28-story apartment tower planned for surface parking lot in Center City

The mixed-use project is proposed at 21st and Ludlow streets, with commercial space on the first two floors

The rendering above shows a 28-story apartment tower planned at 21st and Ludlow streets in Center City.
Provided Image/Erdy McHenry Architecture

A proposed Center City skyscraper will bring 292 units to the intersection of 21st and Ludlow streets, according to planning documents.

The paid surface parking lot at 14-30 S. 21st Street, owned by Parkway Corporation, is one of several the company has used to pursue residential and commercial development in recent years. 

The project calls for a 28-story building that will include 17,790 square feet of ground floor commercial space and and another 10,260 square feet of commercial space on the second floor. A community meeting for the by-right project was held last October, though permits have not been issued yet.

The plan will be reviewed for recommendations by the city's Civic Design Review panel on March 7.

Below are some renderings of the plan.

Provided Image/Erdy McHenry ArchitectureA rendering of the tower planned at 21st and Ludlow streets.

Provided Image/Erdy McHenry ArchitectureAnother rendering of the Parkway Corporation tower at 21st and Ludlow streets.

Provided Image/Erdy McHenry ArchitectureA look at where the planned tower fits in the Center City landscape.

Some of Parkway Corporation's past projects built on former lots include the Home2Suites Hotel at 12th and Arch streets and the Penn Medicine Washington Square tower at 800 Walnut St. A 27-story tower that had been permitted at 709 Chestnut St., similar to the one Parkway now plans at 21st and Ludlow, has been dormant for several years without signs of construction. 

Most recently, Parkway Corporation announced it would partner with insurance firm Chubb on an 18-story office tower at 2000 Arch St., which is slated to be finished in 2026. A timeline for the project at 21st and Ludlow streets is not yet clear.