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Duke Energy Center - 48 Story Office Tower in Charlotte


dubone

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I think you have it right JayGee.

If you look at this construction photo below, that siding is actually over a 3 story void behind the slanted section of window wall facing Tryon Street (opposite side of the 4 evaporators). All they would need to do is wheel the machine over there and lower it 12-15 feet for it to be hidden.

That last section of I-beam, closes to BoA, is a different color, so it is obviously a different piece. And it is square.

I suppose it is possible that this section, with the crane on it, lowers. The base of that section is obscured, so you can't tell from the picture.

If that's the case, keep in mind that the entire crane does not need to be below floor level, just the base. I suspect that if the bottom of the arm is at floor level, it will not be visible from the ground. Which 12-15 would be about right.

So the tower officially opens today... I assume that means we will see it lit up tonight?

In the O article this morning, they said it will probably just be white. How daring.

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I'm going to probably be in the minority here, but the window washing unit is no big deal to me. You can't see it from many angles and I don't expect that you will see it at night when they light up the tower.

I'm with you... Honestly, it's not that big of a deal to me either and don't understand the fuss. I'm just happy that this tower is opening.

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But I still think there is the possibility that a whole sheet of ice, much larger than the gutter, could break off and slide off the building. It is probably just urban legend, but I remember hearing that a large sheet of ice slid off the Hearst tower and damaged a car.

The "rumor" is that designers are confident that the gutter system is capable of catching any ice accumulation which forms on the slanted portion of the building. However, they did not anticipate problems with wind catching layers of ice which form on the upper sections of the building -- apparently it can travel multiple blocks before hitting the ground. I would imagine they are looking for a means of heating the glass to prevent sheets of ice from forming. I wonder if that will effect LEED certification?

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I can confirm glass blowing off and many ice cube size chunk pelted my car and a basketball court size area along Tryon a couple of weeks ago when we had the marginal snow/ice fall....the next morning you could see tons of ice blowing off the top.

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I am usually a pretty patient person, but I'm starting to get annoyed we haven't seen this thing all lit up at night yet. I have only seen bits a pieces when they do random testing, but not the whole thing. The building is technically open now right? Maybe I need to go down there and flip the switch myself pretty soon if they are not going to do it. :thumbsup:

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I am usually a pretty patient person, but I'm starting to get annoyed we haven't seen this thing all lit up at night yet. I have only seen bits a pieces when they do random testing, but not the whole thing. The building is technically open now right? Maybe I need to go down there and flip the switch myself pretty soon if they are not going to do it. :thumbsup:

I haven't seen any testing since december...

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Went in the lobby today. I was underwhelmed. It looks like a big glamor bathroom in a Ballantyne McMansion.

I went through it last night and it seems like a carbon-copy of Three Wachovia in some aspects. Nothing interesting that caught my eye. At least 440 S. Church has some art in its lobby. :whistling: But, I don't think they're done yet with furnishing and decorating the lobby as I was told by a security guard that I couldn't take photos because Childress Klein owns the property and "they don't want to have people photographing until they're finished and unveil it".

A few shots of the interior and entrances (best I could get):

4281775967_6f6dd662b0.jpg

4281786789_e2654ba7b1.jpg

4281795739_54400999d3.jpg

Larger sizes and additional photos:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/cosmophotos/sets/72157621982264305/

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I was driving up South Blvd this evening around 6ish and saw that the top of the tower was in fact, lit up! The sun was still setting so I couldn't quite tell if the sides of the tower were lit or not. But, have to say that was the first time I've seen the handle lit up.

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^Nice pic.

I saw it on the way home at sunset as well and it took a moment to realize it was lit and not just the sun. Even with the handle just lit in white light, I think it is an impressive and perhaps now the most dominant feature on our night skyline.

CLT Blog has an image from the backside (?) as well. http://cltblog.com/5323

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Pardon me for my ignorance, but what is going to happen to the smaller Duke Power center?

I don't think anything is happening to it, at least for a while.

From what I know, Duke is vacating 400 South Tryon, and will have offices in the current HQ building, and the College St facility, and the new tower.

I'm in 400 South Tryon, but I'm told that my dept will *not* be moving to the new tower. I guess that means we're moving to the current HQ.

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