Renaissance Tower

Renaissance Tower
Alternative names	First International Building
General information
Type	Commercial offices
Location	1201 Elm Street Dallas, Texas
Coordinates	32°46′52″N 96°48′07″W / 32.7812°N 96.8020°W / 32.7812; -96.8020Coordinates: 32°46′52″N 96°48′07″W / 32.7812°N 96.8020°W / 32.7812; -96.8020
Completed	1974
Height
Antenna spire	270 m (890 ft)
Roof	220 m (720 ft)
Technical details
Floor count	56
Floor area	1,731,000 sq ft (160,800 m2)
Design and construction
Owner	BACM 2000-2 Elm St Offices LLC
Management	CB Richard Ellis
Architect	Hellmuth, Obata and Kassabaum HKS, Inc.
References
[1][2][3]

Renaissance Tower is a 886 ft (270 m), 56-story modernist skyscraper located at 1201 Elm Street in downtown Dallas, Texas. The tower is the second tallest in the city, the fifth tallest in Texas, and the 24th tallest in the United States. Renaissance Tower was designed by the architectural firm Hellmuth, Obata and Kassabaum, completed in 1974, and renovated by architects Skidmore, Owings and Merrill in 1986 and serves as headquarters for Neiman Marcus, Blockbuster and Winstead PC.^[4][5][6]

History

At the time of completion in 1974, it was the tallest building in Dallas at 710 ft (220 m) and was originally known as the First International Bancshares Tower (First International Bancshares, Inc. was the new holding company parent of First National Bank in Dallas). In 1985, it was surpassed by Fountain Place and Bank of America Plaza, which became Dallas' tallest building by far. It was also clear that Renaissance Tower would be overtaken by Comerica Bank Tower and Chase Tower then under construction. Therefore, in order to regain some status, the building underwent a major renovation in 1986 that included a re-glazed exterior and removal of the lighting on its sides. In 1986, James T. Chiles was brought in by the owner, The Prudential Insurance Company of America to design the broadcast center and towers on top the building, one of which was 176 ft (54 m). This brought the structural height of the building up to 886 ft (270 m), securing its place as the second-tallest building in Dallas. Excluding antennas and spires, the Renaissance Tower is the fifth-tallest.^{[citation needed]}

Dan Goodwin, a high-rise firefighting and rescue advocate, scaled the outside of the Renaissance Tower on November 7, 1981, clad in a Spider-Man suit, and using only suction cups and his hands and feet to climb the outside of the building. Goodwin later stated he made the climb as a gift to a young Dallas boy stricken with cystic fibrosis whom he had met shortly after his May 25, 1981, ascent of Chicago's Sears Tower. Goodwin scaled the Renaissance Tower on his twenty-sixth birthday.^[7]

In 1986 Winstead PC moved from the Mercantile National Bank complex to the Renaissance Tower.^[8]

In 1996 Blockbuster Inc., which was then headquartered in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, began studying the idea of moving its headquarters, which consisted of 400 employees, into 260,000 sq ft (24,000 m²) of space in the Renaissance Tower. In November 1996 Blockbuster confirmed that it was moving into 240,000 sq ft (22,000 m²) of space on eight floors in the Renaissance Tower, choosing floor 23 as their center of operations.^[9][10]

At the base of the building, there is a glass-pyramid structure that houses an underground food court. The food court connects to other nearby structures with tunnels.^{[citation needed]}

Outside shots of the building were used in the hit eighties Dallas (TV series) as the building was the home of Ewing Oil.^[11]

As of 2008 Winstead PC occupied almost 200,000 sq ft (19,000 m²) of space in the building; the lease expires in 2012. During that year the firm hired CB Richard Ellis to study possibilities for relocation. Winstead considered Uptown Dallas as a location.^[8]

See also

Dallas-Fort Worth portal

• List of tallest buildings in Dallas
• List of tallest buildings in Texas
• List of tallest buildings in the United States

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Renaissance Tower

• Renaissance Tower official website
• Renaissance Tower - Architecture in Downtown Dallas