Who Controls the Lights at FMC Tower?

By James Young

As Philadelphia's skyline glows Eagles green this morning celebrating the team's Super Bowl victory, many residents might wonder: who exactly controls these colorful displays that illuminate our city's most prominent buildings?

While several Center City skyscrapers feature color-changing lights, Fitler Square’s most direct neighbor is the FMC Tower at Cira Centre South, where hundreds of hidden LEDs transform its glass façade into a canvas of light each night.

The answer involves a coordinated effort between building managers and a little-known organization called the Building Owners and Managers Association of Philadelphia (BOMA). Through BOMA, building managers across Center City work together to create unified displays for special events, as demonstrated by today's synchronous green tribute to the Eagles' win.

Behind the Design

The FMC Tower, completed in 2016 just south of 30th Street Station in University City, was designed by legendary architect César Pelli's firm, Pelli Clarke Pelli Architects.

The firm, which also designed Manhattan's World Financial Center and the once-record-holding Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur, worked with specialist lighting designers to create something unique for Philadelphia's skyline.

That lighting system was crafted by Cline Bettridge Bernstein Lighting Design, a firm founded in 1985 with the mission of "enhancing the grace, utility, and comfort of architectural spaces through the use of light." Their portfolio includes acclaimed projects across the globe, from the National Museum of Art in Osaka, Japan, to Yale Sterling Memorial Library in New Haven and the Stephen Sondheim Theatre in Manhattan.

For FMC Tower, the designers chose beveled LEDs from USAI Lighting, specifically selected for their flat profile that allows them to disappear into the tower's glass surface when not illuminated. This innovative design contributed to the building's LEED Gold certification for energy efficiency.

The Control Room

The day-to-day decisions about FMC Tower's illumination rest with its building managers, but they rarely act alone.

Through BOMA, they coordinate with other Center City buildings including One Liberty Place, Two Liberty Place, and the BNY Mellon Center to create unified displays for special occasions. The most familiar themes are the red for Phillies games and green for the Eagles, but the buildings recognize numerous causes throughout the year, such as pink lighting for Breast Cancer Awareness Month in early October.

Light Up the Sky

Want to see your cause represented in Philadelphia's skyline? BOMA maintains a public request system through their website at bomaphila.com. Organizations can submit requests by email to info@bomaphila.org at least three weeks before their desired dates.

Each request should include the name of your organization, the event or cause to be recognized, preferred colors, and the dates of illumination (maximum of three consecutive days). You'll also need to provide a brief two-to-three-sentence description explaining the significance of your request.

When no special requests are scheduled, building managers have discretion over their individual lighting choices, though they often informally coordinate to maintain visual harmony across the skyline.

If you know of an organization, holiday, or other event that you feel deserves recognition, don’t hesitate to reach out to BOMA; as they put it, “BOMA Philadelphia looks forward to offering our “shining support” to your cause.”