Westin Peachtree Plaza

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Westin Peachtree Plaza in Downtown Atlanta.

The Westin Peachtree Plaza is a skyscraper and hotel in downtown Atlanta, Georgia, adjacent to the Peachtree Center complex. It is 220 meters (723 feet) tall, and rises 70 stories from ground level. It is the second tallest all-hotel skyscraper in the Western Hemisphere. ^[1]

Designed by developer/architect John Portman, the building gained landmark status within the city as Atlanta's tallest building from its completion, in 1976, to 1987. The building opened as the tallest hotel in the world, In 1977, it was surpassed by its architectural twin, the central hotel tower of the Portman-designed Renaissance Center in Detroit, Michigan. The Peachtree Plaza Hotel opened as the tallest building in the southeastern United States, surpassing One Shell Square in New Orleans. It lost that title in 1983, when the Wachovia Financial Center in Miami surpassed it.

The building is cast in reflective glass in a cylindrical shape that reflects much of the downtown skyline. Another small cylinder runs the full height of the building on one side, and accommodates two scenic elevators. The uppermost floors hold the Sun Dial Restaurant and Bar, a revolving restaurant that offers panoramic views of the city and its environs. The restaurant completes a full revolution every 60 minutes.

Several local broadcasters have transmitted from an antenna tower atop the building. The main antenna currently belongs to WZGC FM 92.9 ("Dave FM"), while a smaller antenna carries backup signals for that station and WVEE FM 103.3 ("V-103"), both owned by CBS Radio. WWWQ FM 100.5 ("Q100") first used the same antenna when it moved to Atlanta, before it upgraded and relocated within the city. The main antenna once carried the signal of WUPA-TV 69, but that station moved because the Westin tower lacked space for an antenna to send the station's digital television signal. WSTR FM 94.1 ("Star 94") also lists the building as its allotment, indicating it too might have used the building at one point.