Wilshire Grand to be the new tallest tower in the West Coast? But isn’t it shorter than the U.S. Bank Tower?
A lot has been made about how the new Wilshire Grand tower going up at 7th and Figueroa in Downtown Los Angeles will be the new tallest tower in the world….between Chicago, IL and Auckland, New Zealand, but is that really true?
Both the current U.S. Bank Tower and the under construction Wilshire Grand will be 73 floors tall. The U.S. Bank climbs to 1,018 feet at its top surface, and Wilshire Grand will be 953 feet. Something is odd, right?
Well….thanks the CN Tower in Toronto, Canada, it opened with a spire at the top of the building. That spire is connected and part of the structure of the building, and thus considered the height of a building. That’s why, as tall towers compete around the World, like the Burj Khalifa (Dubai), Taipei 101, Freedom Tower, etc…), they open up with spires!
And our brand new Wilshire Grand will be the FIRST building in the City of Los Angeles to have a 150 feet spire at its top, which will make the entire building at a height of 1,100 feet. Due to the spire, it will surpass the U.S. Bank Tower and legally be defined as the tallest building in the world….between Chicago, IL and Auckland, NZ.
What a great way to cheat the system!
Learn about this, and a whole lot more, on our Downtown LA Walking Tours!