Two Neighborhood Improvement Zone Projects Named 2025 Awards for Excellence Winners

Allentown’s Downtown West and Da Vinci Science Center were among eight projects announced by the Philadelphia District Council of the Urban Land Institute (ULI) as winners of 2025 Awards for Excellence during an awards ceremony and celebration held at the Fitler Club in Philadelphia on Wednesday, May 21, 2025. Over 150 industry professionals and leaders celebrated the region’s development accomplishments.

The winners, announced live during the program, were presented by incoming ULI Philadelphia District Council Chair, Anne Fadullon, Founder & Principal, MAKE Advisory Services, and Meghan McDermott, Partner, Robert A.M. Stern Architects.

The winners are (alphabetically):

• Cooper University Health Care – Moorestown Campus, Array Architects (Moorestown, NJ)
• Da Vinci Science Center, Da Vinci Science Center (Allentown, PA)
• Downtown West, City Center Group (Allentown, PA)
• East Falls and Manayunk Flood Mitigation Study, AKRF (Philadelphia, PA)
• Inn of Amazing Mercy, Project HOME (Philadelphia, PA)
• New Market West, Mission First Housing Group (Philadelphia, PA)
• One uCity Square, Wexford Science + Technology, Ventas, and University City Science Center (Philadelphia, PA)
• The Laurel Rittenhouse Square & 1909 Rittenhouse, Southern Land Company (Philadelphia, PA)

Modeled to complement the ULI Global Awards for Excellence, the Philadelphia Award winners represent the highest standards of achievement in the development industry and advance the ULI mission to shape the future of the built environment for positive impact in communities worldwide. The Awards recognized finalists under four categories: Small Scale, Mid-Scale, Large Scale, and Open Space. Winners were among an impressive list of 14 finalists and selected by a national jury of eight experts.

Developer City Center Group’s Downtown West application was selected for the award in the large-scale category that includes projects over 200,000 square feet. Da Vinci Science Center was a winner in the mid-scale category featuring projects between 50,000 -200,000 square feet.

“The Philadelphia Awards for Excellence celebrates all aspects of development and land use projects that embody the ULI mission. Projects are considered not just for one element, such as design, but for a range of characteristics including leadership in development, sustainability & building performance, market acceptance, and community impact,” said Anne Fadullon. “While some projects were celebrated as winners, the truth is that all the finalists offer inspiration worth replicating and celebrating. We want to thank the jury of national, interdisciplinary ULI members for their time and thoughtful deliberation in selecting the finalists and winners.”