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It's also great to see Philly booming. KidPhilly, RightonWalnut keep us updated.
Agreed. I said it before and I'll say it again: If I ever get bored with LA and decide to move back east, it would definitely be to Philly. Granted my family is in the Delaware Valley so it would be nice to be close to them anyway, but it certainly helps to see Philly on such a massive upswing and finally meeting the potential we all knew it had.
Yeah, salesforce is just reaching ground level now. It's been a long time, but we'll finally see an actual building soon. First the tower had to get through a ten year planning/proposal/approval process (back when it was known as the transbay tower), then it took them two years to build the foundation due to the fact that it's on top of a thick layer of landfill and loose soil (which used to be the bottom of the bay), with the bedrock around 300' below the surface. So they had to go extra deep to anchor the building to the ground. It was complicated further by the fact that there was already a giant hole in the ground next door, where they're building the transbay terminal, and they had to reinforce the wall between them. And then there was a recent two month delay because a couple of the pilings had to be redone. But now that the foundation is done it'll be rising a lot faster.
Kudos to CITC and Wilshire Grand on their progress btw. Im jealous. lol
I'm honestly more excited about the terminal. That thing is a monster and will be beautiful when that plus all the other projects in the immediate vicinity are done. SF's skyline will definitely rival Chicago's once all is said and done. (Please, nobody chastise me for that last claim)
Agreed. I said it before and I'll say it again: If I ever get bored with LA and decide to move back east, it would definitely be to Philly. Granted my family is in the Delaware Valley so it would be nice to be close to them anyway, but it certainly helps to see Philly on such a massive upswing and finally meeting the potential we all knew it had.
Now if Philly could just lose that wage tax...
I too would like to see the wage tax gone or completely reduced. The city is trying to address this however, don't think they're not. A lot of the taxing issues in Philadelphia are because of the state. The city wants to get rid of the wage tax or severely reduce it to at least 2%, but they have to make up that tax revenue elsewhere. There is a plan to alter the property taxes so they can tax commercial properties more, but the state of PA will not allow residential and commercial properties to be taxed at different rates. There is a bill in the state senate to change this, but of course like everything in PA, it will likely take years to pass. Once this happens, they can shift the tax burden to commercial properties, and will lower the business privelage tax, the use and occupancy tax and the wage tax. This will make Philadelphia MUCH more business friendly too.
I too would like to see the wage tax gone or completely reduced. The city is trying to address this however, don't think they're not. A lot of the taxing issues in Philadelphia are because of the state. The city wants to get rid of the wage tax or severely reduce it to at least 2%, but they have to make up that tax revenue elsewhere. There is a plan to alter the property taxes so they can tax commercial properties more, but the state of PA will not allow residential and commercial properties to be taxed at different rates. There is a bill in the state senate to change this, but of course like everything in PA, it will likely take years to pass. Once this happens, they can shift the tax burden to commercial properties, and will lower the business privelage tax, the use and occupancy tax and the wage tax. This will make Philadelphia MUCH more business friendly too.
Hope it happens
I always found it weird that Philly's wage tax is higher than the NYC income tax, AND you guys also pay big property taxes (by NYC standards at least). Thats crazy...
Agree with others, nice to see so many cities doing well. Economies may expand and contract, and we all like to rep our respective cities, but I for one don't like seeing any cities struggling, or in decline. More prosperity all around is a good thing.
Someone posted this link on another site a little earlier; pictures taken from the still under construction FMC Tower in University City. The building is going to have some outstanding views when it's completed:
Pedestrian bridges linking Center City and West Philadelphia, and a partially capped rail yard at 30th Street Station are part of the latest proposal to overhaul 175 acres between Walnut and Spring Garden streets.
The draft, which factored in public input that called for homes and offices at the site, is set to be unveiled Wednesday during an open house at 30th Street Station, according to an Inquirer report.
Other elements include a new commercial district north of the station, anchored by a transit terminal for intercity bus operators such as Megabus and expanded railways that could support high-speed service.
The public favored capping the rail yard, although engineering issues means 10 fewer acres will be covered than preferred, and exposed areas will have parks and pedestrian bridges to link the two sections of the city, Philly.com said.
The draft also calls for an underground interchange between 30th Street Station and the Market-Frankford Line, as well as an aboveground right-of-way for new public transit routes through the proposed development. No decision has been made on what form that would take.
Amtrak, Drexel University, SEPTA and Brandywine Realty Trust, among others, contributed to the impending release, which is the latest results of a $5.25 million planning study.
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Glad to see the great developments going on in Austin too
