The most mentioned feature of the stunning new Comcast Technology Center in Philadelphia is its height. Whenever anyone talks about the new tech hub and 60-story, skyline-defining building, they will no doubt bring up the 1,121 feet that make it the ninth tallest building in the United States and tallest outside of Chicago or New York.
But developer Liberty Property Trust’s mixed used space at 1800 Arch Street is much more than a gleaming tower that looks down on the rest of the City of Brotherly Love. Designed by Lord Norman Foster of Foster + Partners with Kendall/Heaton Associates Inc as the Architect of Record and L.F. Driscoll Co as the general contractor, BOSS Magazine named the building one of the most interesting construction projects of 2019.
The state of the art steel and concrete building with glass façade has a “split core” that allows for as much light as possible inside during the day. A chilled beam system will keep the interior cool and the structure is designed to shelter the outdoor spaces and plaza from Philly winters. The building was designed to attain LEED Platinum certification.
The $1.5 billion building has 1.8 million square feet—1.3 designated for “office space” (designed as much more open than typical office according to those who have toured Comcast’s already open offices in the building), 200,000 square feet for a 200+ room Four Seasons luxury hotel and 3,770 of retail space. It will house the local NBC and Telemundo studios as well. There is an “accelerator space” for tech start-ups and a commuter concourse underground to connect to the sister Comcast building as well as mass transit. The top floor will have a world-class restaurant from Jean-Georges Vongerichten.
The building’s lobby, complete with gardens, artwork, and coffee bar, opened to the public in October. Comcast employees are working in some of the office space as the construction continues on other floors. The project is expected to be completed spring 2019.