BOK Tower

BOK Tower, formerly One Williams Center, is a skyscraper in downtown Tulsa, Oklahoma. At 203 m (667 ft) in height, the 52-story tower was the tallest building in any of the five "Plains States": Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota, as well as the surrounding states of Missouri, Arkansas and New Mexico. until surpassed by Devon Tower in 2011. It was built in 1975 and designed by Minoru Yamasaki & Associates, the same architect who designed the World Trade Center in New York City. This structure is very similar to the WTC towers in appearance and construction. BOK Tower's lobby has marble walls and wall hangings which have a noted similarity to the decor in the former WTC. The similarities between the BOK Tower and the World Trade Center Towers are based upon the building's history. The tower was built for the Williams Companies; at the time of its construction, the CEO of Williams (John Williams) was impressed by the Twin Towers in New York. His original idea was to build four small-scale replicas of the towers in Tulsa. However, prior to the actual construction, he was informed of the inefficiencies that would be created from having 25-story towers on the small footprints he had in mind with the required elevators. The plan for a quarter scale replica was then changed to a single tower a quarter the footprint of a trade center tower but double the height of the four planned towers. The similarities have even led executives to rightfully joke that the architects just halved the plans for the tower.

The construction of the BOK Tower is the same as was used for the World Trade Center Towers. As of August 2006, BOK Tower is undergoing $16 million in repairs and renovations. About $6 million is going toward renovated pedestrian bridges, granite coating for the base, new fitness centers, and windows. The remaining $10 million is being used to fix damage from a flood in December.