YIMBY Presents Skyline Massings of Ultra Labs University City in West Philadelphia

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

The Ultra Labs University City is a 12-story building proposed at 125 North 32nd Street, University City, just to the south of the West Philadelphia rail yards. Developed by Republic Properties with SEPTA, the 185,279-square-foot facility will consist of mixed-use of laboratory and office space. Today we present YIMBY-exclusive concept massings that offer a comprehensive look at how the project will appear on the skyline.

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Piazza Terminal rendering looking northeast from Germantown Avenue. Image via Post Brothers

Northern Liberties Scores the 18th Place on Philly YIMBY’s First Anniversary Countdown

7:30 am on September 17, 2021 By Vitali Ogorodnikov

The Northern Liberties neighborhood in North Philadelphia finds itself at the 18th place on Philadelphia YIMBY’s First Anniversary Countdown, which looks at the most frequently mentioned article categories over the course of the past year. The district’s ranking within the Top 20 is hardly surprising, given its significant extent, central location, proximity to the waterfront, ample prewar built stock, and widely available development-ready land. These factors have fueled the area’s resurgence since the 1990s, and growth continues unabated in the district to this day, with plenty potential still to spare.

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Current view of 2613 West Oxford Street. Credit: Google.

Permits Issued For 2613-21 West Oxford Street In Brewerytown, North Philadelphia

7:00 am on September 17, 2021 By Colin LeStourgeon

Permits have been issued for the construction of a four-story, 18-unit mixed-use building at 2613 West Oxford Street in Brewerytown, North Philadelphia. Commercial space will be located on the ground floor, with residential units above. The building will also include a roof deck and 12 indoor parking spaces, with one set to be van accessible, as well as six bicycle spaces. In total, the building will hold 20,595 square feet of space. Scott Woodruff is listed as the project’s design professional, with Clifford Lasky specified as the contractor. Construction costs are estimated at $2 million.

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Unfinished Liberty Place design model. Photo from Helmut Jahn

Visualizing the Under-500-Foot-Tall Early Iterations of Liberty Place on the Skyline

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

The Liberty Place complex is emblematic of the Philadelphia skyline as they played a key role in Center City‘s skyscraper growth. The towers currently stand 61 and 58 stories tall, with angled sharp crowns pointing toward to the sky, one tower capped with a tall and another with a short spire. The project was commissioned by Willard G. Rouse III of Rouse and Associates, who had originally pictured a $150 million 38-story tower rising to a height that measured somewhere under 500 feet. Just days after New Year’s Day in 1984, the building was first discussed in a publication about how Rouse won the bid for the site how it may become the city’s premier office tower. The architect, Helmut Jahn, was selected in March, and had produced a rapid succession of concepts under 500 feet, which eventually evolving well above that height. Today we share exclusive massing concepts of how the skyline would have looked if the towers were built to their originally planned height.

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North Central Philadelphia. Credit: Google Maps

North Central Philadelphia Takes the 19th Place on Philly YIMBY’s First Anniversary Countdown

7:30 am on September 16, 2021 By Vitali Ogorodnikov

Philadelphia YIMBY’s First Anniversary Countdown, which looks at the most frequently mentioned article categories over the course of the past year, briefly took a backseat to hot-off-the-presses content we shared with our readers. Today, we resume the series by looking at the 19th place in the countdown, which goes to North Philadelphia East, which has garnered 40 category mentions. To be more precise, this entry also includes North Central Philadelphia and North Philadelphia West, which have amassed 36 and 34 mentions, respectively. We are grouping all three in a single publication due to significant overlap between the categories.

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