SunTrust Plaza
History
Architect and developer John C. Portman Jr. originally conceived this building in the 1980s commercial real-estate frenzy as a speculative office building. Its basic design elements, a postmodern square tower with an elaborate base and crown, represented a departure for Portman from his earlier International-style work, and are said to have been inspired by Philip Johnson's wildly successful design for midtown Atlanta's One Atlantic Center.
Ground broke in 1989 with great fanfare, but by completion in 1992, the bottom had fallen out of Atlanta's real estate market and the building sat largely empty, nearly forcing Portman into bankruptcy and causing him to lose control of most of his real estate holdings. His architectural firm, John Portman & Associates, located their headquarters in the building.
The two-level lobby is filled with many works of art, sculpture and furniture designed by John Portman. The light rotates.
Recent events
The building was one of several struck by the mid-March 2008 Atlanta tornado, however it did not sustain damage as severe as most of the other buildings just south of it. Several offices had to be temporarily relocated within the building due to broken windows.
LPTV station WDTA-LD relocated to the top of the building, from the even-taller Bank of America Plaza. Despite long being Atlanta's second-tallest skyscraper, this is its first broadcast antenna.
The building has been since its construction the home of John Portman & Associates Architects.
Atlanta's Truist Plaza building is home to a peregrine falcons' nest in planters on a balcony more than 50 stories above ground. High above any natural predators, the planters offer soft substrate and afford some protection from harsh weather. Peregrine falcons have been nesting at Truist Plaza since 1997. This Georgia Department of Natural Resources' Wildlife Resources Division web-camera offers viewers a unique look at the peregrines nesting activities in real-time. (Note: The balcony is private and not open to the public.)
In October 2021, Truist announced plans to install signage on the crown of the building. The new signage was installed on January 23, 2022, which necessitated the closure of streets and sidewalks surrounding the skyscraper.
Gallery
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Peachtree Street entrance
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Perimeter around building at street level
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View from the corner of Baker Street and Peachtree Center Avenue
See also
References
- ^ "Emporis building ID 121136". Emporis. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016.
- ^ "Truist Plaza". SkyscraperPage.
- ^ Truist Plaza at Structurae
- ^ "SunTrust Plaza - Portman Holdings". www.portmanholdings.com.
- ^ Peters, Andy. "Truist plan to put purple name atop Atlanta tower runs into red light". AJC. Retrieved 10 January 2022.
- ^ https://www.skyscrapercenter.com/building/truist-plaza/724
- ^ "FalconCam". ustream.tv.
- ^ Peters, Andy (October 14, 2021). "Truist sign to be added to second-tallest building". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Retrieved March 9, 2022.
- ^ "Several Atlanta roads closed to change old SunTrust building sign". WSB-TV. January 23, 2022. Retrieved March 9, 2022.