Comments on: Seattle’s Best Modern Skyscraper

By: tiptoe tommy

tiptoe tommy — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 05:04:39 +0000

Two Union is better than most of the dreck in Seattle, but a friend once pointed out that if you took the old Washington Natural Gas neon blue flame that is now at MOHAI and put it on top–Two Union would look just like a Cricket lighter.

By: Matt the Engineer

Matt the Engineer — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 17:20:20 +0000

I have a view of two union from my office, and I just noticed something very strange. See the line of glass that runs up the middle, stopping about 10 floors below the top? It’s made up of religious-proportioned crosses. I wonder if this was an accident, or if a church funded the construction.

By: Sabina Pade

Sabina Pade — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 02:52:21 +0000

DC, that’s One Union. And me, too – I’ve enjoyed that cladding since the days I watched the building go up. Hasn’t aged, is still thrilling.

By: dan cortland

dan cortland — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 02:21:54 +0000

There’s some conflict between size and E efficiency, no? Don’t small floorplates make major contributions to efficiency through increased daylighting?

Two Union is one of the few modern buildings in town where the use of curved surfaces is not an aesthetic disaster, I think.

I love the skin on the building to the left of Two Union in the photo.

By: Michael

Michael — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 17:28:23 +0000

I’d say the new WaMu Center and Rainier Square (the tower, not the lowrise mall) are the best. 2 Union is ok and has some nice landscaping features (the big courtyard between it and 1 Union tower), but it screams ’80’s in its color schemes and weird materials (i.e. weird plastic column capitals). WaMu and Rainer are ver clear diagrams, from a designers point of view. I’d also venture that WaMu Center is about as efficient as they come (occupies 100% of the ground plain, large boxy fkloor plate), but the articulation of its various boxy volumes is quite nice and diminishes its perceived bulk.

By: Matt the Engineer

Matt the Engineer — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 17:13:32 +0000

A few subtle features of Two Union are worth mentioning. First, it’s connected to Freeway Park and the Convention Center, which makes it really easy to go for a lunchtime walk and access events and food. Second, there’s a pedestrian tunnel that connects to Rainer Square. This is really nice on rainy days, and would be perfect if they had only brought it one more block to the transit tunnel.

Actually, Rainer Square is kind of failing, due to lack of foot traffic (the interior stores are all but invisible from the street). I wonder if digging a tunnel to transit would be a good investment for them.

By: Sabina Pade

Sabina Pade — Sat, 23 Aug 2008 22:49:06 +0000

Rainier Tower certainly is the most memorable of our post-Smith Tower office piles, the most utopian and most original. My personal favourite.

By: Paulish

Paulish — Sat, 23 Aug 2008 01:42:44 +0000

Umm. Clearly no body told you people that the Rainer Tower is Seattle’s best skyscraper.

Hands Down.

By: Matt the Engineer

Matt the Engineer — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 14:52:30 +0000

Spencer, it really depends on the design team. I’ve seen highrise buildings with 30 sheets and others with hundreds. Being shell and core helps quite a bit, but complex fascades can add sheets.

By: michael

michael — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 23:03:49 +0000

best place in Seattle to give blood
55th floor, sweeping views of the Puget Sound and Olympic Mountains-highly recommended