One Atlantic Center vs Bank of America Plaza

Comparing the One Atlantic Center and the Bank of America Plaza is interesting because they both stand in Atlanta, GA, and were completed within 5 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 Bank of America Plaza is clearly the larger tower of the two, both in terms of height and number of floors. It rises to 1024ft (312m) with 55 floors above ground, while the One Atlantic Center reaches 820ft (250m) with 50 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 One Atlantic Center and the Bank of America Plaza 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 One Atlantic Center was built when the style still carried greater cultural weight.

Both the One Atlantic Center and the Bank of America Plaza 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 One Atlantic Center offering 2200 spaces and the Bank of America Plaza offering 1251.

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

The One Atlantic Center uses a Framed Tube In Tube structural system, which combines a strong central core with a perimeter tube of columns, while the Bank of America Plaza uses a Trussed Tube In Tube system, that combines a central core with a perimeter tube reinforced by diagonal bracing.

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.