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| Photos courtesy of planphilly.com |
On the morning of Nov. 28, 2011, demolition began at the Sidney Hillman Medical Center, located at 22nd & Chestnut streets in Philadelphia, PA. The site will soon become a high rise apartment tower, reaching 32-stories, including retail space and cafe.
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| Rendering of future high rise apartment tower. |
Originally designed by Louis Magaziner and Herman Polss in 1950, and often referred to as a "modernist gem," the building made an impression on the architecture and design communities in addition to the public it served. This pioneering medical center provided free medical services to the labor union employees of the Male Apparel Industry.
PlanPhilly, an independent news source for development, planning, and preservation, shares sentiments from David G. De Long, a Penn professor emeritus, who wrote: “Its angled
orientation is unique, contributing mightily to the rich architectural
diversity of Philadelphia.” Steve Fraser, a visiting professor of
history at New York University and biographer of Sidney Hillman, wrote
that the building “embodies a vital piece of the past century’s social
heritage.”
While efforts to save this building were ultimately unsuccessful, they contributed to a growing appreciation for midcentury architecture in Philadelphia, promoting preservation concerns related to other sites built between 1945 and 1980. A growing list can be found here.
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