Society Hill Towers facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Society Hill Towers |
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Society Hill Towers from Penn's Landing in 2016
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| General information | |
| Type | Residential |
| Architectural style | Brutalist |
| Location | 200 Locust Street Society Hill, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| Country | United States |
| Completed | 1964 |
| Inaugurated | October 21, 1964 |
| Technical details | |
| Floor count | 32 |
| Lifts/elevators | 9 |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect | I. M. Pei & Associates |
| Awards and prizes | American Institute of Architects: Institute Honor Award Progressive Architecture Award for Design (1961) |
| Designations | Philadelphia Register of Historic Places |
The Society Hill Towers are three tall buildings in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They are located in the Society Hill area. Each building has 31 floors and together they have 624 apartments. The whole area covers about 5 acres of land.
A famous architect named I. M. Pei designed these towers. They are made from concrete poured right on the spot. Each apartment has big windows that go from the floor to the ceiling. The towers were finished in 1964. At first, people rented the apartments. But in 1979, they became condominiums, which means people could buy them.
Building History
In the late 1950s, the Society Hill area in Philadelphia needed a lot of improvement. City groups like the Philadelphia City Planning Commission wanted to rebuild it. From 1957 to 1959, several groups bought about 31 acres of land around Dock Street. They moved and tore down the old Dock Street Market. This cleared 5 acres of land for what would become the Society Hill Towers.
In 1957, Edmund Bacon, who led the city's planning, chose a company called Webb and Knapp to redevelop Society Hill. Architect I. M. Pei and his team created a plan. This plan included the three 31-story Society Hill Towers. It also included the Society Hill Townhouses, which are smaller, lower buildings. The Towers and Townhouses were finished in 1964. The entire redevelopment plan for the area was completed in 1977.
The Society Hill Towers were added to the Philadelphia Register of Historic Places on March 10, 1999. This means they are recognized as important historical buildings in the city.
