U.S. Bancorp Tower vs Random House Tower

Comparing the U.S. Bancorp Tower and the Random House Tower is compelling because they were both designed by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, yet they stand in different cities (Portland, OR and New York, NY), and were completed over two decades apart.

What this will allow us to see, is how the same firm's approach adapted to different places in different periods of time.

The Random House Tower is clearly the larger tower of the two, both in terms of height and number of floors. It rises to 682ft (208m) with 52 floors above ground, while the U.S. Bancorp Tower reaches 535ft (163m) with 42 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 U.S. Bancorp Tower was designed in the Modern style, while the Random House Tower reflects the principles of Contemporary.

The U.S. Bancorp Tower represents a late expression of the Modern, a style already in decline in 1983 when it was completed. By contrast, the Random House Tower followed the then mainstream Contemporary, embodying the dominant architectural direction of its time.

With 20 years between them, the comparison also reflects how quickly architectural priorities can shift from one dominant language to another.

The Random House Tower follows a mixed-use model, combining commercial and residential. In contrast, the U.S. Bancorp Tower has remained primarily commercial.

The Random House Tower offers 101 residential units.

Both towers provide significant parking capacity, with U.S. Bancorp Tower offering 1005 spaces and the Random House Tower offering 150.

Both towers share the same structural solution, a Frame 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.

However, when it comes to the facade, both buildings use different approaches. The U.S. Bancorp Tower uses a Modular facade, while the Random House Tower uses a Curtain Wall facade.

A Modular facade like the one seen in the U.S. Bancorp Tower employs prefabricated panels, often mixing solid surfaces with smaller windows, while a curtain-wall facade like the one seen in the Random House Tower uses a lightweight glass curtain wall hung from the structure.