History

Cira Center, Evo, and FMC Tower from South Street. Photo by Thomas Koloski

A Look Back at How FMC Tower Elevated the West Philadelphia Skyline

8:00 am on March 19, 2021 By Thomas Koloski

The 736-foot-tall, 49-story FMC Tower at 2929 Walnut Street has stood as one of the tallest towers in Philadelphia since its completion in 2017, with a sharp design that elevates the University City skyline to new heights once seen as barely imaginable for the area. Along with Evo and Cira Green, the tower has given West Philadelphia a dramatic profile with eye-catching good designs. The abovementioned skyscrapers have the same designer, Pelli Clarke Pelli Architects, and all feature angled cuts. Developed by Brandywine Realty Trust, FMC Tower also displays distinctive curvy façades. Nighttime lighting with a red FMC logo topping the north and south faces adds an extra distinctive touch.

Broad Street Station with City Hall. Photo from City of Philadelphia, Department of Records

A Look Back at “the Chinese Wall,” an Elevated Viaduct that Once Ran Through Center City

8:00 am on March 17, 2021 By Thomas Koloski

In the late 1800’s, ten city blocks in Center City were converted into an elevated railroad spur that serviced multiple rail lines, connected to the Broad Street Station just to the west of City Hall, near the current space Dilworth Park. A massive train shed stood behind the station, rising multiple stories tall and prominent from many directions. Designed by the Wilson Brothers, the project was developed by the Pennsylvania Railroad and was completed on December 5, 1881. The centerpiece was a five-story Victorian Gothic headhouse facing City Hall.

One Meridian Plaza (left) in the Philadelphia skyline. Photo via Daily Press

The Tragic Story of One Meridian Plaza

8:00 am on March 16, 2021 By Thomas Koloski

One Meridian Plaza was a 492-foot-tall, 38-story skyscraper that used to stand on the current site of the Residences at Ritz Carlton and the W/Element Hotel at 1416 South Penn Square in Center City, across from City Hall. The building began construction in 1968 and opened in 1972, just after the construction of the 1980’s skyscraper boom. Designed by Vincent and Kling and Associates and developed by Girard Bank and Fidelity Mutual Life Insurance, the tower was extensively damaged by a fatal fire in 1991 and demolished in 1999.

Philadelphia YIMBY Presents Massing Renderings of the 1987 Skyline

8:00 am on March 9, 2021 By Thomas Koloski

The iconic Philadelphia skyline has dramatically expanded since the completion of One Liberty Place in 1987. Philly YIMBY presents exclusive massing renderings of the 1987 skyline, reflecting the beginning of a period that saw rapid development in Center City.

9801 Blue Grass Road. Looking east. Credit: Google

Demolition Permits Issued for a 397,000-Square-Foot Warehouse at 9801 Blue Grass Road by the Northeast Philadelphia Airport

7:00 am on March 6, 2021 By Vitali Ogorodnikov

A zoning permit has been issued for the demolition of a large commercial structure at 9801 Blue Grass Road by the Northeast Philadelphia Airport in Far Northeast Philadelphia. The single-story facility appears to have served as a distribution facility or a trucking depot until recently, though permits classify the structure as vacant. The filing lists a building footprint of 396,812 square feet, making the facility one of the largest structures to be slated for the wrecking ball in recent years.

Waldorf Astoria looking northwest. Image via Cope-Linder Architects

Looking at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel & Residences Once Proposed at 1441 Chestnut Street in Center City

8:00 am on March 3, 2021 By Thomas Koloski

Today’s entry in Philly YIMBY’s ongoing “unbuilt” series is the Waldorf Astoria Hotel & Residences Philadelphia, proposed at 1441 Chestnut Street in Center City, where the W/Element Hotel is now nearing completion. The 567-foot-tall, 59-story tower would have occupied the south side of the site of the former One Meridian Plaza, a 492-foot-tall office skyscraper damaged by a lethal fire in 1991 and demolished in 1999 (yesterday YIMBY covered a supertall structure proposed earlier at the site). Like the W/Element Hotel, the Waldorf Astoria iteration was also designed by Cope-Linder Architects, though the developers at the time were Mariner Commercial Properties, Inc. and Gatehouse Capital Corporation. The tower would have featured 181 hotel rooms and 126 residences.

Center City Tower rendering with Liberty Place. Image via Kling Lindquist

A Look Back at Center City Tower, Once Planned as the City’s First Supertall Skyscraper

8:00 am on March 2, 2021 By Thomas Koloski

In the late 1990’s, a massive supertall was planned at the site of the 492-foot-tall One Meridian Plaza, an office skyscraper damaged by a fatal fire in 1991 and demolished in 1999. The proposed Center City Tower at 1414 South Penn Square in Center City would have been built where The Residences at The Ritz-Carlton and the under-construction W/Element Hotel currently stand. Designed by Kling Lindquist, the 1,050-foot tower would have become the first supertall skyscraper in Philadelphia, rather than the Comcast Technology Center, which took the title 20 years later. Notably, Comcast was also considering taking office space at Center City Tower, and the cable company’s decision to pull out of the project and to build Comcast Center at 17th and Arch Street instead was a major reason behind the supertall’s cancellation.

World Trade Square aka Renaissance Plaza. Credit: Alesker & Dundon Architects

Visualizing World Trade Square, an Unbuilt Multi-Tower Complex in Northern Liberties, North Philadelphia

8:00 am on February 28, 2021 By Thomas Koloski

Yesterday Philly YIMBY published a feature story covering the 1,050-foot-tall Philadelphia World Trade Center supertall planned at 456 North Christopher Columbus Boulevard on the Delaware River waterfront in Northern Liberties in 1988. After the proposal fell through, developer Carl Marks Real Estate Group contracted Alesker & Dundon Architects to redesign the project as four shorter yet still impressive skyscrapers, which were to take up most of the 5.5-acre site. The development would now be known as World Trade Square, and later as Renaissance Plaza.

17th and Vine rendering via Hiliier Architecture

A Look at an Unbuilt 50-Story Tower Once Proposed at 1739 Vine Street in Franklintown

8:00 am on February 17, 2021 By Thomas Koloski

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.

Cira 2 and the Cira Center. Photo by KMCA Architectural Model Makers and Prototyping

Looking Back at the Second Tower Once Planned at Cira Centre in University City, West Philadelphia

8:00 am on February 13, 2021 By Thomas Koloski

Shortly after the completion of the first Cira Centre skyscraper in 2005, plans were revealed for a second tower at a nearby site. The 725-foot-tall, 48-story high-rise was shown as part of a model of the greater complex, around the time of the groundbreaking of the FMC Tower nearby to the south. The project was designed by Pelli Clarke Pelli Architecture and planned for development by Brandywine Realty Trust, a team that is also behind the original Cira Centre as well as the Evo and FMC Tower at Cira Centre South, a group of buildings that has transformed the University City skyline.

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