Fort Washington Plaza vs 1001 Woodward

Comparing the Fort Washington Plaza and the 1001 Woodward is interesting because they both stand in Detroit, MI, and were completed within 4 years of each other, but they were designed by different architects.

This offers a unique glimpse at how rival designers approached projects in the same city during the same era.

The 1001 Woodward is clearly the larger tower of the two, both in terms of height and number of floors. It rises to 338ft (103m) with 23 floors above ground, while the Fort Washington Plaza reaches 197ft (60m) with 16 floors above ground.

Of course, each project may have faced different briefs or regulatory constraints, which we don't really know about and could also explain the outcome.

Both the Fort Washington Plaza and the 1001 Woodward were designed in line with the aesthetic conventions of the International Style style.

At the time, this style was at the height of its popularity. So both Louis G. Redstone & Associates and Smith, Hinchman & Grylls followed what was in many ways expected of them, producing designs that fit comfortably within contemporary architectural norms, rather than breaking with convention.

Both the Fort Washington Plaza and the 1001 Woodward were designed to serve as commercial towers, and that has remained their main use since their completion, serving similar roles in the urban fabric.

The Fort Washington Plaza also provides 524 parking spaces.

Both towers share the same structural solution, a Frame system.

A frame structure uses a grid of columns and beams to carry the building's loads. This frees the walls from structural duties, allowing for flexible floor plans and larger windows.

However, when it comes to the facade, both buildings use different approaches. The Fort Washington Plaza uses a Curtain Wall facade, while the 1001 Woodward uses a Window Wall facade.

A Curtain Wall facade like the one seen in the Fort Washington Plaza uses a lightweight glass curtain wall hung from the structure, while a window-wall facade like the one seen in the 1001 Woodward uses panels fitted between floor slabs, leaving slab edges visible.