The Harrison Building vs Atwater Apartments Building

Comparing the The Harrison Building and the Atwater Apartments Building is an interesting exercise, because even though they are located in different cities (San Francisco, CA and Chicago, IL), both were designed by Solomon Cordwell Buenz and finished within within 5 years of each other. This gives us the chance to see how the same architect's ideas were expressed in different urban contexts almost simultaneously.

The Atwater Apartments Building is clearly the larger tower of the two, both in terms of height and number of floors. It rises to 554ft (169m) with 53 floors above ground, while the The Harrison Building reaches 495ft (151m) 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 The Harrison Building and the Atwater Apartments Building 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 Solomon Cordwell Buenz followed what was in many ways expected at the time, producing designs that fit comfortably within contemporary architectural norms rather, than breaking with convention.

Both the The Harrison Building and the Atwater Apartments Building were designed to serve as residential towers, and that has remained their main use since their completion, serving similar roles in the urban fabric.

In terms of capacity, the The Harrison Building offers 298 apartments, while the Atwater Apartments Building provides 480 units.

The Atwater Apartments Building also provides 401 parking spaces.

Both the The Harrison Building and the Atwater Apartments Building 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.