The BMA Tower in Kansas City, Missouri

Kansas City, Missouri

Kansas City, Missouri is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri and is the anchor city of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area, the second largest metropolitan area in Missouri. It encompasses in parts of Jackson, Clay, Cass, and Platte counties...

, also known as One Park Place, was built as a 19-story Modern style office building. Located on a prominent height 3 miles (4.8 km) south of downtown Kansas City, the 280 feet (85.3 m) building is uniquely visible. The building was planned for the Business Men's Assurance Company of America, an insurance company, on the site of the former St. Joseph's Orphanage. The building was designed by Skidmore, Owings and Merrill

Skidmore, Owings and Merrill

Skidmore, Owings and Merrill LLP is an American architectural and engineering firm that was formed in Chicago in 1936 by Louis Skidmore and Nathaniel Owings; in 1939 they were joined by John O. Merrill. They opened their first branch in New York City, New York in 1937. SOM is one of the largest...

 with steel frame construction and clad in a contrasting grid of deeply inset black glass and white marble. It was the first high-rise structure in Kansas City snce the building of City Hall in 1936, and opened in 1963.

Designed by SOM project manager Bruce Graham

Bruce Graham

Bruce John Graham was an Colombian-American architect. Among his most notable buildings are the Inland Steel Building, the Willis Tower , and the John Hancock Center. He worked with Fazlur Khan on all three constructions...

, who later was lead architect for the John Hancock Center

John Hancock Center

John Hancock Center at 875 North Michigan Avenue in the Streeterville area of Chicago, Illinois, is a 100-story, 1,127-foot tall skyscraper, constructed under the supervision of Skidmore, Owings and Merrill, with chief designer Bruce Graham and structural engineer Fazlur Khan...

 and the Willis Tower, the BMA tower is completely devoid of ornament, using only the contrast between the white cladding on the columns and beams with the black glazing as expression. In design it is closely related to the First City National Bank Building

One City Centre

One City Centre is a 410 ft tall skyscraper in Houston, Texas, USA, made from glass, steel, and concrete It was completed in 1960. It has 32 floors and is the 41st tallest building in the city. Originally called the First City National Bank Building, One City Centre is the first high modern office...

 in Houston, designed by Gordon Bunshaft

Gordon Bunshaft

Gordon Bunshaft was an architect educated at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. In 1988, Gordon Bunshaft nominated himself for the Pritzker Prize and eventually won it.-Career:...

, another SOM partner. Even more than the upper-floor windows, the ground floor is deeply inset, with glass surrounding just the central building core to function as a lobby. The structure encloses 384000 square feet (35,674.8 m²).

The building's original marble cladding was replaced after several panels fell from the building in 1985 and 1986. The problem was traced to the thinness of the panels (1.25 inches (3.2 cm) and the method of anchorage to the frame. As a result of extensive investigation, the panels were replaced with neoparium

Neoparium

Neoparium, also known as Neopariés, is a glass material made in Japan by Nippon Electric Glass. Described as "crystalized glass ceramic," it was developed as an architectural cladding material for use in harsh environments. Typical units are 5/8" thick in a number of opaque colors...

, a glass product that appeared indistinguishable from marble at more than 100 feet (30.5 m). This failure mode was not uncommon in buildings of this era that employed thin marble cladding. Several buildings, most notably the Aon Center

Aon Center (Chicago)

The Aon Center is a modern skyscraper in the Chicago Loop, Chicago, Illinois, United States, designed by architect firms Edward Durell Stone and The Perkins and Will partnership, and completed in 1973 as the Standard Oil Building...

 in Chicago

Chicago

Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...

 were re-clad with materials other than marble.

The BMA Building won an Architectural Award of Excellence from the American Institute of Steel Construction

American Institute of Steel Construction

The American Institute of Steel Construction, often abbreviated AISC, is a not-for-profit technical institute and trade association for the use of structural steel in the construction industry of the United States. It is headquartered in Chicago, IL. Their mission is to make structural steel the...

 and a First Honor Award from the American Institute of Architects

American Institute of Architects

The American Institute of Architects is a professional organization for architects in the United States. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., the AIA offers education, government advocacy, community redevelopment, and public outreach to support the architecture profession and improve its public image...

.

The building was sold by the BMA in 2002 and was added to the National Register of Historic Places

National Register of Historic Places

The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...

 the same year. Renamed One Park Place, it was extensively renovated, stripped of asbestos

Asbestos

Asbestos is a set of six naturally occurring silicate minerals used commercially for their desirable physical properties. They all have in common their eponymous, asbestiform habit: long, thin fibrous crystals...

and converted to residential condominiums. Renovation was completed in 2007.