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it's kinda like the '72 Stanley Cup finals.
Two teams about even outside of Bobby Orr
Liberty One is Bobby Orr in this scenario.
I'll take the Custom House over City Hall,
but that's purely subjective.
i prefer Boston's skyline at present, despite Philly's superior height.
Philly skyline in 25~30 years will look like a good slice of NYC,
leaving Boston in the dust.
*The Boston Ruins destroyed the NYC Rangers in Six.
And it wasn't even that close.
Are you serious? Philadelphia City Hall... Among the most famous City Hall buildings in the nation.
To address the main question, good comparison, but I'd say Philadelphia has a stronger case due to City Hall and the Liberty Place towers. Plus landmarks like The Art Museum, Boathouse Row, Independence Hall, etc. are very recognizable Philly sites.
Comparing just skylines, Philadelphia's is better and more varied (IMO).
I mean I'm not from Philly I couldn't pick Philly's city hall out of a crowd, I just looked it up. Does anybody not from Philly know what Philly city hall looks like?
Can you picture any city hall? I might be dating myself but Spin City in the 90's showed NYC city hall.
As I said upthread there in lies the problem. That's really unimpressive on its own (and missing One Dalton) and you either find that for Boston or the FiDi Skyline. Rarely ever together. So for people who dont see it often its forgettable.
100%
There are very few views, even in person, that give you the full skyline.
I mean I'm not from Philly I couldn't pick Philly's city hall out of a crowd, I just looked it up. Does anybody not from Philly know what Philly city hall looks like?
Can you picture any city hall? I might be dating myself but Spin City in the 90's showed NYC city hall.
Philly has a easily recognizable City Hall; iconic.
I mean I'm not from Philly I couldn't pick Philly's city hall out of a crowd, I just looked it up. Does anybody not from Philly know what Philly city hall looks like?
Can you picture any city hall? I might be dating myself but Spin City in the 90's showed NYC city hall.
I think you're right that many people, maybe most, don't pay attention to city halls, but here we're talking about two cities that have made their city halls hard-to-avoid focal points.
Boston did so by putting its new Brutalist City Hall on a windswept plaza created by obliterating its old red-light district. Philadelphia did so by building its French Second Empire pile on already cleared land — the central square of William Penn's original five. (Hence the local practice of referring to it as "Broad and Market," the nonexistent intersection (it's in the City Hall courtyard) atop which it sits.)
And New Boston City Hall is the city hall people love to hate. (Didn't Tom Menino run for mayor on a pledge to tear it down?) I happen to like it because it actually telegraphs its functions and organization on its exterior; the only thing it doesn't tell you on the outside is how to get inside.
And on the contrary, it seems lots of people do recognize Philadelphia's city hall. When the American Institute of Architects celebrated its 150th anniversary in 2007 by polling 2,241 Americans (in a poll conducted by Harris Interactive) to name the buildings they liked best, Philadelphia City Hall came in 21st on its 150-structure list of "America's Favorite Architecture." It was the highest-ranked municipal building or county courthouse* on the list, and among government buildings in general, it was outranked only by the Washington triumvirate (in order from top to bottom: The White House, the U.S. Capitol and the Supreme Court).
*Philadelphia being both a city and a county, Philadelphia City Hall (like San Francisco's, the #2 city hall on the list) counts in both categories.
Philly has a easily recognizable City Hall; iconic.
I'm not quite sure I'd use the term "iconic." It's recognizable, especially to folks on the east coast and probably most big city lovers.
Although, I'm not positive that the average person in the south, midwest, or west coast would recognize it as being Philly's. I think most would guess it's a NE city (but they may guess it is NYC, Boston, or Philly's). I think of the Liberty Bell as being "iconic", or the Washington Monument, or the original World Trade Centers in NYC.
I think Philly's City Hall is a couple levels below truly iconic landmarks in terms of recognizability.
Philadelphia is way more iconic. I'm currently here and on news media, tv channels and almost everywhere you see the skyline as a landmark. The Prudential and Hancock alone can't cut it.
it's kinda like the '72 Stanley Cup finals.
Two teams about even outside of Bobby Orr
Liberty One is Bobby Orr in this scenario.
I'll take the Custom House over City Hall,
but that's purely subjective.
i prefer Boston's skyline at present, despite Philly's superior height.
Philly skyline in 25~30 years will look like a good slice of NYC,
leaving Boston in the dust.
*The Boston Ruins destroyed the NYC Rangers in Six.
And it wasn't even that close.
A rapidly changing skyline is *less* not *more* recognizable.
If your from Little Rock and saw the Departed and Rocky but hasn’t been to either city. The view of the red line crossing the Charles with back bay in the background. That view is still similar. A view of Center city from South Philly a la the Invincible is not as easily recognizable in 2022
I'd go with Philly. Boston is a great city with a lot of qualities, but for such a high profile city, its skyline is not on par with other American cities of similar stature or even below it. Philly has a great skyline. Nice balance of old and new with good density and height variation.
I'd go with Philly. Boston is a great city with a lot of qualities, but for such a high profile city, its skyline is not on par with other American cities of similar stature or even below it. Philly has a great skyline. Nice balance of old and new with good density and height variation.
What smaller cities have larger skylines? Pic below for reference:
^Its vaguely 3mi from the building on the right to the farthest skyscraper on the left.
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