Frost Bank Tower

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The Frost Bank Tower, as seen from the corner of 5th Street and Guadalupe Avenue

Street level view from Congress Avenue

Dusk view from Congress Avenue

The Frost Bank Tower at night

The Frost Bank Tower is a skyscraper in Austin, the state capital of Texas in the United States. Standing 515 feet (157 meters) tall and containing 33 floors, it is the tallest completed building in Austin. It was developed by Cousins Properties Incorporated from November 2001 to December 2003. It was the first high-rise building to be constructed in the U.S. after the 9/11 attacks. It was previously owned by Equity Office Properties Trust ^[1] until its purchase by Thomas Properties ^[2] and was designed by Duda/Paine Architects, LLP and HKS, Inc. It has the title for tallest logo above ground in the city. The silvery blue color glass facade was first used on the Reuters Building in New York City.

[edit] Rumors and controversy

During construction, the building was derided by some locals for having a garish design. However the building was also voted the best new building by Austin Chronicle readers in 2004.^[3]

According to conspiracist filmmaker Alex Jones, the Frost Bank Tower was built at the direction of the Bohemian Club (and possibly the Bilderberg Group) as a monument to their power. Jones contends that, when looking at the top of the building from an angle, it looks like the head of an owl, a creature which is representative of the Bohemian Club, where a ritual called the Cremation of Care takes place each year. Evidence to support Jones' theory would include the fact that the Frost Bank Tower is 33 stories high which is the highest degree of freemasonry and also a master number in occultic numerology. Though in these images from peculiar angles of the Frost Bank Tower it shows owl characteristics, two images will allow reader to decide decide. [1] [2]

However the same rumor about the resemblance to an owl was used by University of Texas students for decades regarding their own main building. (The rumor on campus was that a mischievous Rice University graduate designed the tower to resemble his university mascot.) This would appear to cast doubt on Jones's theory. Adding to that doubt, the round Frost Bank logos that make up the 'eyes' of the owl were added to the building long after the original design was complete.

Local newspaper columnist John Kelso noted that the tower resembles an enormous set of nose hair trimmers.^{[citation needed]}