Voluntarily Demolished Skyscrapers

[Carlo[NL]]

Originally Posted by Skyscrapers 2008

The Singer Building is a sad loss but imagine what it would look like among the gleaming towers of Lower Manhattan today.....

I think you wouldn't see it from the rivers because of the Twin Towers and the WFC and after 2001 you probably could.

[MDguy]

why do people care so much about the singer building? I mean, im all for the keeping of it instead of the most average building on earth built on the site, but i mean, older skyscrapers in New York come in Abundance. What makes the Singer Building special so that everyone crys over it? Is it its height? Its replacement? Simply its design?

[erbse]

I think it's the real slender appearance and the somewhat unique shape it formed at the top. The squarish floor plate just measured 20m/65feet on a side! It also had a cladding that wasn't quite usual for NYC.
And well, you've got to keep in mind it once was the world's tallest skyscraper. It also is the tallest building ever to be demolished since 1968 - so it got some symbolic value as well.

This building is a sad loss. It'd really enrich the cityscape around Lower Manhattan.

Is there any possibility it could replace the building that used to replace it (1 Liberty Plaza)? And... to reconstruct the Singer Building?

That'd ne a novelty in skyscraper history!

[charmedone]

Originally Posted by MDguy

why do people care so much about the singer building? I mean, im all for the keeping of it instead of the most average building on earth built on the site, but i mean, older skyscrapers in New York come in Abundance. What makes the Singer Building special so that everyone crys over it? Is it its height? Its replacement? Simply its design?

to be honist i thought it was an ugly building that was torn down for yet another ugly building so its no loss

[butch83]

LoL Singer compared to 1 LP is a beauty masterpiece, with all those details, materials, history and class.
@charmedone, MDguy if You cant spot a difference in those buildings I dont think SSC is the proper place for You

[robb01]

Nicely written, and great images

[MDguy]

Originally Posted by butch83

MDguy if You cant spot a difference in those buildings I dont think SSC is the proper place for You

If you can't Read English correctly, i don't think like 99% parts of ssc are for you

Now, instead of being rude (and an ahole ), quote me and tell me where i said there's no difference between the two. Thanks

[butch83]

Well I was in a hurry and took wrong impression from charmedone, who quotet You, sorry, my bad, but still my conclusion fits charmedone

[Oriolus]

Originally Posted by Jim856796

8. CAGA House, Sydney, 1977-1992. Demolished for no reason other than to make way for the Governor MacQuarrie Tower. 410 feet 30 floors.
image needed

Photos of CAGA House seem to be extremely rare. Heres one I scanned from an old book a few years ago which partially shows the building. Demolished for Governor Macquarie Tower which is only 20m taller.

[erbse]

Damn those #§*!$ß% cultural barbarians! They're everywhere, dammit...


So they actually replaced such a grand beauty with this plain crap?

Source: www.aviewoncities.com

[butch83]

Theres a saying in polish about an uncle who exchanged an axe for a stick.
How appropriate.

[MDguy]

Originally Posted by erbsenzaehler

Damn those #§*!$ß% cultural barbarians! They're everywhere, dammit...


So they actually replaced such a grand beauty with this plain crap?

Source: www.aviewoncities.com

I think the Caga house is the tall building to the left of the photo that has "CAGA" written on top. In this case, i think the replacing building looks better

[Oriolus]

Originally Posted by MDguy

I think the Caga house is the tall building to the left of the photo that has "CAGA" written on top. In this case, i think the replacing building looks better

Indeed.

Sydney seems to have a long history of demolishing skyscrapers to build other skyscrapers. According to Emporis, there have been 56 high-rise buildings demolished in Sydney, and there are 5 more currently being demolished. Plus more to come. If your interested in buildings over 300ft, then the 28s/103m Waterboard Building will be coming down for 115 Bathurst Street. Apparentely it was Australias second tallest building when it was completed in 1965, but its pretty ugly, so good riddance!

(pic by Culwulla)
image hosted on flickr

[butch83]

In Europe it could be possibly preserved, its a good example of brutalism.

This postmodernistic pavilion plaza pos should go first.

[Killua × Hunter]

This is outrageous!!! Most of the buildings certainly enriched the overall architectural heritage of these cities. How could they have done this?
The singer building looks gorgeous! The "black box" that replaced the City Investing Building is a goddamned piece of ugly architecture.

[jowmatrix]

The building next to a church in Sao Paulo was demolited to open space to the Se metro station

[redstone]

Maybe we should create a proper list and update it regularly

[erbse]

Indeed. That'd be a good way to keep it structured, because it's a pretty important topic (that sadly doesn't get the attention it deserves - but it probably would with a better overview).

[DemolitionDave]

I couple of buildings that should be on the list:

1. Sanders Hall Cincinnatti, Ohio
2. The Biltmore Hotel Tulsa, Oklahoma
3. The Travellers Insurance Building Boston, Massachusetts
4. The Madison Hotel Boston, Massachusetts
5. Marlborough Blenheim Atlantic City, NJ
6. ANZ Builidng Perth, Australia
7. The Commonwealth Building Louisville, Kentucky

Contrary to a previous post, the JL Hudson Building was in a horrible structural condition. It was a steel framed building that had been exposed to the elements for years. Some of the columns had 20% or less of their cross bearing area left. It had 7 basements and 5 of those were totally underwater.

[Jim856796]

Originally Posted by jowmatrix

The building next to a church in Sao Paulo was demolited to open space to the Se metro station

You're probably referring to the Wilson Mendes Caldeira Building. Built in early-mid 50s, passed 1975.

Another building in Sao Paulo that I don't know much about is the Sede CESP twin-towered office complex. Built in 50s-60s and imploded in 1987 right after a fire seriously damaged the complex.

Also, I wanted to say that the CAGA Building in Sydney looks like a building constructed in the 60s than in the 70s.