Brandywine Realty Trust will officially break ground
tomorrow on its new FMC Tower at Cira Centre South.
The celebration will be include something very dramatic —
weather permitting.
Dignitaries attending the event will use a vintage vertical
air pump to uncover the logos of FMC Corp. and the University of Pennsylvania,
both of which are leasing space in the building, as well as Brandywine’s, from
a mound of construction debris.
Then, fireworks will shoot up, nearly high enough to mark
the height of FMC Tower, which is 690 feet. Following that, a 50-foot banner
will be unveiled. This banner, which is 24 feet wide and will hang 75 feet in
the air, will have a rendering of the skyscraper. It will dangle from
Brandywine’s Evo building under construction next door.
Wow!
Even more amazing is that the height of the building has
actually grown since Brandywine first announced last October it would be
constructing the tower. The structure will now stand 49 stories rather than 47
stories. It had been 650 feet tall, having now stretched to 690 feet. The
amount of office space is 622,000 square feet rather than 575,000 square feet.
Brandywine added the two floors to the building when FMC
exercised an option to expand, Jerry Sweeney, CEO of Brandywine told analysts
in a first quarter conference call. FMC also decided to split itself into two
companies, which meant that two corporate headquarters would be housed in the
new tower. That, Sweeney said, changes the demand drivers for the space. In
addition, tenants continue to seek out trophy space, which Sweeney contends
will also justify having expanded the office portion of the building.
The building will have a total of 861,000 square feet. Of
that, 622,000 square feet is office space, 229,000 square feet is dedicated to
the 268 apartments and executive suites, and 10,000 square feet of retail.
The building is expected to be completed by mid-2016.
Source: Philadelphia
Business Journal
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