Standard Building

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The Standard Building, (originally the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers Cooperative National Bank Building and later the Standard Bank Building[1]), is a high-rise office tower located at the southwest corner of Ontario Street and St. Clair Avenue in downtown Cleveland, Ohio. Rising to a height of 282 feet (86 meters),[2] the Standard Building was the second tallest building in Cleveland when it was completed in 1925. Three of its four sides are clad in cream-colored terra cotta with a recurring starburst motif. The fourth side, which can be seen from Public Square, is unadorned and windowless. It was designed by Knox and Elliot architects, and was built for $7 million.[3] It is owned by the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen.[4]

During the Great Depression, the bank ran into financial difficulties and was sold by the BLE and merged with two other Cleveland banks in 1930, forming Standard Trust Bank. This bank subsequently failed in 1931 and its assets were liquidated.[5] From World War II through the 1960s, the bank lobby served as an indoctrination center for draftees.[1] In the 1940s the building housed Cleveland College, a downtown campus of Western Reserve University, and was the last building of that campus.[6]

To the east, across Ontario Street, is the Marriott at Key Center, built on the site of the landmark Engineers Building, which the BLE sold in 1988 for development, moving into the Standard Building.[7] To the north, across St. Clair Avenue, is the Cuyahoga County Justice Center. The Old Stone Church abuts its south side.

Currently it is the 21st highest building in Cleveland. It was designated a Cleveland Landmark in 1979.[8] An application to extend the boundaries of the Euclid Avenue Historic District on the National Register of Historic Places so as to include the Standard Building and other structures is pending as of April 2007.[9]

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b Herrick, Clay (1986). Cleveland Landmarks. Landmarks Publishing Company, 156-157. 
  2. ^ Standard Building. Emporis. Retrieved on 2007-10-21.
  3. ^ Rose, William Ganson (1950). Cleveland: The Making of a City. World Publishing Company, 832. 
  4. ^ Brotherhood Of Locomotive Engineers Building Association Inc (Standard Building). Manta.com. Retrieved on 2007-10-20.
  5. ^ Standard Trust. Encyclopedia of Cleveland History. Case Western Reserve University. Retrieved on 2007-10-20.
  6. ^ Standard Building. Case Western Reserve University. Retrieved on 2007-10-20.
  7. ^ BLE History. Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen. Retrieved on 2007-10-20.
  8. ^ Standard Building. Cleveland Designated Landmarks. Cleveland Landmarks Commission. Retrieved on 2007-10-20.
  9. ^ State Board Recommends Seven Ohio Nominations To The National Register Of Historic Places. Ohio Historical Society (April 3, 2007). Retrieved on 2007-10-20.

[edit] External links


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