Bank of America Plaza vs 60 Wall Street Building

Comparing the Bank of America Plaza and the 60 Wall Street Building is an interesting exercise, because even though they are located in different cities (Atlanta, GA and New York, NY), both were designed by Roche Dinkeloo & Associates and finished within within 3 years of each other. This gives us the chance to see how the same architect's ideas were expressed in different urban contexts almost simultaneously.

Both the Bank of America Plaza and the 60 Wall Street Building were designed in line with the aesthetic conventions of the Postmodernism style.

The Bank of America Plaza was designed at a moment when the Postmodernism style was already in decline, making it more of a lingering expression of the movement. In contrast, the 60 Wall Street Building style was already in decline, making it more of a lingering expression of the movement. In contrast, the 60 Wall Street Building was built when the style still carried greater cultural weight.

Both the Bank of America Plaza and the 60 Wall Street Building 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 Bank of America Plaza also provides 1251 parking spaces.

The two towers rely on different structural systems, reflecting distinct engineering strategies.

The Bank of America Plaza uses a Trussed Tube In Tube structural system, which combines a central core with a perimeter tube reinforced by diagonal bracing, while the 60 Wall Street Building uses a Frame system, that relies on a regular grid of columns and beams to sustain its weight.

Yet, when it comes to their facade, they both employed the same solution, a Curtain Wall facade.

A curtain wall is a non-load-bearing facade hung from the structural frame. It is anchored to floor slabs and transfers only its own weight and wind loads, allowing for sleek, glassy exteriors.