PHILADELPHIA | Parkway22 | 407 FT / 124 M (I) | 187 FT / 57 M (II) | NEVER BUILT

[adrgtr8]

I always like the Ben Franklin there. The rest of the building can go. I'm not a huge fan of this tower, although the height this far north is nice. All the low-rise residential units at the bottom look nice though. It should contribute to the neighborhood vibe with rowhouses on the same block.

[Orion1]

Johnland

The Franklin placard is a left over from the hotel's previous life as the Franklin Motor Inn....

[skellergroup]

This demo was planned many moons ago regardless if they build or not.

Hopefully it will get built. It will really spark some more life in that area.

I like this development a lot.

[sharkfood]

I noticed in one of their ads they said demolition would begin March 2008.

I have a lot of confidence this is really going to happen for two reasons:

1. It's being very aggressively advertised and marketed.

2. The developers bought the land on the cheap in 1993 and are not saddled with 2007 land prices.

[Johnland]

Originally Posted by Orion1

Johnland

The Franklin placard is a left over from the hotel's previous life as the Franklin Motor Inn....

Well that makes a little more sense now.

[GarCastle]

They really should hide that Parkway 22 sign until the old building is gone. It doesn't exactly appear to be the Art Of Living or whatever their slogan is lol.

Here's a good policy for NIMBY's. If they become obstructive, just start going "old school" and use dynamite to do the prep work. While "waterless" urinals may not be in the antiquated crap Philly construction code, I'm sure Dynamite is still there!

[BuildItUp]

Originally Posted by sharkfood

I noticed in one of their ads they said demolition would begin March 2008.

I have a lot of confidence this is really going to happen for two reasons:

1. It's being very aggressively advertised and marketed.

2. The developers bought the land on the cheap in 1993 and are not saddled with 2007 land prices.

Do we know whether or not they have secure any financing for this project? Its going be awfully tough obtain financings now if they have not already done so. I hope it gets built to add more density to our skyline.

[highdensity32]

Originally Posted by BuildItUp

Do we know whether or not they have secure any financing for this project? Its going be awfully tough obtain financings now if they have not already done so. I hope it gets built to add more density to our skyline.

If a developer has the cash, they can begin demolition and site work before financing is committed by a lender. This is a bit of a gamble, but it speeds up the process and shows prospective buyers that the project is in process. It's a tough market out there for large scale residential construction financing, they will have their work cut out for them.

[adrgtr8]

I bet this project gets built. If you remember the article in the Inquirer about the woman behind this, it seemed like they were pretty committed to getting this done. If I remember correctly, she and her husband came from Israel and spent like ten years scoping out the perfect property in the city to build on. Sooner or later I bet this goes up.

[saltwaterking]

It's getting built. I heard Petrini got the concrete contract. It is just a matter of time...who knows when they will start.

[volguus zildrohar]

It appears demolition is about to begin. The tarped fences have been up around the 22nd Street building since Tuesday and there's various contractor equipment around the site.

[bryson662001]

Originally Posted by volguus zildrohar

It appears demolition is about to begin. The tarped fences have been up around the 22nd Street building since Tuesday and there's various contractor equipment around the site.

I love demolition. It does seem odd though that there haven't been protests. The historic Franklin Motor Inn? I'll bet it's close to fifty years old. How did this slip past Inga?

[skyscraper]

Originally Posted by bryson662001

I love demolition. It does seem odd though that there haven't been protests. The historic Franklin Motor Inn? I'll bet it's close to fifty years old. How did this slip past Inga?

she's busy dodging construction fences on sidewalks. she doesn't concern herself with what's happening behind the fences, just the fences themselves.

[donybrx]

It's always just great to check into a thread expecting something of maybe minimal consequence and finding even more useless Inga snark/resentment on top of what already exists as worn out overkill.....

Thanks to VZ for something worthwhile.....

[skyscraper]

Originally Posted by donybrx

It's always just great to check into a thread expecting something of maybe minimal consequence and finding even more useless Inga snark/resentment on top of what already exists as worn out overkill.....

Thanks to VZ for something worthwhile.....

can't help it. Fridays are prime days for that.

[Don098]

Originally Posted by skyscraper

can't help it. Fridays are prime days for that.

You should marry Inga

[BuildItUp]

Originally Posted by Don098

You should marry Inga

Careful ... those are fighting words

[bucks native]

Skyscraper, this is just for you:

Fri, Apr. 11, 2008


Inquirer's Saffron Pulitzer finalist

Inga Saffron, The Inquirer's architecture critic, was honored as a finalist for the 2008 Pulitzer Prize in criticism.

In announcing the prizes Monday, the Pulitzer board cited Saffron for "her forceful critiques that illuminate the vital interplay between architecture and the life of her city." The prize was won by Mark Feeney, a visual-arts critic for the Boston Globe; the other finalist was Ann Hornaday of the Washington Post.

This is the second time Saffron has been short-listed for journalism's top prize. She was also a finalist in criticism in 2004.

[Ninjawho]

Ain't she a looker!

[BigDan35]

Not in a good way