Facts

  • Design by Minoru Yamasaki, One Woodward was his first skyscraper, and the precursor to the World Trade Center Towers
  • Each floor is 15,000 square feet in area.
  • When completed, this was the tallest all-welded steel frame in the world.
  • This building has a strong presence in the Civic Center area. The architect varied the stern Miesian International Style formula with the use of white marble, precast concrete panels, and lacy vertical grillwork.
  • The recessed glass lobby rises to a height of 25 feet, and creates a small plaza around the base which includes public art.
  • Floors 27 and 28 are entirely mechanical, and the building is topped with a prominent mechanical penthouse that includes 4 more floors that also serves as an architectural rooftop element which can be lit different colors by night.


Yamaski Associates closed their doors at the end of 2009. Oakland County took control of the firm's archives and tried to shred them for security reasons. Thankfully, the Michigan History Foundation stepped in to save the archives.
http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article...OG04/120909947