(rshsdepot) Suburban Station, Philadelphia, PA

[Bernie Wagenblast <brwagenblast_@_comcast.net>]

Photo & info links:
http://www.chesco.com/~apu/prr/suburban.html  (information & photographs)
http://webcircle.com/users/cobrandt/suburban.jpg  (station exterior)
http://webcircle.com/users/cobrandt/mural.jpg  (inside murals)


Suburban Station building for sale

Natalie Kostelni   Staff Writer
Philadelphia Business Journal

One Penn Center at Suburban Station, an Art Deco gem that served as one of
the first examples of incorporating an office building with a train station,
is on the market almost three years after it last traded hands.

The 22-story, 665,000-square foot tower at 1617 JFK Blvd. embodies a
significant part of Philadelphia's history from the early 20th century.

Featuring a marble lobby, bronze chandeliers and a pair of 15-foot high
glass mosaics, the complex was constructed by the Pennsylvania Rail Road as
its headquarters and as part of an effort to enhance the city's
transportation infrastructure during the 1920s.

The building was the first to begin replacing what was referred to as the
"Chinese Wall," an elevated rail access to the Broad Street Station at 15th
and Market streets.

An ambitious project at the time, removal of the Chinese Wall entailed
putting the railroad tracks under street level and constructing One Penn
Center above a concourse level on an entire city block. Suburban Station was
completed in 1930 when it opened to rail commuters and office tenants.

One Penn Center was bought in November 1999 by a venture between The
Praedium Group out of New York and a couple of Philadelphia area investors,
including Michael K. Corenzwit. They bought the property from Suburban
Station Associates, which was a partnership between The Equitable Life
Assurance Society of the United States and an undisclosed investment
partner. It was sold by that partnership for an estimated $65 to $67 a
square foot, or $43.2 million to $44.5 million.

Praedium declined comment. Corenzwit couldn't be reached for comment.

The building's largest tenant is the law firm of Obermayer Rebmann Maxwell &
Hippel, which has been at the address from the last four years. It occupies
roughly 150,000 square feet.

Aside from the law firm, the building is nearly fully occupied with dozens
of smaller tenants, a point that some brokers view as a challenge for One
Penn.

These smaller tenants, which each tend to occupy about 10,000 square feet or
less, have more options in the Center City market given the abundance of
sublease space now available in the market. In other words, these smaller
tenants are more apt to relocate to another building where they may manage
to get cheaper rents and better overall deals, said real estate observers.

Another challenge to the building is its age. The elevator systems are said
to need a total overhaul. In addition, its façade is a never-ending
maintenance problem.

On the other hand, one of the biggest attributes to the building is that it
sits above Suburban Station, the leading commuter hub for Center City.

Insignia-ESG is representing the seller.

Natalie Kostelni can be reached at nkostelni_@_bizjournals.com.

  Bernie Wagenblast
  Transportation Communications Newsletter
  http://groups.yahoo.com/group/transport-communications/


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The Railroad Station Historical Society maintains a database of existing
railroad structures at: http://www.rrshs.org

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