McKinley Tower Apartments

The McKinley Tower Apartments, previously known as the East 4th & Denali Apartments, the Mt. McKinley Building, the McKay (or MacKay) Building and the McKinley Building, is a historic apartment building at 337 East Fourth Avenue in the eastern downtown of Anchorage, Alaska. Originally constructed as a 14-story HUD 604 apartment building named the Mt. McKinley Bldg,[2] it is the first, and oldest high-rise in Anchorage. McKinley Tower was designed in 1950 by Earl W. Morrison for MacDonald Architects of Seattle[3] who also designed the nearly identical Inlet Towers at 1020 W. 12th Avenue.[4] The building shares key design characteristics with several other buildings designed by Morrison including: Skye at Belltown in Seattle, WA.[5] The Mendenhall Tower in Juneau, Mary Frances Towers in Ketchikan, and the Cathedral Arms building in Sitka.

McKinley Tower Apartments
McKinley Tower Apartments in 2013
Location337 East 4th Avenue, Anchorage, Alaska
Coordinates61°13′8″N 149°52′39″W
Arealess than one acre
Built1952
ArchitectEarl W. Morrison for MacDonald Architects
Architectural styleEarly Modernism
NRHP reference No.08000882[1]
Added to NRHPSeptember 12, 2008

The McKay Building

After the building had sat for years following damage in the 1964 Alaska earthquake, it was purchased at auction by Anchorage attorney and real estate investor, Neil S. Mackay. He renamed it the McKay Building (spelling intended) and converted into an office building that housed the State of Alaska's administrative offices [6] and a private penthouse residence occupied by Mackay.[7] The State of Alaska moved out in 1982 when the building was condemned by the city for failing fire codes. The building was completely gutted and stood windowless and abandoned for the next 20 years largely due to Mackay's legal issues in relation to the assassination of his wife Muriel Pfeil and brother in law Robert Pfeil.[8]

Renovation

The tower and annex were purchased in 1998 by Anchorage developer, Marc Marlow and later remodeled and brought up to code after significant seismic reinforcement work was completed.[9][10]

McKinley Tower was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2008.[1]

See also

References
  1. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  2. https://vilda.alaska.edu/digital/collection/cdmg13/id/3210/
  3. https://www.emporis.com/companies/101392/earl-w-morrison-seattle-wa-usa
  4. Engineering News-Record 16 Feb. 1950: 95. New York.
  5. https://web6.seattle.gov/DPD/HistoricalSite/QueryResult.aspx?ID=-885741013
  6. "Anchorage, Federal Office Building (FOB): Environmental Impact Statement". 1975.
  7. https://www.upi.com/Archives/1985/11/23/Mayhem-in-The-Great-Land/9434501570000/
  8. https://www.nytimes.com/1987/06/30/us/alaskan-murder-enigma-within-an-enigma.html
  9. http://www.sastructural.com/portfolio/mckinley-tower/
  10. "A new life for an old building: once condemned, the old MacKay building will again stand tall with a new name and makeover" by Martin, Gary L., Alaska Business Monthly, Saturday Oct 1, 2005
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