Quote:
Originally Posted by Caruso975
This is an important, perhaps the most important point for all to understand regarding the timing of Schuylkill Yards and the implementation of the 30th Street Station master plan. Ultimately, it will all be determined by market demand and nothing else. Drexel will seed an initial building or renovation with some classroom space but from there forward it will be the market. A developer has not even been selected for either the Cira 2 site nor the Amtrak rail yards. There is no design yet for any building, other than a master plan vision. Initial development on the land controlled by Amtrak will likely start with the corner of 30th Street and JFK (aka Cira 2). Probably, under the best of circumstances, a 2019 start. I would assume a mixed use tower because there is not sufficient demand for all 900,000 sf to be office. This will also be the most expense tower built in the city due to the site characteristics, so it will have to be a tenant or user willing to pay a top rent.
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I think that what you and the prior post, #117, are saying is probably true. But that begs the question of why would Amtrak and others go through the exercise of a master plan when very little if anything is actually planned? Its not like the plan came up with any radical ideas, like moving the exits ramps from I-76 or putting the suburban train lines under ground (both should have been considered), that would need long term planning to see them through.
And like you mentioned the Cira 2 site that is suggested would be built over existing tracks making its construction highly expensive and very doubtful, as long as there is other less complicated sites in the area to build on.
As much as I enjoy the prospect of what the master plan presents and the drawings/dreams that were released, in a nut shell it basically is saying the obvious---when market conditions call for it, the first buildings will be built on land not presently used for tracks, and then after that land is used up somebody could build over the tracks. What might actually get built is so far out in the future just about anything could have been proposed.
If another plan came out of the blue---the 76'ers wanting to build their own, basketball only dream arena over the tracks, or Google wanting to build an east coast campus----I'm quite sure Amtrak would be thrilled to sell them or anybody else, the air rights.
My prediction is that sometime in the next 5+ years SEPTA will work with others on rebuilding the underground connection to the station and that as construction starts up along JFK Blvd. that maybe there will be a push to move the buses to a built space somewhere around the station. Other then that I believe that this plan will just join the other past plans collecting dust. Whatever the market needs are, the plans Drexel has in its Schuylkill Yards concept will be able to handle them for a very long time. And its not like center city is full!
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