PHILADELPHIA | American Commerce Center | 1,510' Pinnacle / 1,210' Roof | 63 FLOORS

[Swinefeld]

Originally Posted by tranceclubbinphilly

Any chance somebody knows where we can get a look at that "video fly-by" ourselves?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fURg35N1x6s

[skellergroup]

Maybe GSK is using the NC move as a bargaining tool. Hopefully.

[Snoshredder21]

yeaaa um, lets do something about the formal aesthetics of the top of this building

[blart]

That video is pretty slick; especially nice in high quality. Thanks for the link.

[philadelphiathrives]

I attended the hearing yesterday and over the summer and spoke in favor of the ACC.

I also suggested that the tower should include an OBSERVATION DECK at both hearings. After the first hearing, Gene Kohn thanked me for suggesting it and thought it was a great idea. Then at the second hearing I spoke to him as he left and he said that they are studying the idea and that he thinks THEY WILL LIKELY HAVE AN OBSERVATION DECK IN THE TOWER !!!!!

I think we should pleasantly remind the developers that there should be an observation deck in the tower. It's in their interests because it would help market the tower for office tenants, so we should keep reminding them of the advantages of having an observation deck!

[tranceclubbinphilly]

Originally Posted by Swinefeld

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fURg35N1x6s

You the Man!!!

[BigDan35]

I know everyone wants this building to happen. So, for the realists, what do you guys think are the actual chances of this building starting construction in the next: 2,3,4 years?

Does this building have a better chance than a lot of other proposals in Philly and around the US for certain reasons or does it stand the same chance as any other building?

[Don098]

Originally Posted by BigDan35

I know everyone wants this building to happen. So, for the realists, what do you guys think are the actual chances of this building starting construction in the next: 2,3,4 years?

Does this building have a better chance than a lot of other proposals in Philly and around the US for certain reasons or does it stand the same chance as any other building?

I think this has a very real chance of getting built for several reasons.
1) From what I understood, as soon as the zoning change is passed by City Council, the developer can begin to sign tenants "within a week". From people on the inside that work closer with Garrett, it sounds like they have people waiting in the wings ready to sign leases. That's not confirmed, but that's what I gathered from their language and haste.
2) The development cycle for a project of this scale is usually 6 to 8 years from proposal to end of construction, so the financing issues with a frozen credit market may be in much better shape.
3) This has strong support from Mayor Nutter, most of the PCPC, and a large percentage of the neighborhood (minus the 80-year-old NIMBYs)
4) That pension fund already has the financing up...they're not relying on banks for a large percentage of their construction cost.
5) Construction could begin at the end of the recession where material costs and labor are cheaper than they would otherwise be. If this building was in the stage that the Chicago Spire is in - ready to build now - then I think it would have a real chance of not happening.
6) This is a mixed use building and not solely reliant on a single type of tenant like other major projects around the country (i.e. Chicago Spire: 100% residential, big mistake; The Freedom Tower: Offices and mired in political delays). The mixed-use aspect is important because it engages the pedestrian extremely well and it has lots of public space, something that the PCPC and the city in general likes.
7) It's going to be directly linked to regional rail, something that is on the up and not down. The LEED certification is huge as well, and it's something the city can boast about in tandem with the Comcast Center.
8) The real estate market is in MUCH better shape here than in many other areas of the country...this isn't Miami, Phoenix or Southern California.

It has a majority of the funding and what seems to be tenants waiting in the wings. I am expecting a lot of activity after December 3rd if they pass the zoning restructuring (which I think they will).

[Swinefeld]

Well said, Don. One more thing, the ACC Tower has the support of Councilman Clarke. No small thing since it's in his council district.

[CentralGrad258]

Originally Posted by Don098

5) Construction could begin at the end of the recession where material costs and labor are cheaper than they would otherwise be. If this building was in the stage that the Chicago Spire is in - ready to build now - then I think it would have a real chance of not happening.

I think that unions are the pink elephant in the room when it come to labor costs. Are they going to be willing to play ball or create ridiculous demands (a la waterless pipes). As far as material costs, I'm not so sure either. There was no equivalend of today's China and India in the 1930s, so I'm not so sure that a recession helps. Still love the project and hope it gets built, but it's going to be tough.

[Don098]

Originally Posted by CentralGrad258

I think that unions are the pink elephant in the room when it come to labor cots. Are they going to be willing to play ball or create ridiculous demand (a la waterless pipes).

Yes that is always a concern, especially in Philadelphia. However, there is so little work for them right now that they do not have the upper hand in bargaining. I have met several people that are in the construction business in one way or another (supply chain, construction itself) and they have all either been laid off or can't find projects. Things are tight right now...supply of workers is high, demand is low. I suppose the only concern with respect to labor is what if there's another building bubble after the worst of the recession is over, which would likely be the time that the ACC starts construction? Then demand for workers might be high. Hopefully Nutter will have worked on some type of labor union reform between now and then, especially with respect to diversity within Philadelphia labor unions...

As far as material costs, I'm not so sure either. There was no equivalend of today's China and India in the 1930s, so I'm not so sure that a recession helps. Still love the projects and hope it gets built, but it's going to be tough.

...but China is also in an enormous recession as well, and they have less capacity to deal with it. This recession is global and construction is down everywhere. It's not like the rest of the world is full-steam ahead while the US is floundering and scraping for materials which would drive our costs up.

[williamphilapa]

ACC from George C. Platt Memorial Bridge

[Jayayess1190]

That's hot. This building will be a great addition to the best skyline in the nation.

[Don098]

Ok, so in an ideal world, what would you change about the ACC's design? Here are a few tweaks that I would make.

1) I really like this render because I want you to look closely at the top of the tower where it meets the base of the spire. Notice that the office portion of the building is cut inward while the spire maintains it's straight edge. I think this is an element that softens the sharp edge of the southwestern side of the building. As presently designed, I think that's what Inga laments when she says that it "slams down" onto the street. It's a subtle change, but I think it would be incredibly effective.

Originally Posted by tower

2) I would like to see the office floors continue all the way up through the lantern top of the building. Just imagine the views the top execs would have through those windows that are set back at the top of the tower. My heart skipped a beat when I watched that fly-by in the video and you can see echoes of the Comcast Center's exposed steel-structure top that makes it look "unfinished".

3) I'm still hoping that the monotony of the glass curtain could be broken up a bit more strongly than with the presently-designed window ornamentation akin to what Trump has done with his Tower in Chicago. From afar it still looks like a glass curtain.

But hey, I'll take this building as-is. These are just a few pet peeves of mine. What are other people's opinions?

[DocAwesome]

I agree about the spire and glass curtain part, and also the fact that I'd take it as is despite those seemingly uninspired facets of this project. If this were to be built, I would be completely fine as long as they didn't bait and switch the ground level details too badly.

[Kripke]

Maybe they should scrap the current design and make it a 1500 ft statue of billy penn. that way we'll win every championship ever

[Ninjawho]

Originally Posted by Kripke

Maybe they should scrap the current design and make it a 1500 ft statue of billy penn. that way we'll win every championship ever

Sounds like a plan to me!

[wanderer34]

Originally Posted by Swinefeld

Well said, Don. One more thing, the ACC Tower has the support of Councilman Clarke. No small thing since it's in his council district.

I guess that means we can call of the hitmen!!!

[Swinefeld]

Don't mess with the hitman.

Announcement:

Thank you all for your support through the American Commerce Center zoning process. With all of your vocal support we successfully made it through the City Planning Commission with a unanimous vote in support of ACC. The next step in the process is our hearing before the City Council Rules Committee. KPF will be making an abbreviated presentation (I promise we will keep it brief!). We will only have a total of 1 hour for the entire presentation and we are the ONLY item on the agenda.

Here are the details:

When: Wednesday, December 3rd at 9:00 AM
Where: Room 400 City Hall in City Council Chambers
How long: I can’t control city council but our presentation is only 15 minutes. They will then take public comments, debate and vote.
How to get there: Enter City Hall at the Visitors Entrance on the NorthEast Corner of City Hall

Please arrive by 8:50 AM. The room holds approximately 500. We will have “BUILD IT” signs available for everyone to hold up. Please hold the signs up during the hearing!!! No shouting though.

The Rules Committee will be allowing public comments and I ask for your help in volunteering to speak up in support of the project and please keep it brief and simple!

“I support the American Commerce Center! It’s great for Philadelphia and I urge Council to pass the legislation so that we can Build It!”

Attached are a few of our newest renderings that were unveiled at the PCPC meeting last week. They are also available on the ACC website at: www.acctower.com <http://www.acctower.com> and the ACC Video is on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fURg35N1x6s

I sincerely appreciate everyone’s support and look forward to seeing you all there…when council votes this out of the rules committee it will be a done deal by December 11th….we are almost there!!!!!!

GO ACC and BUILD IT!!!

[skellergroup]

Does anybody else think this building looks like a hand giving the middle finger to the rest of the world. I can kind of see it and I like it