List of tallest buildings in Philadelphia

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Philadelphia skyline as seen from the old South Street Bridge in November 2007

This list of tallest buildings in Philadelphia ranks skyscrapers in the city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania by height.

The tallest building in the city is currently the 57-story Comcast Center, which at 975 feet (297 meters)[1] is currently the 14th-tallest building in the United States. It was topped out on June 18, 2007 to become the tallest building in the city and the state.

The new Comcast Innovation and Technology Center will surpass this tower by a few hundred feet. (1,121) It will become the tallest building in the country outside of New York and Chicago. It will also become the first building in Pennsylvania to reach over 1,000 feet. Construction is expected to begin sometime in the summer of 2014.[2]

Another famous Philadelphia skyscraper is One Liberty Place, the city's 2nd-tallest building and the 17th-tallest in the country.[3] and was Philly's tallest for 20 years. Six of the ten tallest buildings in Pennsylvania are in Philadelphia, with the remainder being in Pittsburgh.

Philadelphia's history of tall buildings is generally thought to have begun with the 1754 addition of the steeple to Christ Church, which was one of America's first high-rise structures.[4] Through most of the 20th century, a "gentlemen's agreement" prevented buildings from rising higher than the 548-ft (167-m) Philadelphia City Hall.[5] Despite this, Philadelphia amassed a large collection of high-rise buildings. The completion of One Liberty Place in 1987 broke the agreement,[5] and Philadelphia has since seen the construction of eight skyscrapers that eclipse City Hall in height.

Philadelphia has twice held the tallest habitable building in North America, first with Christ Church, then with City Hall. The latter reigned as the world's tallest building from 1901 to 1908,[6] and is currently the world's second-tallest masonry building, only 1.6 feet (0.49 m) shorter[7] than Mole Antonelliana in Turin.[8] Like other large American cities, Philadelphia went through a massive building boom in the 1970s and 1980s, resulting in the completion of over 20 high-rise buildings.

The city is the site of 15 skyscrapers at least 492 feet (150 m) tall. Philadelphia now is one of only four American cities with two or more buildings over 900 feet (270 m) tall.[9]

Tallest buildings

This lists ranks completed and topped out skyscrapers in Philadelphia that stand at least 400 feet (120 m) tall, based on standard height measurement. This includes spires and architectural details but does not include antenna masts. An equal sign (=) following a rank indicates the same height between two or more buildings. The "Year" column indicates the year in which a building was completed. The only demolished building that would have ranked on this list was the 492-foot (150 m) One Meridian Plaza, razed in 1999.[10]

Rank Name Image Height
ft (m)
Floors Year Address Notes
1 Comcast Center 975 (297) 58 2008 1701 John F. Kennedy Blvd Tallest building in Pennsylvania; 15th-tallest building in the United States, 98th-tallest in the world; tallest building completed in Philadelphia in the 2000s[1][11][12] Tallest building between New York and Chicago and between New York and Atlanta. Tallest building in the Mid-Atlantic region. The new Comcast Innovation and Technology Center will surpass the current Comcast center by 146 feet. This super tall tower will be standing at 1,121 feet. It will be the 8th tallest building in the country and the tallest building outside of New York, and Chicago.
2 One Liberty Place 945 (288) 61 1987 1650 Market Street Second-tallest skyscraper in the city and state; 20th-tallest building in the country, 112th-tallest in the world; tallest building completed in Philadelphia in the 1980s[3][13][14]
3 Two Liberty Place 848 (258) 58 1990 1601 Chestnut Street 35th-tallest building in the country, 156th-tallest in the world; tallest building completed in Philadelphia in the 1990s[15][16][17]
4 BNY Mellon Center 792 (241) 54 1990 1735 Market Street 47th-tallest building in the country, 279th tallest building in the world; also known as Nine Penn Center[18][19][20]
5 Three Logan Square 739 (225) 55 1991 1717 Arch Street 89th-tallest building in the United States; formerly known as Bell Atlantic Tower and Verizon Tower[21][22][23][24]
6 G. Fred DiBona Jr. Building 625 (191) 45 1990 1901 Market Street Formerly known as the Blue Cross-Blue Shield Tower and the IBX Tower[25][26][27]
7= One Commerce Square 565 (172) 41 1992 2001 West Market Street [28][29]
7= Two Commerce Square 565 (172) 41 1987 2005 West Market Street [29][30]
9 Philadelphia City Hall 548 (167) 9 1901 1 Penn Square Tallest building in the United States and the world from 1901 until the completion of the Singer Building in 1908[31][32]
10 The Residences at The Ritz-Carlton 518 (158) 48 2009 1414 South Penn Square Tallest residential building in the city[33][34][35]
11 1818 Market Street 500 (152) 40 1974 1818 Market Street Tallest building completed in Philadelphia in the 1970s[36][37]
12 The St. James 498 (152) 45 2004 700 Walnut Street Tallest building located east of Broad Street[38][39]
13 Loews Philadelphia Hotel 492 (150) 36 1932 1200 Market Street Formerly known as the PSFS Building[40] Tallest hotel in the city. With its antenna, the building reaches a height of 750 feet (229 m), making it the 5th-tallest building in the city.[41][42][43]
14 PNC Bank Building 491 (150) 40 1983 1600 Market Street [44][45]
15= Centre Square II 490 (149) 40 1973 Market and 15th Streets [46][47]
15= Five Penn Center 490 (149) 36 1970 1601 Market Street [48][49]
17 Murano 475 (145) 43 2008 2101 Market Street [50][51][52]
18 One South Broad 472 (144) 28 1932 1 South Broad Street Formerly known as the Lincoln-Liberty Building and the PNB (Philadelphia National Bank) Building[53][54]
19= 2000 Market Street 435 (133) 29 1973 2000 Market Street [55][56]
19= Two Logan Square 435 (133) 35 1987 100 North 18th Street [57][58]
21 Cira Centre 434 (133) 28 2005 30th and Arch Streets Tallest building in Philadelphia outside Center City although, once completed, the FMC tower will surpass the current Cira Centre.[59][60]
22= 1700 Market 430 (131) 32 1968 1700 Market Street Tallest building completed in the 1960s[61][62]
22= Evo at Cira Centre South 430 (131) 33 2014 2930 Chestnut Street Also known as The Evo at Cira Centre South, it will be just about as tall as the current Cira Centre. It opened in September, 2014.[63][64][65]
24 1835 Market Street 425 (130) 29 1986 1835 Market Street Name was changed from Eleven Penn Center in 2003[66][67]
25 Centre Square I 417 (127) 32 1973 Market and 15th Streets [68][69]
26 Aramark Tower 412 (126) 32 1984 1101 Market Street Formerly known as One Reading Center[70][71]
27 Wells Fargo Building 405 (123) 29 1927 123 South Broad Street [72][73]
28 1706 Rittenhouse 401 (122) 31 2011 1706 Rittenhouse Square [74][75]
29 One Logan Square 400 (122) 31 1983 130 North 18th Street [76][77]

Tallest under construction or proposed

This lists buildings that are under construction or proposed for construction in Philadelphia and are planned to rise at least 400 feet (120 m), but are not yet completed structures. A floor count of 40 stories is used as the cutoff for buildings whose heights have not yet been released by their developers.

Name Height
ft (m)
Floors Year*
(est.)
Status Notes
Comcast Innovation and Technology Center 1,121 (341)[78] 59[78] 2018[79] Under construction[79] Construction broke ground July, 2014.[79] This will be the tallest building in Philadelphia, and the 8th tallest in the country.[78]
Cira Centre South Office Tower 730 (210) 49 2016 Under construction Also known as the FMC Tower at Cira Centre South, it will become the 7th tallest building in Philadelphia (with the Comcast Innovation and Technology Center being constructed concurrently.)[80][81][82]
SLS International 590 (180) 47 2017 Approved Formerly known as Avenue Place; construction is expected to begin Spring 2015, and will be constructed along Broad Street.[83]
W Hotel & Element by Westin Philadelphia 582 (177) 51 2017 Approved Directly south of the Residences at the Ritz-Carlton. Construction is expected to begin in the fall of 2014.[84][85]
River Walk Philadelphia 446 and 220 42 and 21 2017 Proposed This project contains one main (446 ft.) tower and 2 (220 ft.) buildings, to be located on a vacant lot on Arch Street and JFK Boulevard along 23rd Street. The project has been cleared by the Philadelphia City Planning Commission and now must be approved by the City Council and go before the Civic Design Review Committee. http://philly.curbed.com/archives/2014/06/18/riverwalk-clears-its-first-hurdle-now-one-step-closer.php
The Horizon 409 (125) 37 Approved [86][87]

* Table entries with dashes (—) indicate that information regarding building heights or dates of completion has not yet been released.

Timeline of tallest buildings

A 1898 poster of skyscrapers in Philadelphia.

Philadelphia has seen few city record-holders compared to other cities with comparable skylines. Although churches, cathedrals, and the like are not technically considered to be skyscrapers, Christ Church, after being surmounted with its lofty spire in 1754, stood as its tallest building for 102 years before being surpassed by the (no longer extant) spire of Tenth Presbyterian Church, which was only surpassed by the North American Building in 1900. Then, due to the "gentlemen's agreement" not to build higher than the top of the statue of William Penn atop City Hall,[5] that building stood as the city's tallest structure for 86 years; it also held the world record for tallest habitable building from 1901 until the 1908 completion of the Singer Building in New York City.

Name Image Street address Years as tallest Height
ft (m)
Floors Architect Reference
Independence Hall 520 Chestnut Street 1748–1754 134 (41) Edmund Woolley and Andrew Hamilton
Christ Church 20 North American Street 1754–1856 196 (60) Robert Smith [4][88]
Tenth Presbyterian Church 17th & Spruce Streets 1856–1900 250 (76) John McArthur, Jr. [89]
North American Building 121 South Broad Street 1900–1901 267 (81) 21 James H. Windrim [90]
Philadelphia City Hall Broad & Market Streets 1901–1987 548 (167) 9 John McArthur, Jr. [31][91]
One Liberty Place 1650 Market Street 1987–2008 945 (288) 61 Helmut Jahn [3][92]
Comcast Center 1701 John F. Kennedy Boulevard 2008–present 975 (297) 57 Robert A. M. Stern Architects [1][11]

See also

References

General
Specific
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  2. ^ Cynwyd, Bala. "L.F. Driscoll Co. tops out Comcast Center". L.F. Driscoll. Retrieved 2007-08-22.
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  9. ^ "Diagram of Tallest Buildings in the United States". SkyscraperPage.com. Retrieved 2014-01-17.
  10. ^ "One Meridian Plaza". Emporis.com. Retrieved 2007-08-22.
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  57. ^ "Two Logan Square". Emporis.com. Retrieved 2007-08-22.
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  69. ^ "Centre Square I". SkyscraperPage.com. Retrieved 2007-08-22.
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  72. ^ "Wachovia Building". Emporis.com. Retrieved 2007-08-22.
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  79. ^ a b c Kostelni, Natalie (2014-03-07). "Comcast skyscraper construction begins; new details emerge". Phila. Bus. J. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  80. ^ "Cira Centre South Office Tower". emporis.com. Retrieved 2008-04-17.
  81. ^ "Cira Centre South". University of Pennsylvania. Archived from the original on 2007-10-29. Retrieved 2007-10-31.
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  84. ^ "W Hotel & Element by Westin Philadelphia". emporis.com. Retrieved 2013-08-20.
  85. ^ "W Hotel". SkyscraperPage.com. Retrieved 2013-08-13.
  86. ^ "The Horizon". Emporis.com. Retrieved 2011-05-12.
  87. ^ "The Horizon". SkyscraperPage.com. Retrieved 2011-05-12.
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  89. ^ Barfield, Jennifer (September 25, 2005). "Architecture". Tenth Presbyterian Church (Presbyterian Church in America). Retrieved 2009-01-21. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  90. ^ "North American Building". SkyscraperPage.com. Retrieved 2011-05-13.
  91. ^ "City Hall". A View On Cities. Retrieved 2007-08-17.
  92. ^ Terranova, Antonino (2003). Skyscrapers. Vercelli, Italy: White Star S.r.l. pp. pages 153–154. ISBN 0-7607-4733-4. {{cite book}}: |pages= has extra text (help)

External links