Bob Lanier Public Works Building

Bob Lanier Public Works Building is a 410 ft (125 m) tall skyscraper in Houston, Texas. It was completed in 1968 and has 27 floors. It is the 41st tallest building in the city. Eero Saarinen's CBS Building in New York City inspired the design for this building. It was named after Houston mayor Bob Lanier who served between 1992 and 1998.

Bob Lanier Public Works Building
Map
General information
TypeOffice
Location611 Walker Avenue, Houston, Texas
Coordinates29°45′35″N 95°22′02″W / 29.75983°N 95.36715°W / 29.75983; -95.36715
Completed1968
Height
Roof410 ft (125 m)
Technical details
Floor count27
Floor area767,000 sq ft (71,300 m2)[1]
Design and construction
Architect(s)Robert O Biering

The building is located one block from Houston City Hall and Hermann Square. It is bounded by Louisiana, Rusk, Smith, and Walker Streets.[2]

History

edit

The Rice Hotel Family Laundry formerly stood where the Lanier building is today.[3]

This building was previously the Houston Lighting & Power office building. In 1999 the City of Houston, which had acquired the building, renovated it for $43 million to house city government offices.[4] It was previously known as the Electric Building.[5]

The renovation occurred under the direction of Mayor Lanier.[6]

Departments

edit

The main office of Houston Public Works is in the Lanier Building.[2][7][8] Divisions of the Mayor's Office at the Lanier Building include 3-1-1 (5th Floor) and Office of Business Opportunity (7th Floor).[9]

See also

edit

References

edit
  1. ^ "Bob Lanier Building | Energy Star".
  2. ^ a b "City of Houston - Department of Public Works and Engineering." City of Houston. Retrieved on August 22, 2009.
  3. ^ Gonzales, J.R. "Last days at the Rivoli and a look at Rice Hotel Laundry." Houston Chronicle. August 11, 2010. Retrieved on April 14, 2014.
  4. ^ "Development Downtown Houston" (Archive). CentralHouston. p. 14/17. Retrieved on April 14, 2014. "1999 Bob Lanier Building 611 Walker. City of Houston conversion of the former Houston Lighting & Power office building into offices for Houston Public Works. Includes new tunnel links. Developer: City of Houston. Estimated cost: $43 million."
  5. ^ Chapman, Betty T. "Houston historical treasures abound in modern architecture." Houston Business Journal. April 6, 2012. Retrieved on April 14, 2014. "Other notable skyscrapers of the period are the American General Building at 2727 Allen Parkway and the Electric Building at 611 Walker, now Bob Lanier Public Works Building."
  6. ^ Graves, Rachel. "Public Works has had flood of controversy." Houston Chronicle. July 8, 2001. Retrieved on April 14, 2014. "Lanier renovated 611 Walker, a city office building that now bears his name,[...]"
  7. ^ "Right-of-Way and Fleet Maintenance Archived July 20, 2008, at the Wayback Machine." City of Houston. Retrieved on August 22, 2009.
  8. ^ "Traffic and Transportation Archived September 12, 2009, at the Wayback Machine." City of Houston. Retrieved on August 22, 2009.
  9. ^ "Office of Business Opportunity." City of Houston. Retrieved on August 22, 2009.
edit