In the four months since our last update, progress has been moving along at the site of the Comcast Innovation and Technology Center. The project that is set to become the tallest tower in the State of Pennsylvania has all but topped off in downtown Philadelphia. Designed jointly by Foster + Partners and Gensler for the Comcast Corporation, the 1,121-foot, 59-storey office tower has already found a place for itself amid the local skyline as part of the city's ongoing urban growth and densification. 

Comcast Innovation and Technology Center under construction in downtown Philadelphia, image by Forum contributor towerpower123

At 342 metres, the supertall tower serves as a companion to the 2008-built Comcast Center. the new structure features Foster + Partners' signature cross-braced facade design that can be found in other examples of their work worldwide. Viewed below, the full effect of the trademark design feature can be seen upon the tower's lightly tinted glass curtain wall.

Comcast Innovation and Technology Center, with signature cross-bracing facade detail, image by Forum contributor towerpower123

As the future home of NBC 10/WCAU and Telemundo 62/WWSI, the new tower will broadcast various local and national television programming, with employees able to benefit from working within a state-of-the-art workspace. In addition to its work-specific accoutrements, the tower is on target to receive LEED Platinum certification thanks to its many environmentally friendly accommodations. Positioned from the start as a mixed-use development, the new $1.2 billion tower will be comprised of 1.7 million square feet of office, hotel, and retail space, with an on-site Four Seasons Hotel providing a spa, fitness centre, and conference room for all of its 200+ guest rooms. 

Ground-level podium, retail space, entrance, and lobby, image by Forum contributor towerpower123

Down at street level, the multi-storey podium will be used to greet office workers and hotel guests alike. The planned retail space will bring an added boost of pedestrian traffic to the area, though downtown Philadelphia is already an eminently walkable civic space. Once complete, the Comcast Innovation and Technology Center will be a welcome addition to the downtown cityscape, and its impact on the skyline alone tells the story of a city on the rise. 

Comcast Innovation and Technology Center on the rise amid the Philadelphia skyline, image by Forum contributor towerpower123

SkyriseCities will be sure to return to this project as progress continues. For more information, check out the associated Database and Forum thread, and as always, feel free to join the conversation in the comments section below.