Building
The Cira Centre is a 29-story, 437 feet (133 m) silver glass curtain wall skyscraper. The skyscraper sits next to 30th Street Station in the University City neighborhood in West Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The US$180 million Cira Centre was designed by architect Cesar Pelli. BLT Architects coordinated the design team and designed Cira Centre's core and neighboring parking garage. The building was designed to be seen from all sides with the northwest and southeast corners removed giving the Cira Centre a different shape when viewed from different directions. The building's 731,852 square feet (68,000 m2) includes 690,000 square feet (64,000 m2) of office space and 37,000 square feet (3,400 m2) of conference, retail space and related amenities space. The average floor-plate size is 27,300 square feet (2,500 m2) and the floors feature 9 feet (2.7 m) ceilings and 360-degree panoramic views. Building amenities include fourteen high speed and two freight elevators, a health club, restaurants and retail space and a conference center.
A pedestrian bridge designed by BLT Architects crosses Arch Street linking the Cira Centre with 30th Street Station. The bridge connects the Cira Centre's lobby with the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) regional rail section. The location right next to 30th Street Station allows direct access to the Northeast Corridor, SEPTA's regional rail and Philadelphia International Airport.
The lighting design was done by Cline Bettridge Bernstein Lighting Design. Cira Centre's architects did not want any light fixtures protruding from the building so Cline Bettridge Bernstein decided to create a wall of light using LEDs. The 26W RGB LED fixtures are hidden in shadow boxes behind the glass curtain wall and are obscured during the day by the building's reflective glass. The LED lights are able to be changed color to create different patterns and effects on the building's facade. Designs used on the building include a large "P" for the Philadelphia Phillies. White 0.12W LEDs lights are also used in the lobby and building's elevators. In the lobby the white LEDs are mounted on the 50 feet (15 m) tall wall that separates the lobby from the neighboring parking garage.
The Philadelphia Inquirer architecture critic Inga Saffron called the Cira Centre "a gorgeous object." She praised how the building changes shape when viewing it from different angles, describing the building as a "shape-shifter." She also praised the glass facade which she felt "helps marry the delicate modern tower with the weighty, neoclassical train station." Saffron was critical that when "viewed straight on from the south side, the Cira becomes just another staid corporate glass tower." She was also critical of how the surrounding railroad tracks and highways isolated the building.
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