Rainier Tower

Rainier Tower is a 41-story, 156.67 m (514.0 ft) skyscraper in the Metropolitan Tract of Seattle, Washington, at 1301 Fifth Avenue. It was designed by Minoru Yamasaki, who designed the World Trade Center in New York City as well as the IBM Building, which is on the corner across the street from Rainier Tower to the southeast. Its construction was completed in 1977.[6]

Rainier Tower
Location within downtown Seattle
Former namesRainier Bank Tower (1977–89)
Security Pacific Tower (1989–95)
Alternative namesRainier Square
General information
TypeCommercial offices
Location1301 Fifth Avenue
Seattle, Washington
Coordinates47.60902°N 122.33405°W / 47.60902; -122.33405
Completed1977
OwnerUnico Properties
Height
Roof156.67 m (514.0 ft)
Technical details
Floor count41
2 below ground
Floor area538,000 sq ft (50,000 m2)
Lifts/elevators13
Design and construction
ArchitectMinoru Yamasaki
NBBJ
Structural engineerMagnusson Klemencic Associates
References
[1][2][3][4][5]

The skyscraper has an unusual appearance, being built atop an 11-story, 37 m (121 ft) concrete pedestal base that tapers towards ground level, like an inverted pyramid.

Beneath the tower was Rainier Square, an underground shopping mall connecting with One Union Square, which is owned by the University of Washington (UW).[7] This shopping center was demolished in 2017. Both the mall and tower were originally named after Rainier Bank, which was merged in the 1980s into Security Pacific, which was eventually merged into Bank of America.[8] The tower was named after Security Pacific in 1989 until UW chose to rename it back to the more familiar "Rainier Tower" in 1995.[5]

Locals often refer to it as the "Beaver Building" as its physical appearance looks like a tree being felled by a beaver.[9] It had also been referred to as the "golf tee" building.

In 2015, the University of Washington proposed an 850 ft office tower to occupy space on the same block as the Rainier Tower. The project also includes a twelve-story hotel. Construction began in September 2017 with completion projected in 2020.[10][11]

See also

References
  1. "Rainier Tower". CTBUH Skyscraper Center.
  2. Rainier Tower at Emporis
  3. "Rainier Tower". SkyscraperPage.
  4. Rainier Tower at Structurae
  5. "It's A New (Old) Song: Rainier Tower Gets Its Name Back". The Seattle Times. September 23, 1995.
  6. Woodridge, Sally B.; Roger Montgomery (1980). A Guide to Architecture in Washington State. University of Washington Press. p. 127. ISBN 0-295-95779-4.
  7. Bhatt, Sanjay (October 3, 2013), "UW has big plans for its prime downtown Seattle real estate", The Seattle Times
  8. Glenn R. Pascall (May 8, 1998). "Too Big To Fail – To Too Big To Succeed?". The Puget Sound Business Journal. Retrieved January 17, 2011.
  9. Lonely Planet Pocket Seattle. Lonely Planet. June 2017. ISBN 9781787010864.
  10. Rainier Square Bank Tower, Yamasaki Inc., retrieved January 15, 2015
  11. Rainier Square Hotel, Emporis, retrieved January 15, 2019
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