A West Philadelphia Apartment Building is Inspired By Dick Clark
The building near West Catholic Prep High School is named in honor of an iconic American host, writes Sandy Smith for Philadelphia Magazine.
What was previously West Catholic Prep’s parking lot is now the location of The Clark, a new mid-range apartment complex.
The building is the second in the area built by EQT Exeter, who made a deal with the Archdiocese of Philadelphia to help the apartment building come to fruition.
The ground in which the building sits had belonged to the archdiocese for well over a century.
The deal also comes with the condition that 10% of the apartments have affordable rents for tenants earning 60% of the area median income.
The Clark is named after the iconic Dick Clark, who notably hosted “American Bandstand” in Philadelphia for 33 years.
Behind the building across Ludlow Street, where the parking lot of the Enterprise Center sits, is the former home of the studio that first aired “American Bandstand.”
The building features a number of references to broadcasting and pop music, two staples of the long-running dance show.
Most notably, there are various murals in the elevator lobbies that turn into things like microphones, car radios, and other broadcast-related objects when viewed through a phone’s camera.
Learn more about the new Clark apartment building at Philadelphia Magazine.
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Dick Clark hosted “American Bandstand” from 1956 to 1989.
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