Wilshire Grand Crowned Tallest Building in the West

Wilshire Grand stands 73 stories tall and is topped with a 294-foot-nine-inch tall steel spire.

LOS ANGELES—Wilshire Grand has been crowned. Korean Air, the developer behind the $1-billion project, topped off the 73-story skyscraper in Downtown Los Angeles with the spire, officially crowning it the tallest building west of the Mississippi. The steel spire alone stands 294 feet and 9 inches tall, making the building 1,100 square feet.

The building has been labeled an icon of the Downtown Los Angeles resurgence, with city leaders like Mayor Eric Garcetti and Councilmember Jose Huizar praising the project as a milestone project for the renaissance, which has encouraged a surge of mixed-use development projects like the Wilshire Grand. “The Wilshire Grand is an iconic building—and the addition of its signature spire today marks an incredibly exciting moment for the project and for all of Downtown Los Angeles,” Chris Martin, CEO and president of A.C. Martin, tells GlobeSt.com. “In completing the spire today, we’re celebrating a major accomplishment and getting a glimpse of the Wilshire Grand’s bright future, which will redefine what it means to work, live and stay in Downtown Los Angeles.” A.C. Martin designed the new icon, while Turner Construction is serving as the contractor.