Results tagged “libertyplace”

Sometimes, this Phillyist wishes she could reach out through the grand tubes of the internet and strangle (deliver to traditional, state-sanctioned justice) the weekly round-up of jerks and lowlifes recognized here. This week's winners deserve an especially thorough strangling.

We love the annual MGK Rock Art Show in Liberty place. If you work or live in Center City, it's worth checking out on your lunch break.

Damn you, Liberty Place Saladworks, how you vex me so!

Hey there Phillyist readers. If you’re anywhere near Liberty Place, get out of your cubicle and head on down to the corner of 17th & Chestnut in Center City.

I will admit that I am a faster walker than most. This fact can probably be attributed to two reasons: 1) the faithful consumption of four cans of Dr. Pepper per day and 2) a clear aversion to doing anything on my lunch break other than surfing the Internet and staining my khakis horrifically from my work desk. So maybe I am more inclined to see some Philadelphians’ funeral dirge-ian way of moving through the...

Yesterday, a few vertical beams brought our concrete, steel, and glass behemoth to 975 ft. Congratulations, Philadephia. You've got a new tallest building, an honor enjoyed by One Liberty Place for nineteen years.

Inquirer photographer Sara J. Glover had the topping-out festivities covered, while Barbara L. Johnston showed the ironworkers doing their thing high above the streets.

It's just that Orbitz doesn't send dancing suitcase-carriers to Liberty Place...

Wandering through Liberty Place this Saturday afternoon, Phillyist came across the statue pictured to the right, as well as a bunch of others created from canned goods.

they were going to buy more than just one box of Thin Mints. You didn't carry cookies around with you; those came a month or so later, when you'd sit on the floor of your living room with your mother while she bundled all of your neighbors' orders together. If you sold enough cookies, you'd get a t-shirt, or even a little pewter figurine of whatever the animal of the year was. There was no instant gratification when it came to cookie sales. You waited to sell, you waited to deliver, and you waited to be rewarded. It was so... cruel.

With the Comcast Center pushing upward, 2006 will be the last year that One Liberty Place can claim to be Pennsylvania's tallest building, a title it's held since its controversial ascent was completed in 1987.

Standing at 61 stories and 945 feet, One Liberty Place was the tenth-tallest building in the United States when completed (it's currently 18th). It is a visually striking structure, an angular postmodern homage to New York's Chrysler Builidng, the 1930 masterpiece that is said by some to be the greatest skyscraper ever built. Credit for One Liberty Place's appearance goes to German architect Helmut Jahn of Murphy/Jahn Architects, whose work can be found in Europe, Asia, and Africa.

There was much debate in Philadelphia about whether One Liberty Place should be built at all. Although never an official law, a gentlemen's agreement not to build taller than the William Penn statue atop City Hall (548 feet) had limited the city's skyscrapers to a modest 500 ft.

A flashy building nearly 400 feet taller than the statue, Liberty One looked extremely awkward as the first and only building above City Hall. But once the gentlemen's agreement was broken, more cranes quickly littered Philly's sky. Between 1987 and 1992, six other skyscrapers defied the height limitation, strengthening the "Curse of Billy Penn," a purported hex on Philly sports teams set in place by the breaking of the agreement. (Hoping that the last 19 years without a major sports title are merely coincidence, we're moving on from this subject.)

Philly's skyscraper development trends were not unique in the United States. Fifteen of the nation's 25 tallest towers were completed during an American building boom that occurred between 1982 and 1992. From 1993 throuth 2005, no top 25 skyscrapers have risen in the US, and no new structure in Philly has eclipsed William Penn.

These days, Philadelphia's growth is again following wider trends. As the city's new tallest is under construction, so is New York's Freedom Tower, which will rise 1776 feet to become the tallest building in the United States.

So, in these last few months before One Liberty Place loses its status as our tallest building, we offer this photographic tribute. We have an enormous and amazing piece of postmodern architectural artwork nearly 1000 feet above our city's streets, and we appreciate it.


More photos in the continuation of this article.

Phillyist loves sushi. So much, in fact, that we end up eating it at least twice a week. It's not great for our bank account. We just think of it as getting our fill now, because someday we're going to want kids and that will be nine months plus nursing time, times however many babies end up happening, that we'll be missing out on our sushi consumption.

Once in a while, our awesome skyline adds a little variety by changing the lighting scheme on a whole bunch of buildings. Our four tallest skyscrapers - One and Two Liberty Place, the Mellon Bank Center, and the Bell Atlantic Tower - will spend their October nights wearing bright pink in support of National Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

The shift normally happens on October 1st, but since it falls on a Sunday this year, we wouldn't hold our breath. In addition to the skyscrapers mentioned above, the usual cast of characters includes City Hall, the Inquirer Building, the Hyatt Penn's Landing, One South Broad (PNB), the Ben Franklin Bridge, and street level lighting of the National Constitution Center. Last year, Camden City Hall even jumped in the mix, and ever the showoff, the new Cira Centre sported a 300 ft. pink bow, created entirely by its facade lighting. We'll have our eye out for new participants this fall.

October's not the only month to expect a change. During the last few years we've seen green buildings late in the football season, red near Valentine's Day, and of course, red, white, and blue for the 4th of July.

Phillyist appreciates the effort, but the coordination between buildings has been inconsistent in the past. Let's see if they can work as a team this October.

Work has been going on at the site, located along 17th Street between JFK and Arch, for almost two years now. The concrete core is about the same height as the William Penn statue at the top of City Hall, making the building's impact on the skyline impossible to miss.

Philadelphia police chief. Timoney and his force have announced a new police initiative in Miami to discourage terrorists - "random, high-profile security operations."