One Boston Place Building vs Strata Tower

Comparing the One Boston Place Building and the Strata Tower is an interesting exercise, because even though they are located in different cities (Boston, MA and Oklahoma City, OK), both were designed by Pietro Belluschi and finished within just one year apart. This gives us the chance to see how the same architect's ideas were expressed in different urban contexts almost simultaneously.

The One Boston Place Building is clearly the larger tower of the two, both in terms of height and number of floors. It rises to 600ft (183m) with 41 floors above ground, while the Strata Tower reaches 394ft (120m) with 30 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.

The One Boston Place Building was designed in the International Style style, while the Strata Tower reflects the principles of Brutalism.

The Strata Tower represents a late expression of the Brutalism, a style already in decline in 1971 when it was completed. By contrast, the One Boston Place Building followed the then mainstream International Style, embodying the dominant architectural direction of its time.

The One Boston Place Building is primarily commercial, while the Strata Tower is primarily governmental.

Originally, the Strata Tower was designed for commercial, but over time it was converted to governmental. The One Boston Place Building by contrast has maintained its original role.

The One Boston Place Building also provides 146 parking spaces.

The two buildings opted for different structural and facade solutions.

The One Boston Place Building uses a Trussed Tube In Tube system, which combines a central core with a perimeter tube reinforced by diagonal bracing, while the Strata Tower uses a Frame system, that relies on a regular grid of columns and beams to sustain its weight.

And when it came to the facade, the Curtain Wall went with a Curtain Wall facade, which uses a lightweight glass curtain wall hung from the structure, while the Strata Tower opted for a Window Wall facade, that uses panels fitted between floor slabs, leaving slab edges visible.