Ritz-Carlton Philadelphia
Philadelphia, P.A.
Hillier

A downtown icon is reborn as a public amenity

© Tom Crane

For more photos click on 'photos & drawings' above. To see the people and products behind this project click on 'people & products.'

The $88 million adaptive reuse of this former bank included a 1908 white marble dome designed by McKim, Mead and White with Furness, Evans and Company, and an adjacent 30-story tower completed in 1931, also by McKim, Mead and White. Among the many recent adaptive reuse projects in the city center, this project has had the most significant impact. Modeled after the Pantheon, the siting of the bank at the right hand of City Hall has contributed greatly to its prominence.

Now, as a five-star hotel, it greatly enhances urban life, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. The rotunda is a living room for the city, a grand gathering place. The ground floor contains two restaurants and two lounges; meeting spaces and ballroom are directly above and below. Exterior work consisted of replacement of windows for the entire complex and masonry restoration. The insertion of a hotel program of 331 guestrooms and supporting public spaces involved the removal of tenant renovations from the floors of the office tower and the fixtures related to the public banking spaces in the Dome building. The safe deposit space has become the Grand Ballroom, while the other principle banking spaces have become meeting places and restaurants.

Formal name of building:
Ritz-Carlton Philadelphia

Location:
Philadelphia, P.A.

Gross square footage:
371,000 GSF

Total construction cost:
$88 million

Owner:
Philadelphia Hospitality Partners, The Arden Group

Architect's firm:
Hillier
One South Penn Square
Philadelphia, Pa 19107
215.636.9999
fax 215.636.9989