For the first time in its 50 year history, the
Science Center is launching a residential project on its University City campus. Slated for 3601 Market Street, the 27-story high rise will be a joint venture between
Wexford Equities, parent company of Wexford Science & Technology, and
Southern Land Company. Construction is expected to start in the fall, kicking off the first of what Science Center officials anticipate to be a boomlet of residential and mixed-use projects in the coming years.
The 400,000-square-foot building will feature 364 apartments and 17,000 square feet of ground-floor retail—something Science Center President and CEO Stephen S. Tang, PhD, MBA, hopes will make the campus and its environs just as lively by night as it is by day.
"We observed similar innovation hubs in Toronto, Mission Bay in San Francisco and Cambridge," says Tang, explaining that what separates those places from the Science Center is a residential component to activate the campus, creating a more dynamic environment. "It might sound silly to say, but you really do need people to make a community. That’s the component were adding at 36th and Market."
This project is the first step towards creating the 24/7 "live, work, play" neighborhood they’re after. "This project is going to be complete around Spring 2015," says Tang. "From there, we’ll turn our attention to 38th and Market. It’s the only other major space open on campus right now." At that site, Tang expects another 700,000 square-feet worth of mixed-use development.
With these two projects, and others, in the pipeline, the Science Center continues to contribute to University City-wide efforts aimed at creating a world-class innovation environment.
"With the Science Center’s goals, Drexel’s vision to create an innovation neighborhood and Penn’s ongoing efforts at developing mixed-use projects, we’re working in concert to create a community of innovators and entrepreneurs," says Tang. "Over the next few years, we want to rival Center City in vibrancy."
Source: Stephen A. Tang, President and CEO, University City Science Center
Writer:
Greg Meckstroth