and span 401,870 square feet. Permits specify a construction cost of $111.7 million.
204 South 12th Street. Photo by Jamie Meller. June 2024
204 South 12th Street. Photo by Jamie Meller. June 2024
204 South 12th Street. Photo by Jamie Meller. June 2024
Construction on the tower is largely complete, and the large, prismatic glass structure already makes for an appealing addition to the city skyline. True to renderings, the glass curtain wall appears rather sophisticated, clad in crisp, high-quality glass (without the wavy warping that often betrays a low grade of the material). A three-story-high white mullion grid lends the otherwise ethereal building a sense of solidity. Reddish-pink curtain wall panels re-interpret the neighborhood’s predominant red brick material palette with a contemporary flair.
204 South 12th Street. Credit: Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners / BLT Architects
Rendering of 210 South 12th Street. Credit: Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners.
204 South 12th Street. Photo by Jamie Meller. June 2024
Sandwiched between Center City’s commercial and civic core to the northwest and the quaint Washington Square West neighborhood to the southeast, Midtown Village, a rather shabby enclave for much of its postwar existence, is being revived as a dense and vibrant mixed-use district with some of the best retail and dining options, as well as transit access, anywhere in the city.
The neighborhood builds upon its newfound success in great part thanks to its extensive stock of exquisite prewar buildings and a charming street grid where narrow alleyways bisect larger blocks between primary arterial streets. Two such alleys, the St. James and Chancellor streets, flank the tower at 204 South 12th Street on either side, which will create an intensely urban experience at either frontage.
204 South 12th Street. Rendering via BLT Architects
204 South 12th Street. Rendering via BLT Architects
204 South 12th Street. Photo by Jamie Meller. June 2024
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Beautiful. Imagine the views!
Through the 1990s, what is now known as Midtown Village was the region’s center of drug dealing, prostitution and crime. What some described as the decrepit hole in the cherry glazed donut was an area to be avoided, surrounded by beautiful and civil residential, retail, and commercial Center City.
It was not until 1999 when visionary New Yorker Tony Goldman recognized the potential of the area’s intimate physical scale and critical mass of properties that change began. With a history of almost single handedly triggering rejuvenation of New York’s Soho district and Miami’s South Beach, he duplicated that success in Philadelphia with his unusual modus-operandi — destination restaurants and shops in renovated historic buildings with living space above.
In 2010, the National Trust for Historic Preservation gave him its highest honor for excellence in historic preservation. By 2012 when he passed, Midtown Village had long been a vibrant go-to neighborhood of shops, restaurants, entertainment, and residential.
The juxtaposition of shimmering 204 South 12th Street with masonry prewar buildings provides an aesthetic rare in the United States, an aesthetic we get to enjoy today in large part because of Tony Goldman.
Thank you for giving us some historical context on this area which you aptly described as a rare aesthetic. It’s so refreshing to see narrow streets lined with architectural gems and hints of modern economic vitality in the US. The manner of development here seems to be a limited spectrum of single family housing or Uber density. This area singlehandly cements Philadelphia as a great American city (an undervalued one if I might add).
Bigger is always better even if it doesn’t fit!
When are we going to have some 😮💨 relief from all of these luxury apts? Where are the middle income SENIORS supposed to go? Why are the seniors flooded with offers of housing that is not only expensive,but is usually 🤔 out in the suburbs? We would like Center City living too!
More housing means prices stay more stable for all, and older apartments built only 10 years become more affordable.
How would middle income housing work, from a financial perspective, on prime, expensive Center City land?
The address is actually 210 S 12th, not 204!
It’s 210 S 12th now.