The tallest building in the Western Hemisphere and the second-tallest building in the world is planned for the parking lot at 18th and Arch Streets in Center City. Walnut Street Capital, a Philadelphia development company headed by Garrett Miller and a pension fund from Washington State are joining forces to develop the project. This type of funding enables the project to skit around the current credit crunch that is starting to put a damper on commercial projects. With the funding in place the obstacles ahead include the need for zoning adjustments and attracting prospective tenants to occupy the office part of the building.
This development would fill a hole in a critical block of Center City and help expand the Central Business District filling the emptiness between Logan Square and Market Street. The design of the building will have a mix of uses and design elements that try to create vibrant public spaces to be used at all hours.
The American Commerce Center would be constructed to meet the U.S. Green Building Council’s LEED gold certification and the developer anticipates, if approvals are in place, breaking ground next summer and finishing it by 2012.
FAST FACTS:
Website: American Commerce Center
Location: 1800 Arch St.
Height: Office Tower-1500 feet (525 feet higher than the Comcast Center)
Usage: retail, hotel and office space (even a movie theater)
Cost: $800 million, 2.2 million square feet
Architect: Kohn Pedersen Fox
Developer: Walnut Street Capital
Groundbreaking: Summer 09′?
Features:
• 1500′ Spire
• 26 Story Hotel / 5 Star (300 rooms)
• 2 Roof Gardens (473′ and 6th Floor accessible to hotel guests)
• 3-6 Stories of Ground Floor Retail along Arch St with a public garden
• Underground Parking (383 spots with dedicated bicycle parking)
• LEED Gold Certified
Impressive news. This is a great day for Philadelphia. Check out the official renderings and more information on philly skyline.
Technorati: Philadelphia skyscraper, Center City, American Commerce Center, tallest buildings, Philadelphia real estate
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brian t said
I hate to break this to you: this building won’t make it to second, because Burj Dubai is already taller than Taipei 101, and it’s not close to completion…