140 New Montgomery Building vs Central Tower

140 New Montgomery Building
Central Tower

Comparing the 140 New Montgomery Building and the Central Tower is interesting because they both rise in San Francisco, CA, yet they were conceived by two different design teams, Miller and Pflueger and Albert Roller, and were completed at different points in time. They were finished more than a decade apart.

This contrast within the same city allows us to see how different creative minds interpreted the evolving needs of San Francisco across time.

Let's take a closer look!

Height
140m
Floors
26

Height & Size

Height
91m
Floors
21

The 140 New Montgomery Building is clearly the larger tower of the two, both in terms of height and number of floors. It rises to 459ft (140m) with 26 floors above ground, while the Central Tower reaches 299ft (91m) with 21 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.

Style
Art Deco

Architectural Style

Style
Art Deco

Both the 140 New Montgomery Building and the Central Tower were designed in line with the aesthetic conventions of the Art Deco style.

The Central Tower was designed at a moment when the Art Deco style was already in decline, making it more of a lingering expression of the movement. In contrast, the 140 New Montgomery Building was built when the style still carried greater cultural weight.

Main use
Commercial

Uses

Main use
Commercial

Both the 140 New Montgomery Building and the Central Tower were designed to serve as commercial towers, and that has remained their main use since their completion, serving similar roles in the urban fabric.

Structure
Frame
Facade
Masonry

Structure & Facade

Structure
Frame
Facade

These two towers illustrate the many possible ways to combine structure and enclosure in skyscraper design.

140 New Montgomery Building Central Tower
Miller and Pflueger Architect Albert Roller
1924 Construction Started 1937
1925 Year Completed 1938
Art Deco Architectural Style Art Deco
Commercial Current Use Commercial
26 Floors Above Ground 21
140 m Height (m) 91 m
27,400 m² Usable Area (m²) 10,054 m²
Frame Structure Type Frame
Steel Vertical Structure Material Steel
Concrete Horizontal Structure Material Concrete
No Facade Structural? No
Terracotta Main Facade Material Ceramic
CA State CA
San Francisco City San Francisco
140 New Montgomery Street Address 703 Market Street