Blue Cross Blue Shield Tower vs BMO Tower

Comparing the Blue Cross Blue Shield Tower and the BMO Tower is particularly interesting because they share the same skyline in Chicago, IL, and were both designed by Goettsch Partners. However, they were completed more than 24 years apart.

This offers a unique perspective on how the architect's style and the city's architecture evolved over time.

The Blue Cross Blue Shield Tower is clearly the larger tower of the two, both in terms of height and number of floors. It rises to 745ft (227m) with 54 floors above ground, while the BMO Tower reaches 728ft (222m) with 51 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 Blue Cross Blue Shield Tower and the BMO Tower were designed in line with the aesthetic conventions of the Contemporary style.

Back then, theContemporary was still an emerging movement, so both giving it a pioneering role. By contrast, the BMO Tower came later, when the style was already more established.

Both the Blue Cross Blue Shield Tower and the BMO 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.

Both towers provide significant parking capacity, with Blue Cross Blue Shield Tower offering 5226 spaces and the BMO Tower offering 324.

Both the Blue Cross Blue Shield Tower and the BMO Tower rely on a Frame structural 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.

They also employ the same type of facade, 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.