OneEleven Building vs Salesforce Tower

Comparing the OneEleven Building and the Salesforce Tower is interesting because they both rise in Chicago, IL, yet they were conceived by two different design teams, Handel Architects LLP and Pelli Clark & Partners, and were completed at different points in time. They were finished more than 9 years apart.

This contrast within the same city allows us to see how different creative minds interpreted the evolving needs of Chicago across time.

Let's take a closer look!

These two towers present an interesting contrast in their proportions. The Salesforce Tower rises higher at 817ft (249m), while the OneEleven Building reaches 614ft (187m). However, the OneEleven Building accommodates more floors with 58 levels above ground, compared to 57 floors in the Salesforce Tower.

This suggests different approaches to interior space design. The Salesforce Tower has an average floor-to-floor height of approximately 4.4m, while the OneEleven Building has more compact floors averaging around 3.2m each. The taller building's more generous floor heights might indicate grander interior spaces, higher ceilings, or different programmatic requirements.

These different proportions likely reflect the specific needs each building was designed to serve, whether driven by zoning regulations, client requirements, or the intended use of the spaces within. The contrast shows how architects can achieve different spatial experiences even when working with similar overall building scales.

Both the OneEleven Building and the Salesforce Tower were designed in line with the aesthetic conventions of the Contemporary style.

At the time, this style was at the height of its popularity. So both Handel Architects LLP and Pelli Clark & Partners followed what was in many ways expected of them, producing designs that fit comfortably within contemporary architectural norms, rather than breaking with convention.

The OneEleven Building is primarily residential, while the Salesforce Tower is primarily commercial.

The OneEleven Building offers 504 residential units.

The OneEleven Building also provides 470 parking spaces.

Both the OneEleven Building and the Salesforce 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.