Permits have been issued for the construction of a seven-level parking garage at 3000 Grays Ferry Avenue in Southwest Center City, Philadelphia. The project will rise on a parcel identified as Unit B of the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) campus expansion, situated near the intersection of Grays Ferry Avenue and South 30th Street. The structure will span 335,526 square feet. The project is carried out by the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, with Blank Rome LLP listed as the contractor of record. THA Consulting is responsible for the deigns.
The total construction cost is listed at $32.27 million, which includes $25.95 million for general construction, $813,470 for plumbing, $451,145 for mechanical systems, and $5.06 million for electrical work.
3000 Grays Ferry Avenue West Elevation via THA Consulting
Plans call for a non-accessory parking garage with ground-floor shell retail space, which will require separate use registration and fit-out permits before occupancy. The structure will include a standpipe system in compliance with NFPA 14 fire-safety standards. Excavation for the foundation was approved separately under permit.
3000 Grays Ferry Avenue South Elevation via THA Consulting
Architectural plans show a precast concrete façade with alternating horizontal spandrel bands and open ventilation panels, forming a rhythmic pattern across the garage elevations. The isometric circulation diagram reveals an internal ramping system that spirals upward through seven levels, with vehicular access via an access drive from Grays Ferry Avenue and shuttle pick-up/drop-off zones along South 30th Street.
3000 Grays Ferry Avenue East Elevation via THA Consulting
Each tier measures roughly 10 feet 6 inches in height, reaching a total structure height of approximately 71 feet 1 inch to the top tier, and nearly 90 feet to the top of the elevator tower parapet. The building features a north-facing glass elevator and stair tower providing vertical access, with the east and west façades defined by continuous bands of precast panels.
3000 Grays Ferry Avenue Isometric View via THA Consulting
The site is positioned along the expanding CHOP Roberts Center and Schuylkill Yards development zone, adjacent to the South Bank Campus, a major node in CHOP’s growing research and logistics network. The project will accommodate hospital-related parking demand while integrating street-level retail space to enhance the public realm along Grays Ferry Avenue. The garage’s location bridges University City’s medical and institutional core with the emerging mixed-use corridor along Grays Ferry Triangle, improving connectivity to the Schuylkill Expressway and South Street Bridge.
The new parking facility at marks another phase in CHOP’s long-term expansion strategy south of the main campus. Designed for both hospital operations and potential retail activation, the seven-level garage represents a major infrastructure investment supporting Philadelphia’s most significant healthcare district.
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As I commented six months ago on Naked Philly:
“I regularly volunteer at Paws Animal Shelter (I’m the cuddler-in-chief) directly across 30th Street from this site. It’s not a pretty area so despite ready access to U. City and Center City, a residential development would be a tough sell.
The proposed garage is consistent with the recently constructed Secure Space Self Storage facility on Grays Ferry Ave. a block west. Storage for personal belongings and storage for cars are congruent. However, an additional 1,000 automobiles on nearby streets portends traffic congestion.”
Today I add:
Schuylkill Yards is not a CHOP development and is 1.2 miles (as the crow flys) from the future garage. CHOP’s research campus on the east side of the Schuylkill River is 0.6 miles away, also as the crow flys. The distances are considerably longer by vehicle.
“South Bank” refers to the University of Pennsylvania’s Pennovation Works campus, a 23-acre site located south of the Schuylkill River, at 3401 Grays Ferry Avenue. It is 0.3 miles from the future garage.
Among the many problematic aspects of this massive automobile storage facility, the garage is not within walking distance of the medical center, necessitating frequent shuttle buses throughout day and evening and perhaps overnight as well.
The Paws shelter has an outdoor play and poop area just across S. 30th St. from this development. For the dogs, staff, and volunteers, there will be fresh air and quiet no more.
The outdoor ball fields, also across S. 30th St., will also suffer fumes and noise from more than 1,000 cars and shuttle buses.
The two and three story homes on Titan St. will now face seven stories of concrete.
Traffic on Grays Ferry and nearby streets is going to explode.
Justifiably, the community is strongly against this project but it’s a by-right development, so they have no power to prevent its completion.