PHILADELPHIA | THE LAUREL @ 1911 Walnut | 604 FT | 48 FLOORS

[kingtut]

Originally Posted by iheartphilly

I love the design myself. If you take a look at it from different angles, it looks like the game, Jenga. Yes, 8 and market would also work for me.

The bldg is located in the Tribeca neighborhood of NYC. There's 80 some units-10 or 15 are penthouses. Last I hear, the lowest unit costs $3.5 million. The most expensive unit is $50 million. And, I think it's close to selling out if not sold out already.

It's footprint is way to small for 8th and Market St. .Maybe Walnut or Chestnut even U/C .

[allovertown]

Originally Posted by Knight Hospitaller

Thank you. I don't know why many folks insist on defining this city as "not New York." Our younger sibling to the north did the urban equivalent of getting a better paying job. NYC drives a BMW, we drive a loaded VW. That's life. Except, perhaps, for Chicago, some other cities may have gotten lucky with (at most) a handful of unique towers, but I fail to see how that differentiates them from Philadelphia - which stands head and shoulders above them on so many levels. Maybe we should call most non-New York buildings "American Specials" since the Chinese and Arabs are building most of the flamboyant stuff nowadays.

Totally agree with your sentiment. Calling ugly buildings Philly Specials is some weird confluence of egotism and negativity.

Although I must point out a slight flaw with your analogy, NYC is actually over 50 years older than Philadelphia. So they are our older sibling.

[Knight Hospitaller]

Originally Posted by allovertown

some weird confluence of egotism and negativity.

ha!

[/QUOTE] NYC is actually over 50 years older than Philadelphia. So they are our older sibling. [/QUOTE]

Bollocks! Of course it is.

[PHL10]

He has brought this up before and I know what London means by the “Philly Speical”. It’s basically a vertical slab. I think maybe our rectangular lots lead to this design. It just goes vertical with no setbacks. Good recent examples would be 2116 Chestnut and really EVO if it didn’t have the slanted roof. New York seems to have a lot of square footprinted buildings which seem to naturally lead to a more pleasing design, 1706 Rittenhouse is s a good example of a Philadelphia equivalent. It’s attractive not necessarily to the architectural details but simply due to its slender massing. Imagine if 1706 stretched for another two equivalent footprints to the West. That would make it a “Philly Special”.

[Boku]

Edit- Wrong thread.

[Jawnadelphia]

"the development team would be meeting with the neighbors in the coming weeks to present the initial plans for the lot next to Rittenhouse Square."

It's been 3 weeks -- lets go!! (sorry, I'm impatient).

http://www.phillymag.com/property/20...OsAwieW5rzk.99

[McBane]

Originally Posted by PHL10

He has brought this up before and I know what London means by the “Philly Speical”. It’s basically a vertical slab. I think maybe our rectangular lots lead to this design. It just goes vertical with no setbacks. Good recent examples would be 2116 Chestnut and really EVO if it didn’t have the slanted roof. New York seems to have a lot of square footprinted buildings which seem to naturally lead to a more pleasing design, 1706 Rittenhouse is s a good example of a Philadelphia equivalent. It’s attractive not necessarily to the architectural details but simply due to its slender massing. Imagine if 1706 stretched for another two equivalent footprints to the West. That would make it a “Philly Special”.

We're getting off topic, but until someone posts a rendering of 1911 Walnut, then why not continue the discussion?

Lots of Philly buildings have that dull squat square design, true. But I think the most common, worst flaw is the materials. Too much cheapo paneling and boring red brick bases (even when the rest of the tower is not brick). Take any of those boring boxes and upgrade the materials and you'd wind up with a much much better looking building. The worst offenders in my book are: Southstar Lofts, Homes2Suites, and the still u/c Am Rev Museum. I'd also add Symphony House and 10 Ritt to the list for falling so short of their expectations and price tags. Both are billed as premium luxury condo towers, but feature underwhelming designs and cheap exterior paneling. 10 Ritt is nicer of the two, but it's location and pricing warrants warrants a far better design.

Traditional designs outfitted with cheap materials do not work. Builders that can't afford high quality materials should instead opt for modern designs and materials like concrete and glass. The RATR, Murano, and St. James are good examples. And fortunately, Southern Land is utilizing the same architects that designed the latter two projects.

p.s., I don't buy the "Philly Special" argument either, shoddy design/materials plague other cities as well.

[PHL10]

Originally Posted by McBane

We're getting off topic, but until someone posts a rendering of 1911 Walnut, then why not continue the discussion?

Lots of Philly buildings have that dull squat square design, true. But I think the most common, worst flaw is the materials. Too much cheapo paneling and boring red brick bases (even when the rest of the tower is not brick). Take any of those boring boxes and upgrade the materials and you'd wind up with a much much better looking building. The worst offenders in my book are: Southstar Lofts, Homes2Suites, and the still u/c Am Rev Museum. I'd also add Symphony House and 10 Ritt to the list for falling so short of their expectations and price tags. Both are billed as premium luxury condo towers, but feature underwhelming designs and cheap exterior paneling. 10 Ritt is nicer of the two, but it's location and pricing warrants warrants a far better design.

Traditional designs outfitted with cheap materials do not work. Builders that can't afford high quality materials should instead opt for modern designs and materials like concrete and glass. The RATR, Murano, and St. James are good examples. And fortunately, Southern Land is utilizing the same architects that designed the latter two projects.

p.s., I don't buy the "Philly Special" argument either, shoddy design/materials plague other cities as well.

Although you may call the design may be boring and using traditional materials in the 21st Century may be an iffy proposition, 10 Ritt is all stone and by no means cheap:

[boxbot]

...aaaaand the website is down again.

[McBane]

I got curious about the design and when renderings will be released and contacted Southern Land directly:

We are in the process of finalizing the plans, working in tandem with the city and neighboring businesses. Initial renderings will probably be ready to publish early 2016. There will definitely be a 21-century design and upscale vibe to this community.

And in response to a follow-up email:

I can’t provide any details on the style or materials – I think those details are still being decided.

The height is not set in stone yet either. It will likely be a mix of condos and apartments in a high-rise, somewhere between 25-40 stories high, with retail on the bottom levels.

[boxbot]

Originally Posted by ConstructStudent

The current design is for one tower at about 560'

Originally Posted by McBane

The height is not set in stone yet either. It will likely be a mix of condos and apartments in a high-rise, somewhere between 25-40 stories high

[summersm343]

Originally Posted by McBane

I got curious about the design and when renderings will be released and contacted Southern Land directly:



And in response to a follow-up email:

Hope it's 40 floors. 25 floors would be a huge disappointment here.

[summersm343]

Originally Posted by TallCoolOne

"the development team would be meeting with the neighbors in the coming weeks to present the initial plans for the lot next to Rittenhouse Square."

It's been 3 weeks -- lets go!! (sorry, I'm impatient).

http://www.phillymag.com/property/20...OsAwieW5rzk.99

Maybe they'll meet with the CCRA at their October 27th meeting?

[br323206]

Originally Posted by PHL10

He has brought this up before and I know what London means by the “Philly Speical”. It’s basically a vertical slab. I think maybe our rectangular lots lead to this design. It just goes vertical with no setbacks. Good recent examples would be 2116 Chestnut and really EVO if it didn’t have the slanted roof. New York seems to have a lot of square footprinted buildings which seem to naturally lead to a more pleasing design, 1706 Rittenhouse is s a good example of a Philadelphia equivalent. It’s attractive not necessarily to the architectural details but simply due to its slender massing. Imagine if 1706 stretched for another two equivalent footprints to the West. That would make it a “Philly Special”.

Yea but the vertical slab design isn't unique to Philly. It's a disservice to Philly to call it that. Go to Washington, Baltimore, Boston, Houston, Dallas, Phoenix, LA, Chicago, etc. etc. etc. and you'll find many more of these than you find here.

I don't think we'll be disappointed with the design of this. The location warrants a quality design.

[1487]

Originally Posted by br323206

Yea but the vertical slab design isn't unique to Philly. It's a disservice to Philly to call it that. Go to Washington, Baltimore, Boston, Houston, Dallas, Phoenix, LA, Chicago, etc. etc. etc. and you'll find many more of these than you find here.

I don't think we'll be disappointed with the design of this. The location warrants a quality design.

right, this is probably the lot that can draw the highest rents of any of the projects under construction or being proposed.

[jsbrook]

Originally Posted by 1487

right, this is probably the lot that can draw the highest rents of any of the projects under construction or being proposed.

I hope so. I think it matters more how strong the ultra luxury owner market is for the condo portion. Hopefully not too tapped out with 500 Walnut and other ultra luxury developments that are scheduled to hit the market before 1911 Walnut. Guess we'll have to see.

[techchallenger]

[QUOTE=PHL10;7205946]Although you may call the design may be boring and using traditional materials in the 21st Century may be an iffy proposition, 10 Ritt is all stone and by no means cheap:

You are looking at half-inch thick, precast brick veneer panels. They certainly look cheap to me.

[PHL10]

Originally Posted by techchallenger

You are looking at half-inch thick, precast brick veneer panels.

No I'm not. Do you just guess at things and state them as fact?



They are full bricks, laid into panels in a factory. You can criticize the technique but not the materials. Because it's not 1920, we can't have masons hand laying bricks 30 stories up anymore.

[Knight Hospitaller]

Originally Posted by PHL10

No I'm not. Do you just guess at things and state them as fact?



They are full bricks, laid into panels in a factory. You can criticize the technique but not the materials. Because it's not 1920, we can't have masons hand laying bricks 30 stories up anymore.

If it's not built by hand with slave labor, it's not a real pyramid. ;-)

[PHL10]

Originally Posted by Knight Hospitaller

If it's not built by hand with slave labor, it's not a real pyramid. ;-)

Here's a good summary from Brad Maule:

http://phillyskyline.com/bldgs/10rittenhouse/hardhat/