Formerly: One Pennsylvania Plaza Built: 2008 Cost: $540,000,000 Designed by: Robert A.M. Stern Architects Type: Skyscraper Stories: 57 Maximum Height: 973 feet / 297 meters Location: 1701 John F. Kennedy Boulevard, Philadelphia, United States
Description by Wayne Lorentz T he Comcast Center thrusts skyward from the heart of Philadelphia, pulling this historic city into the age of 21st century skyscrapers.
Sure, Philadelphia is no stranger to blue glass squarified skyscrapers. But this one eschews the gables and barn shapes that typify those that came before it. Instead of copying what had already been done through the years in Philadelphia, this one goes out on its own. Moreover, it does so boldly; even going so far as to have a flat roof to demonstrate that its presence is a solid representation of its height, and not some trick of spires or antennae stretching, reaching for the sky. This building is the sky.
And its facade is an excellent representation of that. Blue glass on all sides and not too many angles, it reflects the city and the sky around it rather than suck up all the available light like one of its nearby neighbors.
What angles it does have are expressed as additional corners. Vertical extensions to the glass monolith run nearly its entire height, tapering amongst themselves as they approach the crown.
The crown is the real star of the show here. Five stories of illumination to punctuate this building's already impressive height and to make sure that when the sun goes down people continue looking up. And it's not just the crown that brightens the night. The light show continues down the corners and back into the heart of the city.
Architect: Robert Stern
Associate architect: Kendall/Heaton Associates
Structural Engineer: Thornton Tomasetti
General Contractor: L. F. Driscoll Company
Developer: Liberty Property Trust
Vanity address: One Comcast Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19103
At the time of its completion, this was the tallest building in Philadelphia.
Bounding streets: North 17th Street, North 18th Street, Arch Street, and John F. Kennedy Boulevard.
The cut-out is six stories tall on the south side, and two stories tall on the north side.
This was formerly the location of the Sheraton Penn Center Hotel and the Public Defenders Building.
There is a cafeteria for Comcast employees on the 43rd floor.
Floor space: 1,238,000 square feet
Elevators: 35
Parking spaces: 120
January, 2005: Construction begins.
January 3, 2005: This building's name is changed to the Comcast Center.
June 18, 2007: This building becomes the tallest in Philadelphia and Pennsylvania.
**The recesses near the top of the building. Some people call them "handles."
**The building's illuminated crown which hides mechanical systems including a tunes mass dampener to help the building cope with the wind.
Did You Know?
**Only the top row of lights in the crown are colored. But they're pointed downward toward the blue-white lights of the rest of the crown so that the color blends. together.
**One plan for this building had it rising 55 feet taller.
dan sammons
Thursday, September 11th, 2008 @ 8:58am
Rating: Three stars. I was pleased to view the HD screen @ the mezzanine,one word explains it (you got to see it to appreciate it).
Aaron Burger
Monday, June 2nd, 2008 @ 5:07pm
Rating: Five stars. Great to see this. Philly really needs it. This city's been a backwater for too long.
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New York, United States
dan sammons
Three stars.
Five stars.