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Originally Posted by jsbrook
Society Hill assholes lost at ZBA but may go to court: http://planphilly.com/articles/2019/...c0qO4EeLVm9yNE Other interesting nugget, it said Cecil Baker recused "because he may be working on another tower proposal in Society Hill soon." That's got to be Scannapieco 3.0 he is being consulted about or courted for. I suppose Dilworth is also possible, but I'd think Scannapieco at the Ritz given his work on 500 Walnut and their past relationship. |
Most likely yes given the existing relationship between the pair. And yes, his work is pretty boring but ultimately, architects have to work within the constraints given to them - specifically the developer's budget and vision. I'm sure if Baker was given an unlimited budget, he could design something splendid. 500 Walnut is pretty decent and better IMO than the Harper.
Oh and this Leo Addimando is my hero. He really took his out frustrations with his previous dealings with these NIMBYs over the Acme. But even still, everything he said made perfect sense.
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“Somewhere in my civic textbook I must have missed the chapter on how Society Hill and the towers have sovereignty over Philadelphia and its zoning code,” said Addimando, referring to the fact that the project conforms with the area’s zoning map. “Or perhaps we’ve entered a parallel universe where property rights now carry an asterisk.”
Addimando has clashed with the Society Hill Civic Association before, when it fought his plans to build a midrise tower at the site of the Acme market in the neighborhood. The community group eventually pressured the developer to leave the supermarket in its current one-story form.
“I also have to say I’m quite disappointed in the eminent Mr. Timberlake's ‘hand in the face’ comment, which strikes me as nothing more than not in my backyard,” said Addimando, who is also vice president of the Building Industry Association.
“A lot of the parcels [left in Society Hill] are small parcels and, therefore, when constructed and designed, they are going to be towers,” said Addimando. “Those towers are going to block certain people’s views. That's part of living in a city.”
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