Morning Headlines: Carl Dranoff’s One Riverside Gets Urban-Friendly Redesign

“A true urban tower,” that’s what Pulitzer-winning architecture critic Inga Saffron has called Carl Dranoff’s redesigned One Riverside project at 25th and Locust. The building, proposed last summer, had originally sparked complaints from locals and Saffron herself.

So what exactly are the differences between the old and new design?

For starters, gone is the “one-story garage on 25th Street, with a dull blank wall running most of the block,” as are the three driveways alongside the nearby river trail entrance, and the “uncomfortable” proximity to a community garden. (Oh, man.)

Now, Saffron reports, underground parking has solved these issues and eliminated the need for two curb cuts and loading docks next to the garden. Saffron sums it up:

In switching things around, the architects ended up designing a slimmer, more elegant tower. It couldn’t have been done if residents hadn’t agreed to let Dranoff add another story to the high-rise.

Dranoff credits architect Cecil Baker for the project’s new look. Groundbreaking is set for next fall.

• Harmony over planned riverside high-rise [Changing Skyline]

Moving onto other news…

• Harrah’s Philadelphia Casino & Racetrack faces hefty tax bills [Philly.com]

• Demolition Coming Soon at Old English Tavern? [Naked Philly]

• Market Trend: Philadelphia Industrial Vacancy Rises to 8.8% [CoStar Group]

• Mayfair and Washington Square West flirt with improvement districts [PlanPhilly]