New York Life Insurance Building (Kansas City)
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| New York Life Building | |
 |
|
| Information | |
|---|---|
| Location | 20 West Ninth, Kansas City, Missouri |
| Status | Completed |
| Groundbreaking | 1888 |
| Constructed | 1890 |
| Use | Office |
| Roof | 180 feet (54.8 meters) |
| Floor count | 12 |
| Floor area | 200,000 square feet |
| Companies | |
| Architect | McKim, Mead and White |
The New York Life Building was the first highrise building in Kansas City, Missouri and the first to have elevators.
It was one of six buildings built by New York Life Insurance around the United States.
The building features brick and brownstone exterior, the two-ton bronze eagle (designed by Louis St. Gaudens over the entry and the Italian granite atrium flooring and an H-shaped footprint with 10 floor wings on either side of a 12-story tower.
It marked a dramatic change in the Kansas City skyline where the tallest buildings were three or four stories.[1]
The building on Quality Hill marked the first significant movement of the city south from its founding at River Market along the Missouri River.
The building was added to the National Register of Historic Places on July 8, 1970.[2]
The building was abandoned in 1988.
In 1996 Utilcorp United conducted a $35 million restoration of the building.[3] Financing assistance came from the Kansas City Tax Increment Finance Commission, the Missouri Department of National Resources, and the National Park Service.
[edit] References
- ^ New York Life Building - kchistory.org - Retrieved January 9, 2009
- ^ [http://www.dnr.mo.gov/shpo/Jackson.htm Jackson County National Register Listings - dnr.mo.gov - Retrieved January 8, 2008]
- ^ Kansas City Is Rediscovering Its Downtown Area - New York Times - October 6, 1996
| Preceded by Records Begin |
Kansas City's Tallest Building 1890—1906 180 feet |
Succeeded by Commerce Trust Building |
