Centre Square (building)

Centre Square I & Centre Square II
Centre Square at Market and 15th Streets
General information
Status	Complete
Type	Office
Location	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Coordinates	39°57′7″N 75°9′58″W / 39.95194°N 75.16611°W / 39.95194; -75.16611Coordinates: 39°57′7″N 75°9′58″W / 39.95194°N 75.16611°W / 39.95194; -75.16611
Completed	1973
Cost	US$80 million
Owner	Nightingale Properties
Height
Roof	417 feet (127 m) / 490 feet (150 m)
Technical details
Floor count	32 / 40
Floor area	1,800,000-square-foot (170,000 m2)
Design and construction
Architect	Vincent Kling & Associates
Developer	Andy Meiers

Centre Square is an office complex in Center City, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. The complex consists of two concrete high-rise towers: the 417 feet (127 m) Centre Square I (also known as Centre Square East) and the 490 feet (150 m) Centre Square II (Centre Square West) — respectively, the 24th- and 15th-tallest buildings in Philadelphia. Designed by Vincent Kling & Associates in the 1960s, Centre Square opened in 1973. The complex is credited with shifting Philadelphia's downtown office district from South Broad Street to West Market Street. A tenant since 1975, management consulting firm Towers Perrin is Centre Square's largest tenant.

The complex is best known for Claes Oldenburg's sculpture, Clothespin, in the plaza in front of the building. A fan of contemporary art, developer Jack Wolgin commissioned three works under Philadelphia's percent for art program: Clothespin, Jean Dubuffet's Milord la Chamarre, and a series of banners by Alexander Calder. The works helped Philadelphia gain a reputation for promoting public art.

In the 1960s, Wolgin began development of a two-tower high-rise complex in the West Market Street neighborhood of Philadelphia. Existing structures at the site were demolished in 1969 after the city condemned the structures using eminent domain. With the project over budget, Centre Square was redesigned just before construction was scheduled to begin. Originally intended to be two steel high rises, the redesign used concrete instead. Unlike similar projects in the city, the entire complex was constructed all at once. The US$80-million Centre Square opened in 1973 with First Pennsylvania Bank as the lead tenant. Centre Square is credited with shifting Philadelphia's downtown office district from South Broad Street to West Market Street.