Emma Colkin
This week, our assignment was to go on a neighborhood walk throughout Philadelphia.
We were instructed to choose five consecutive stops from Along These Streets, a walking tour
of urban renewal projects in Philadelphia. The area I chose was Center City, right in the heart of
Philadelphia. My five consecutive stops consisted of City Hall, the Municipal Services Building,
the tourist center, Penn Center, and Freedom Fountain. As a New Yorker, I know the history
behind the iconic buildings in my city. But since moving to Philadelphia freshman year, I have
slowly been learning about each of the buildings I can see from my window. I chose these five
stops because they are each location I see and visit frequently, and I wanted the opportunity to
learn a bit more about each of their histories.
The first stop I visited was City Hall. As my roommate and I walked down Broad Street,
our goal of City Hall was getting closer and closer. City Hall is the building in Philadelphia that I
am most familiar with. Typically, I would’ve taken a picture of the front of the building, but as we
approached Vine Street, the view of City Hall was stunning. The construction of City Hall began
in 1872 and was completed by 1901. There is an interesting story that goes along with the
history of City Hall. Philadelphia was planned out by William Penn in the late 17th and early 18th
century. Thus, the land for City Hall was planned 200 years before construction ever started.
Standing at 548 feet, City Hall was the tallest building in Philadelphia until 1986. According to
Visit Philadelphia, City Hall is still the largest municipal building in the United States today.
However, there was “a gentleman’s agreement” that no building would be built taller than the tip
of Penn’s hat at the top of City Hall. In 1986, One Liberty Place was built, which stands at 945
feet.
The next stop I visited was the Municipal Services Building. Another building I see
frequently, but have never learned the history of. Built in 1962, the Municipal Services Building
is a polarizing structure. While it has received awards for its architecture, many people do not
enjoy the design and feel the building is boring. The Municipal Services Building was built to
expand government practices into another building, instead of exclusively City Hall. The next
stop on the tour was the tourist center. I was having a bit of a hard time determining where I was
supposed to go because today the tourist center is LOVE Park! Next, we visited the LOVE Park
Tourist Center. LOVE Park is one of my favorite places in the city. The LOVE sculpture is a
Philly icon. The tourist center in LOVE Park is brand new, having opened in 2021. The next stop
on the tour was Penn Center. The tour describes this as spanning from 15th to 18th Street,
Market Street to John F. Kennedy Boulevard. At the time, Penn Center had five office buildings.
Today, Penn Center houses 11 mid and high-rise office buildings. According to the walking tour,
my final stop was the open courts next to the Municipal Services Building. Now, it is blocked off
by barricades. I used to see many people skateboarding and hanging out, but it’s empty now.