Highlights from the Annual Report to the Community and District Awards Luncheon

This year’s Annual Report to the Community and King of Prussia District Awards Luncheon on Friday, March 22 was an incredible event that featured keynote speaker Ellen Dunham-Jones, award-winning architect, author, and Director of the Urban Design Program at Georgia Tech.  Ellen shared new case studies and research from her book “Retrofitting Suburbia,” which examines how retrofits of prototypical suburban property types throughout North America are helping communities address 21st century challenges they were never designed for. King of Prussia is a prime example of Ellen’s work as it continues to become more dense, mixed-use and walkable every day!

Guests of the luncheon also received the exclusive first release of the 2019 Report to the Community, Momentum that Builds, which showcases statistics related to retail, commercial office and industrial development, housing starts, job growth, leasing and real estate transactions, entertainment and hospitality investments, infrastructure, public open space improvements and more. The report also highlights the tremendous growth of King of Prussia over the past 8 years by looking at the stats of today alongside the stats of Q2 2010, the last quarter before King of Prussia District was founded. We are proud to have helped accelerate the momentum in King of Prussia and hope you find it as important as we do to look back on how far we have come.

We also wanted to congratulate the King of Prussia District Award recipients, who were presented with their awards during the luncheon.  Chosen by a committee, these people, projects and companies exemplify excellence in their respective fields and contribute to King of Prussia District’s mission of making KOP more attractive, vibrant and prosperous.

 

Leadership Award: PA State Representative Tim Briggs

Representative Briggs has been an outspoken advocate for King of Prussia District and is proactive in identifying and advocating for funding for a number of our physical improvement and transportation projects.

 

 

Commercial Office: The American College of Financial Services

Moving its headquarters from Bryn Mawr, The American College of Financial Services purchased the 155,000 SF building at 630 Allendale Rd. in Moore Park in 2017. The property will house about 250 American College employees and is also home to the new 32,000 SF headquarters of Quench, a bottleless water cooler company.

 

Commercial Office: Qlik

With more than 48,000 customers globally, Qlik relocated their headquarters and 200+ employees from Radnor to a 62,000 SF building at 211 S. Gulph Rd. The space was converted into a state-of-the-art facility with collaborative open spaces, electric vehicle charging stations, a game room and even outdoor fire pits. CEO Mike Capone recently shared with us that the accessibility as well as the incredible number of restaurants hotels and other amenities helped draw him to KOP, which he called a “hot spot for high tech companies.”

 

Economic Development: Workhorse Brewing Company

King of Prussia’s first craft brewery opened late August 2018. Before they even opened their doors, Workhorse set out to engrain themselves within our community. From Concerts Under the Stars to our own KOP Shops for CHOP, Workhorse has created a full calendar of events.

 

Transportation Award: Upper Merion Township Board of Supervisors

Upper Merion Township was an incredible partner during the design and construction of the First Avenue Road Diet. Pledging the matching funds to the $432,000 grant that we received, First Avenue was turned into a safer road with dedicated turn lanes, bike lanes and a safe pedestrian crosswalk. In addition, for the past two years, Upper Merion Township provided necessary funds to help theconnector shuttle system continue its last mile service for employees of KOP trying to get to work from regional rail stations.

 

Hospitality Award: Home2 Suites by Hilton King of Prussia/Valley Forge.

Formerly the Comfort Inn, the property at 555 W. Dekalb Pk. is now owned by Nilkanth Hospitality and managed by SSN Hotel Management. The property underwent a $9M renovation before reopening in late 2018.

 

Residential Award: AVE King of Prussia

Located in the Village at Valley Forge, AVE King of Prussia is a 274-unit flexible stay rental property by Korman Communities with an incredible array of resort-style amenities.  AVE is also an incredible supporter of King of Prussia District, sponsoring our business networking events, Beerfest and Rock Your Lunch Summer Concert Series.

 

Residential Award: Park Square.

Park Square is the first multi-family project to come out of the ground since the rezoning of the King of Prussia Business Park, now known as Moore Park. The $60M project consists of four buildings around an amazing Central Park featuring a pool, grilling and dining stations and fire pits.  Sitting on 20 acres, Park Square features 320 one to three bedroom apartments.

 

Retailer Award: Keystone Shops

Keystone Shops is a medical marijuana dispensary, which marks the first of its kind in KOP. Keystone Shops opened their first location in Devon in February 2018 and then quickly opened another location in May at 367 Henderson Rd. in King of Prussia. The 4,000 SF dispensary offers a full array of medical marijuana products used to help patients with illnesses like MS, ALS, Crone’s disease, epilepsy and glaucoma. Keystone Shops has 2,500 patients, and more than 40,000 people have registered as marijuana patients statewide, with about 10,000 obtaining a medical marijuana card.

 

Retailer Award: Eddie V’s Prime Seafood

Known for its premium selection of seasonal seafood, creative cocktails and nightly live jazz in the V Lounge, this high-end concept was co-founded by Larry Foles — father of Superbowl MVP Nick Foles! Now operated by Darden Restaurants, Eddie V’s adds a touch of glamour to our already bustling restaurant scene. We were excited to have them as part of King of Prussia Restaurant Week this year.

 

Community Outreach Award: The Capital Grille

As an an absolute mainstay in King of Prussia, The Capital Grille was instrumental in the launch of King of Prussia Restaurant Week. The Capital Grille, along with a handful of other KOP Restaurants, came to King of Prussia District with the idea of a restaurant week that would not just drive reservations, but also support a worthwhile cause in our community. Since 2015, King of Prussia Restaurant Week has raised $58,000 for Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia’s King of Prussia Specialty Care & Surgery Center.

 

Community Outreach Award: Simon Property Group

Another longtime supporter of King of Prussia District, Simon Property Group and King of Prussia Mall have generously allowed us to host KOP Beerfest Royale in their parking lot for the past eight years, enabling us to raise over $187,000 for physical improvements in King of Prussia. They support the event in many other ways too: from their incredible security team to the digital display boards and sky banners that allow us to advertise Beerfest to their visitors. Their support does not end with Beerfest. King of Prussia Mall also helps greatly with King of Prussia Restaurant Week and KOP Shops for CHOP by spreading the word about these programs to their tenants. They also support these two events within the mall and through social media advertising, allowing us to expand our reach further.

Congratulations again to all of the recipients of the King of Prussia District Awards! We can’t wait to see what next year brings!