GLUCK+

Overall view of a glass building with gray fragmented grid cladding during the day.
Aerial view of a glass building with gray fragmented grid cladding and its surroundings.
Pedestrian view of a glass building with gray fragmented grid cladding from Race and 2nd Street at night.
Fifth-floor terrace commons, looking toward the Ben Franklin Bridge.
Two people lounging on the 5th floor terrace, overlooking downtown Philadelphia.
Entrance to the residential lobby, featuring wood slats and a wood overhang.
Hallway on the 2nd floor, featuring yellow doors and overhangs over each unit entrance.
Communal lounge with ample seating, a kitchenette, and a view of the Ben Franklin Bridge.
A well-furnished studio apartment featuring large floor-to-ceiling windows.

Bridge – 205 Race

Old (City) meets new

Philadelphia, PA

Situated at the edge of Philadelphia’s Old City, some of the oldest urban fabric in the United States, Bridge – 205 Race is a LEED Gold, luxury apartment tower with 10% affordable units. The historic character and scale of the surrounding rowhouses serve as inspiration for the building’s base as it transitions from podium to glass tower. The building’s massing and the design of its amenity spaces establish visual connections with the pedestrian promenade of the Ben Franklin Bridge and downtown Philly, inviting the city in.

Housing 169,900 sf Completed in 2017 Architect-Led Design BuildDeveloper

Stories

Bridging old and new

Located on the edge of Philadelphia's Old City, the project sits at a unique crossroads.
Bridging old and new

ALDB scales up

Expanding the team.
ALDB scales up

From windows to window walls

Bridging the traditional design of the neighborhood to the more contemporary and dynamic facade of the tower.
From windows to window walls

Shopping the structure

A specific concrete structural system that keeps all the benefits of conventional concrete and incorporates prefabrication.
Shopping the structure

LEED Gold Tower

A comprehensive energy and environmental design.
LEED Gold Tower

Press & Recognition

Philadelphia InquirerPDFJune 16, 2017

“Bridge is a model of how a commercial development can also be a good public citizen.”

—Inga Saffron
OculusPDFApril 1, 2019

“This project added urban density, but also created humane public spaces at the same time.”

—Garth Rockcastle, 2019 AIANY Design Awards Juror

2019

Design Award of Merit, Sustainability

American Institute of Architects New York

2018

Design Award of Honor

Society of American Registered Architects

2018

5th Annual Willard G. “Bill” Rouse III

Award for Excellence

Urban Land Institute Philadelphia

Photographs

Overall view of a glass building with gray fragmented grid cladding during the day.
Overall view of a glass building with gray fragmented grid cladding at night.
Northeast view of a glass building with gray fragmented grid cladding with the Ben Franklin Bridge in the background.
Pedestrian view of a glass building with gray fragmented grid cladding from Race and 2nd Street at night.
Pedestrian view of a glass building with gray fragmented grid cladding from Race and 2nd Street during the day.
Northeast corner of a glass building with gray fragmented grid cladding, looking down Race Street.
Close-up of the building's lower façade facing Race Street, featuring a fully glazed ground floor.
Fifth-floor terrace commons, looking toward the Ben Franklin Bridge.
Aerial view of a glass building with gray fragmented grid cladding and its surroundings.
Bird's-eye view of the glass building with gray fragmented grid cladding with roof terraces on the 5th and rooftop levels.
Lounge on the 5th-floor terrace commons beneath a mirrored canopy.
A man standing on the roof terrace, looking out at the Ben Franklin Bridge.
People waiting in a modern lobby with wood slats and linear lighting.
5th-floor terrace at night, reflecting off the mirrored canopy, with the Ben Franklin Bridge in the distance.
Two people lounging on the 5th floor terrace, overlooking downtown Philadelphia.
Close-up of the building façade, highlighting the gray fragmented grid cladding around the windows.
Entrance to the residential lobby, featuring wood slats and a wood overhang.
Modern living and dining room with large windows offering a view of downtown Philadelphia.
Communal lounge with ample seating, a kitchenette, and a view of the Ben Franklin Bridge.
Kitchen with a small island for two, featuring a large floor-to-ceiling window with a city view.
A well-furnished studio apartment featuring large floor-to-ceiling windows.
Bathroom with a glass standing shower and a modern sink.
Straight view of the kitchen with cove lighting, leading into the bedroom.
Hallway on the 2nd floor, featuring yellow doors and overhangs over each unit entrance.

Drawings

First floor plan of Bridge, showing retail spaces and the residential lobby.
Second floor plan of Bridge, showing the residential units.
Fifth floor plan of Bridge, showing the fitness room, coworking lounge and roof terrace commons.
Ninth floor plan of Bridge, showing the residential units.
Massing diagram showing key design considerations: 1 Rear half too close to the bridge for marketability. 2 Shift back portion above the front half. 3 Rotate part of the building north of 2nd St to optimize views. 4 Notch building to maintain street wall and view corridor. 5 Align building with neighboring structures to reduce scale. 6 Relate public spaces to the surrounding context.
First step in designing the façade: program the building with spaces for living room, bedroom, bathroom, amenities, and commercial areas.
Second step in designing the façade: fenestration, determining the percentage of window openings.
Third step in designing the façade: insulate the wall area to enhance thermal performance.
Fourth step of designing the façade: apply an irregular pattern of disintegrating grid.
Fifth step shows the final result, where the façade design continues the street wall.
Exploded axonometric of a small section of the wall, showing all materials and distinguishing between interior and exterior work: 1. Framing. 2. Waterproofing and Flashing. 3. Glazing and Caulking. 4. Exterior Insulation. 5. Rainscreen Cladding. 6. Slab Edge Covers.
The high performance façade consists of two layers: The insulated exterior wall layer is continuously insulated for thermal performance and privacy, and the graphic pattern on glass achieves the architectural reading of transitioning from punched window to open glass curtain wall.
Exploded axonometric of the building highlighting all systems that contribute to Bridge's LEED Gold certification: green roof, recycled and reused construction waste, parking, controlled flow roof drains, high performance façade, variable refrigerant flow system, and internal storm water retention tanks.
Axonometric grayscale model of the Bridge building, illustrating its relationship to the water and the Ben Franklin Bridge.
Paper model of the irregular grid pattern that defines the final building design.
Type
Housing
Size
169,900 sf
Year
2017
Scope
Ground Up
Role
Architect-Led Design BuildDeveloper
LocationLoc.
Urban
 
205 Race Street, Philadelphia, PA 19106
Bridge – 205 Race
Bridge – 205 Race