Blue Cross Blue Shield Tower vs One Chicago West Tower

Comparing the Blue Cross Blue Shield Tower and the One Chicago West 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 One Chicago West Tower reaches 574ft (175m) with 49 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 One Chicago West 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 One Chicago West Tower came later, when the style was already more established.

The Blue Cross Blue Shield Tower is primarily commercial, while the One Chicago West Tower is primarily residential.

The One Chicago West Tower offers 391 residential units.

Both towers provide significant parking capacity, with Blue Cross Blue Shield Tower offering 5226 spaces and the One Chicago West Tower offering 1100.

Both the Blue Cross Blue Shield Tower and the One Chicago West 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.