River Front Project, Philadelphia

Initiator: Ile of Capri

Status: 2002

The project was planned on a 40 dunams area, created by drying some part of the Delaware river in Philadelphia. The City wanted to change the designation of the site from shipping zone to a zone of habitat, tourism, commercial, recreation and advanced, together with the land owners, a new zoning to an area that will include 800 residential units. After 9/11 some hesitation about towers happened in the US, and the office was requested to plan a unique residential complex that will combine low building with 25 stories towers (which are not considered towers in the US). Planning was affected by the main restriction of digging underground parking due to the problematic earth, therefore all the above ground parking was planned so that it will create some kind of topography upon which the construction is placed, being of terraced units, one above the other respectively, and each unit has a patio which is in fact the entrance of each unit, which can be reached directly from the parking. In the center of each terraced complex a tower was planned to become harmonious with traffic and terraces below. *Rothman-Raz Architects