1600 Pacific Tower
Encyclopedia
1600 Pacific Tower, also known as the LTV Tower and National Bank of Commerce Building, is a skyscraper
in the City Center District of Dallas
, Texas
. The building rises 434 feet (132 meters). The structure contains 33 floors of office space, standing as the 29th-tallest building in the city. The building is adjacent to Thanks-Giving Square
and connected to the Dallas Pedestrian Network
.
Banking facilities for the National Bank of Commerce were located on the second and third floors, while the 28-story tower portion of the building contained the executive headquarters for LTV (Ling-Temco-Vought), Electro-Science Investors, and American Life Insurance Company plus other leasable space. 2 levels of parking are located below the structure.
The ground floor contained a marble and granite pedestrian mall connecting Elm Street and Pacific Avenue, open 24 hours a day for pedestrian passage. An innovative motor bank, called "Teller-Vision," allowed drive up bank customers to conduct business over a closed circuit television system. Terraces and gardens were located on the roof of the 3-story base, and the top floor of the building contained the private Lancers Club.
The building's facade was covered with 125000 square feet (11,612.9 m²) of dark glass with strips of aluminum molding, and contained the world's largest electronic signboard. Thirty windows on each of the twenty-five floors were individually controlled and could spell out different messages. It often spelled out "LTV", and even had a figure of Big Tex
in lights during the State Fair.
The quality of the building's construction has been debated over the years. During construction, a section of masonry broke loose and tons of bricks crashed through the roof of a neighboring building. Shortly after opening some of the windows cracked due to heat.
In 1970 a bomb threat caused evacuation of the building.
The building was sold in 1968, and in 1975 the building was sold again to Dresser, Inc. The building went through a series of successive owners intending to convert it into residences, but due to economic conditions no plans have come to fruition. In 2010 work by a San Antonio-based developer began to renovate the building -- to be renamed The Grand Ricchi -- for residential and office condo use.
Skyscraper
A skyscraper is a tall, continuously habitable building of many stories, often designed for office and commercial use. There is no official definition or height above which a building may be classified as a skyscraper...
in the City Center District of Dallas
Dallas, Texas
Dallas is the third-largest city in Texas and the ninth-largest in the United States. The Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex is the largest metropolitan area in the South and fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States...
, Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
. The building rises 434 feet (132 meters). The structure contains 33 floors of office space, standing as the 29th-tallest building in the city. The building is adjacent to Thanks-Giving Square
Thanks-Giving Square
Thanks-Giving Square is a public-private complex in the City Center District of downtown Dallas, Texas . Originally planned as the first of several traffic-relieving complexes in downtown Dallas, it was dedicated in 1976; at the time it was the first public-private partnership of its kind in Dallas...
and connected to the Dallas Pedestrian Network
Dallas Pedestrian Network
The Dallas Pedestrian Network is a system of grade-separated walkways covering thirty-six city blocks of downtown Dallas, Texas, USA. The system connects buildings, garages and parks through underground tunnels and above-ground skybridges...
.
History
The building was designed in 1961 by architects Harwood K. Smith and Dales Young Foster and opened in 1964 as the fifth tallest building in Dallas.Banking facilities for the National Bank of Commerce were located on the second and third floors, while the 28-story tower portion of the building contained the executive headquarters for LTV (Ling-Temco-Vought), Electro-Science Investors, and American Life Insurance Company plus other leasable space. 2 levels of parking are located below the structure.
The ground floor contained a marble and granite pedestrian mall connecting Elm Street and Pacific Avenue, open 24 hours a day for pedestrian passage. An innovative motor bank, called "Teller-Vision," allowed drive up bank customers to conduct business over a closed circuit television system. Terraces and gardens were located on the roof of the 3-story base, and the top floor of the building contained the private Lancers Club.
The building's facade was covered with 125000 square feet (11,612.9 m²) of dark glass with strips of aluminum molding, and contained the world's largest electronic signboard. Thirty windows on each of the twenty-five floors were individually controlled and could spell out different messages. It often spelled out "LTV", and even had a figure of Big Tex
Big Tex
Big Tex is the 52 foot tall icon of the annual State Fair of Texas held at Fair Park in Dallas, Texas. He wears size 70 boots, a 75 gallon hat, a size 100 180/181 shirt and 284W/185L XXXXXL pair of Dickies jeans...
in lights during the State Fair.
The quality of the building's construction has been debated over the years. During construction, a section of masonry broke loose and tons of bricks crashed through the roof of a neighboring building. Shortly after opening some of the windows cracked due to heat.
In 1970 a bomb threat caused evacuation of the building.
The building was sold in 1968, and in 1975 the building was sold again to Dresser, Inc. The building went through a series of successive owners intending to convert it into residences, but due to economic conditions no plans have come to fruition. In 2010 work by a San Antonio-based developer began to renovate the building -- to be renamed The Grand Ricchi -- for residential and office condo use.