Coordinates: 39°44′31″N 75°33′00″W / 39.74194°N 75.55000°W / 39.74194; -75.55000

Delmarva Power & Light Building

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Delmarva Power & Light Building
Five-story limestone building in downtown
Building from the intersection of Market & 6th
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Location600 North Market Street, Wilmington, Delaware 19801
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Built1932, 1955
Built byUnited Engineers and Contractors, Inc.
ArchitectBrown & Whiteside
Architectural styleArt Deco
Websitedcad.edu
Part ofDowntown Wilmington Commercial Historic District (ID10000079[2])
MPSMarket Street MRA (64000105)
NRHP reference No.85000149[1]
Significant dates
Designated NRHPJanuary 30, 1985
Designated CPMarch 24, 2017

The Delmarva Power & Light Building, also known as the DCAD Building, is a historic office building in downtown Wilmington, Delaware. The former headquarters of Delmarva Power & Light (DP&L) is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.[1]

History

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DP&L decided to build the headquarters in 1931 which was completed the subsequent year. While the original building was four stories, it was engineered with a fifth floor in mind which was eventually added in 1954. In 1972, the company moved their headquarters to 8th & King and the building sat vacant for a decade before Chase Manhattan Bank leased the space.[3]

In 1997, the newly created Delaware College of Art and Design (DCAD) took over the building from the bank to use as their main academic building with classrooms, studio space, and offices.[4] In 2021, DCAD sold their adjacent resident hall and used some of the proceeds to refurbish the interior.[5]

In 2024, the school announced that they would permanently close down.[6] The Buccini Pollin Group, a major Wilmington developer, later purchased the building for $3.5 million.[7]

Architecture

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The pilasters rising to the fourth-floor parapet

The Art Deco building faces Market Street with an Indiana limestone facade consisting of six bays. Granite piers frame the main entrance which is below a transom containing a lightning bolt motif.[3]

The first floor sits on a black granite base. The second through fourth floors have four triangular fluted limestone pilasters with floral capitals. The fourth-floor has a parapet featuring stylized cresting in limestone.[2] The fifth floor is a plain brick penthouse.[3] The 6th Street side of the building is less ornate, consisting largely of painted brick.[2]

See also

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References

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