Residences At The Ritz (Philadelphia)

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 This article or section contains information about a building currently under construction.
It may contain information of a speculative nature, and the content may change dramatically and frequently as construction progresses and new information becomes available.
The Residences At The Ritz-Carlton
Information
Location 1414 South Penn Square, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
Status Construction
Groundbreaking June 2006
Estimated completion 2008
Use Residential
Height
Roof 518 ft (158 m)
Floor count 48
Floor area 580,000 ft²
Cost $275 million
Companies
Architect Handel Architects, LLP
Contractor L.F. Driscoll
Developer The Arden Group

The Residences At The Ritz-Carlton (or Residences At The Ritz) is a skyscraper currently under construction in Center City Philadelphia. The building, part of the Residences At The Ritz brand, will stand as the tallest residential building in Pennsylvania when it is completed. It is rising on the former site of One Meridian Plaza, a 38-story office building which was rendered uninhabitable by a fire that broke out on February 23, 1991, gutting eight floors of the building and killing three Philadelphia fire fighters (this was the worst highrise fire in U.S. history before 9/11).

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[edit] Design and construction

The building, designed by Handel Architects, is designed as a glass envelope with a 'crystal spire' rising from just above ground level to the roofline. The building is a composite structure, made of both steel members and reinforced concrete similar to Philadelphia's Mellon Bank Center. The project also includes a private landscpaed garden for residents of the tower and retail amenities on the ground level.

Residences At The Ritz has undergone changes from its original design. The first version of the building would have been built to a height of 740 feet (225 meters) and 58 stories, eclipsing all but a handful of the city's tallest buildings and becoming one of the tallest residential buildings in the United States. That version was shortened after the resolution of a land dispute with the owners of an adjacent plot. A new 485 foot (147 meter), 44-story version was announced and remained as the primary design until shortly before groundbreaking when the building's profile was increased to its current specifications. It will best the city's current largest residential building, The St. James, by 20 feet (6 meters)

Upon completion the building will house some of the most expensive residential units in Philadelphia, with a penthouse fetching nearly $12 million.

This building is rising on the former site of Philadelphia's only supertall skyscraper proposal, Center City Tower.

[edit] The Mahoney/Spencer Feud

The site upon which Residences At The Ritz rises is adjacent to another plot of land just to its south. Residences At The Ritz was planned for the northern parcel while Tim Mahoney, another Philadelphia-area real estate developer, planned to build 1441 Chestnut, another luxury residence, on the southern parcel after obtaining it in 2000.

Disputes over property lines for the parcels and sightlines for potential residents of the towers caused the two groups to engage in lawsuits for more than two years. After reaching a compromise, both buildings were greenlit for construction however 1441 Chestnut, which has a more diverse program than Residences At The Ritz, has yet to begin. The site currently collects revenue as a parking facility.

[edit] See also

[edit] References

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Skyscrapers in Philadelphia
Current
Under construction
Residences at the Ritz-Carlton
Approved
Proposed
See also