U.S. Bank Center (Milwaukee)

History

Plans were initially announced by First Wisconsin National Bank to construct a new headquarters building on August 21, 1969. Although no architectural designs were complete at the time of its announcement, bank officials indicated it would rise at least 40 stories. On March 18, 1971, bank officials unveiled the final design as a 42-story, 601-foot (183 m) skyscraper, encompassing an entire block fronting on East Wisconsin Avenue. Designed by James DeStefano of the Chicago office of Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, with Fitzhugh Scott Architects of Milwaukee serving as an associate planner for the project, the name of the tower was announced as the First Wisconsin Center.

Near the end of construction, a pair of fatalities occurred at the work site. In May 1973, a foreman died after being struck by a dump truck. That following July, one worker died and four others were injured when a derrick utilized in the installation of a 175-pound (79 kg) aluminum panel broke free and fell 41 floors to the ground. The building was topped-out on August 29, 1972, with the installation of the final 20-foot (6.1 m) steel beam atop the tower. In addition to bank officials, mayor Henry Maier, county executive John Doyne and Wisconsin governor Patrick Lucey were in attendance for the ceremony. The building was initially occupied on September 4, 1973, and celebrated its official opening on October 6, 1973.

First Wisconsin Center

While still under construction in September 1972, a group of local developers responsible for the neighboring Juneau Square development filed suit against First Wisconsin. The $138 million suit alleged the bank acted in a "monopolistic" manner to control office development, in an effort to derail the plaintiffs proposed 25-story office tower project on a property adjacent to the First Wisconsin Center. After several years of litigation, the suit finally went to trial in May 1976. The following October, the court found First Wisconsin guilty and awarded the plaintiffs $6 million in damages that was then tripled to $18 million due to federal laws on damages awarded to antitrust suits. First Wisconsin appealed the ruling, and in August 1977 a federal court ruled the case be retried due to the complexity of the original trial in addition to the plaintiffs being allowed additional time and the admission of hearsay testimony. Upon appeal, in June 1978 the court ruled in favor of First Wisconsin in clearing the company of all charges.

After remaining under the ownership of First Wisconsin since its opening, in June 1987 it was announced the tower would be purchased for $195 million by the Dallas development company Trammell Crow. At the time of the announced sale, Trammell Crow unveiled plans to construct a 50-story tower southeast of the First Wisconsin Center in overtaking it as the states tallest building, which has since remained unbuilt. The sale was completed in January 1988 with Trammell Crow paying $195 million for the complex only to subsequently sell it to an investment partnership for $220.9 million.

Firstar Center

In December 1988, First Wisconsin changed its name to Firstar Corporation as its operations expanded beyond the state of Wisconsin. In May 1992 the First Wisconsin brand was dropped and all retail banking operations were unified under the name Firstar Bank. As a result, on September 14, 1992, the building was renamed the Firstar Center. In 1996, a $1.2 million skywalk was constructed over Van Buren Street to connect the tower with the neighboring Lewis Center. The addition was funded in part by the city of Milwaukee as an economic development project as Firstar had significant operations in both the tower and neighboring Lewis Center.

In 1998, the ownership partnership of the Equitable Life Assurance Society of the United States, the State of Wisconsin Investment Board and the California Public Employees' Retirement System decided to place the center on the market. The following November Star Banc of Cincinnati announced the re-purchase of the tower into company hands for $200 million at the time of their purchase of Firstar.

U.S. Bank Center

In October 2000, Firstar Corporation announced its purchase of U.S. Bancorp and stated the new company would take the U.S. Bank moniker. The Firstar-U.S. Bancorp merger was approved in February 2001, and on May 3, 2002, the Firstar Center became the U.S. Bank Center when the rebranding was completed in Wisconsin. In April 2008, a panel in the Center's adjacent parking garage fell and crushed a car. As a result of this incident, the building owners decided to tear down the garage constructed in 1973 and replace it with a six-story, precast concrete garage. The 1,000 space garage opened in June 2010.

The windows on the U.S. Bank Center are sometimes used to display lighted messages, during significant events in Milwaukee. In 2003, the letters "HD" were displayed to signify the 100th anniversary of Harley Davidson during HarleyFest. The windows were again used in 2005 to display "UWM" during the Milwaukee Panthers "Sweet Sixteen" run in the NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament. The visible trusses at the top of the building near the U.S. Bank sign are also sometimes lit in appropriate colors to signify events such as holidays. In the week leading up to the 2007-08 NFC Championship Game they were lit in green and yellow in tribute to the Green Bay Packers. This was done again during the week leading up to the Packers appearance in the 2010 NFC Championship Game on January 16, 2011 in Chicago.

Architecture

Located on East Wisconsin Avenue in Downtown, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, U.S. Bank Center comprises a 42-story, 601-foot (183 m) office tower designed by Bruce Graham and James DeStefano of the Chicago office of Skidmore, Owings and Merrill. The U.S. Bank Center covers an entire block, between North Cass and Van Buren Streets and East Michigan Street and East Wisconsin Avenue. The tower features a steel frame sheathed with a white aluminum and glass facade.

Structurally, U.S. Bank Center utilizes a belt truss system engineered by both Graham and Fazlur Khan. Using elements similar to those utilized in Khan's previous work, the BHP House in Melbourne, the three diagonal belt trusses provide for a dramatic contrast with the vertical facade in serving both aesthetic and structural purposes.

Its exterior was left unchanged from its completion in 1973, through the 1999 merger with Mercantile Bancorporation. At that time, Firstar announced signs would be attached to the top of the building. Critics argued the green advertising signage on all four sides of the building's top story in place of the original aluminum elements that were subsequently recycled, disrupted the look of the building's signature diagonal trusses. The signs were replaced with opaque, white ones by 2002 to reflect the merger with U.S. Bancorp.

Peregrine falcons

In July 1987, a hacking box was installed outside the 41st floor to allow peregrine falcons to nest as part of the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) Peregrine Falcon Recovery Plan. The plan was initiated in an effort to reintroduce peregrines within Wisconsin as their entire population in the state were killed off due to the widespread use of DDT in agriculture following World War II. The location atop the building was chosen as it created an environment where the birds were less susceptible to disease and their natural predators. One year after the project was initiated, a pair of peregrine chicks were hatched atop the tower. The hatchlings were the first born in the wild within Wisconsin since the 1960s. Since the launch of the program in 1987, 67 falcons have fledged from the hacking box atop the tower.