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List of tallest voluntarily demolished buildings

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Voluntary building demolition is the decision by either the landowner or a higher government body to demolish a structure for any number of reasons, ranging from severe structural damage to the redevelopment of the land the building sits upon. Involuntary (or unplanned) building demolitions, such as the collapse of a building during a severe earthquake or by a terrorist attack, are not included in this list.

The demolition of especially high buildings presents unique challenges, especially when their location is within densely populated areas of their respective cities. Buildings particularly tall are most often deconstructed floor-by-floor down to the building's basement, as opposed to controlled implosion of the structure, which would most likely damage surrounding structures.

The following list includes the tallest demolished buildings, with an height of at least 100 meters (328 ft)

Rank Building name City Country Height Floors Year completed Year demolished Method Reason
(m) (ft)
1 AXA Tower Singapore  Singapore 235 771 52 1986 2023 Deconstruction Demolished for redevelopment of the tower's site.
2 270 Park Avenue New York  United States 215 707 52 1960 2021 Deconstruction Demolished to make way for a taller building at 270 Park Avenue.[1]
3 Singer Building New York  United States 187 612 47 1908 1968 Deconstruction Demolished to make way for One Liberty Plaza.
4 CPF Building Singapore  Singapore 171 561 46 1976 2017 Deconstruction Demolished to make way for a 29-story office tower (only 10 meters taller). 2nd tallest building ever to be demolished in Asia.
5 Meena Plaza I Abu Dhabi  United Arab Emirates 168.5 553 46 2014 (halted) 2020 Implosion Topped out, but never completed. Tallest building ever to be demolished using explosives.[2]
6 Fuji Xerox Towers Singapore  Singapore 165 541 38 1987 2023 Deconstruction Demolished for redevelopment of the tower's site.
7 World Trade Center (Tokyo) Tokyo  Japan 163 533 40 1970 2023 Deconstruction Demolished as part of the Hamamatsucho Station West Entrance District redevelopment
8 Morrison Hotel Chicago  United States 160 526 45 1925 1965 Manual Demolished to make way for Bank One Plaza.
9 Deutsche Bank Building New York  United States 158 518 39 1974 2011 Deconstruction Heavily damaged from the September 11 attacks.
10 UIC Building Singapore  Singapore 152 499 40 1973 2013 Deconstruction Demolished to make way for V on Shenton.
t-11 One Meridian Plaza Philadelphia  United States 150 492 38 1972 1999 Deconstruction Heavily damaged from a fire on February 23, 1991.
t-11 Tun Razak Tower Kuala Lumpur  Malaysia 150 492 35 1983 2014 Deconstruction Damaged from the 2014 fire that broke out on the 27th floor of the building.
13 City Investing Building New York  United States 148 487 33 1908 1968 Manual Demolished to make way for One Liberty Plaza.
14 Mizuho Bank Uchisaiwaichō Head Office Building Tokyo  Japan 143 469 38 1981 2023 Deconstruction Demolished as part of the Uchisaiwaicho 1-Chome District Redevelopment
15 The Ritz-Carlton, Hong Kong Hong Kong  Hong Kong 142 465 31 1993 2009 Manual Demolished to make way for China Construction Bank Tower.
16 Grand Prince Hotel Akasaka Tokyo  Japan 141 463 39 1982 2013 Deconstruction Demolished to make way for Tokyo Garden Terrace.
17 Hennessy Centre Hong Kong  Hong Kong 140 458 41 1983 2008 Manual Demolished to make way for Hysan Place.
t-18 The Harmon Hotel Paradise  United States 138 453 47 2009 (halted) 2015 Manual Found to be structurally deficient and subsequently ordered demolished; never opened.
t-18 Funkhaus am Raderberggürtel [de] Cologne  Germany 138 453 34 1980 2019 Deconstruction Partial vacancy since 2003.
t-20 Ardmore Park Old Block 1 Singapore  Singapore 137 449 36 1978 1997 Manual Demolished to build new structures on the site.[3]
t-20 Ardmore Park Old Block 2 Singapore  Singapore 137 449 36 1978 1997 Manual Demolished to build new structures on the site.
t-20 Ardmore Park Old Block 3 Singapore  Singapore 137 449 36 1978 1997 Manual Demolished to build new structures on the site.
23 Shaw Tower Singapore  Singapore 134 440 35 1975 2020 Deconstruction Demolished for redevelopment of the tower’s site.
24 J. L. Hudson Department Store and Addition Detroit  United States 134 439 29 1911 1998 Implosion Bankruptcy of J.L. Hudson Department Store; replaced by the Hudson's Tower in 2017 with construction expected to be completed in 2024.
25 National City Company Building New York  United States 131 432 32 1928 1982 Manual Demolished to make way for 60 Wall Street.
26 Palace II Rio de Janeiro  Brazil 130 426 22 1995 1998 Implosion Partially collapsed on February 22, 1998 due to engineering error.
t-27 Savoy-Plaza Hotel New York  United States 128 420 33 1927 1965 Manual Demolished to make way for the General Motors Building.
t-27 State Office Block Sydney  Australia 128 420 32 1965 1997 Manual Demolished to make way for Aurora Place.
29 The Excelsior Hong Kong  Hong Kong 126 414 37 1973 2019 Manual Demolished to make way for a 135m tall office tower.
30 CAGA House Sydney  Australia 125 410 30 1977 1992 Manual Demolished to make way for Governor Phillip Tower.
31 Bayer-Hochhaus Leverkusen  Germany 122 400 32 1963 2012 Manual Various issues with structure.
32 Empire Landmark Hotel Vancouver  Canada 120 393 42 1973 2019 Deconstruction Demolished to make way for a pair of new high-rise residential towers.
33 Landmark Tower Fort Worth  United States 120 393.6 30 1952 2006 Implosion Abandoned since 1990, and later damaged in a tornado in 2000. The cost to renovate the building was deemed not viable.
34 Asahi Seimei Otemachi Building Tokyo  Japan 119.6 392 29 1971 2023 Deconstruction Demolished to make way for Torch Tower.
35 First National Bank Building Pittsburgh  United States 118 387 26 1912 1969 Manual Demolished to make way for One PNC Plaza.
36 Jinhua Building Xi'an  China 118 387 21 1996 2015 Implosion Demolished for redevelopment of the tower's property. It was not used for decades even though it was legally the property of Jinhua Pharmaceutical Factory.
37 Centre International Rogier Brussels  Belgium 117 384 30 1960 2001 Manual Demolished to make way for Rogier Tower.
38 AfE-Turm Frankfurt  Germany 116 381 32 1972 2014 Implosion Demolished for redevelopment of the tower's site. Tallest building to have been imploded in Europe.
39 Ocean Tower South Padre Island  United States 115 379 30 2008 (halted) 2009 Implosion Demolished after cracks were found in the building's supporting columns, and various other deficiencies, were discovered during construction. Never opened.
t-40 Trinity Court Building New York  United States 114 374 26 1927 2015 Manual Demolished to make way for 76 Trinity Place
t-40 Capital One Tower Lake Charles  United States 114 374 30 1983 2024 Implosion Severely damaged by Hurricane Laura and Hurricane Delta in 2020 and subsequently left vacant until its demolition in September 2024.
42 Pearl Bank Apartments Singapore  Singapore 113 372 38 1976 2019 Deconstruction Demolished to make way for One Pearl Bank.
43 Richfield Tower Los Angeles  United States 113 372 13 1929 1969 Manual Demolished to make way for City National Plaza.
44 Edifício São Vito São Paulo  Brazil 112 367 27 1959 2011 Manual Building fell into disrepair.
45 Landmark Hotel and Casino Las Vegas Paradise  United States 111 364 31 1969 1995 Implosion Demolished to make way for a parking lot for the Las Vegas Convention Center.
t-46 Wilson Mendes Caldeira Building [pt] São Paulo  Brazil 110 361 32 1963 1975 Implosion Imploded to make way for the Sé metro station and Praça da Sé.
t-46 Furama Hong Kong Hotel Hong Kong  Hong Kong 110 360 32 1973 2002 Manual Demolished to make way for AIA Central.
t-46 Chongqing passenger transport building / Chaotianmen Hotel Chongqing  China 110 360 32 1996 2012 Implosion Demolished to make way for Raffles City.
49 Yamato Seimei Building Tokyo  Japan 109 359 26 1984 2023 Deconstruction Demolished as part of the Uchisaiwaicho 1-Chome District Redevelopment
50 Stardust Resort & Casino Las Vegas Winchester  United States 108 354 32 1990 2007 Implosion Demolished to make way for Echelon Place and Resorts World Las Vegas.
t-51 Lisbon Bank Building Johannesburg  South Africa 108 354 26 1967 2019 Implosion A fire in 2018 caused the structure to be deemed unstable.[4][5][6]
t-51 Yufeng building Nanchang  China 108 354 26 1990 2017 Implosion
t-53 Sheraton Lincoln Hotel Houston  United States 107 352 28 1962 2011 Deconstruction The hotel had sat vacant since 1986 at the time of its demolition.
t-53 Millennium Hotel Cincinnati Cincinnati  United States 107 350 32 1977 2022 Manual
t-55 Windsor Tower Madrid  Spain 106 348 32 1979 2005 Manual Heavily damaged from a fire on February 12, 2005.
t-55 Hotel Sofitel Tokyo Tokyo  Japan 106 348 26 1994 2008 Deconstruction
t-55 Manhattan Life Insurance Building New York  United States 106 348 18 1894 1963 or 1964 Manual
t-58 Farmers Bank Building Pittsburgh  United States 105 345 27 1902 1997 Implosion Demolished due to a lack of tenants.
t-58 Crowne Plaza Hotel Kuala Lumpur  Malaysia 105 345 26 1973 2014 Deconstruction Demolished to make way for the proposed Tradewinds Square.
t-60 Capital Plaza Tower Frankfort  United States 103 338 28 1972 2018 Implosion Falling concrete and water leaks from the building were reported in its later years. It was demolished to make way for a new 5-story office building, park, and 1,100-space parking garage.
t-60 Supertech Apex Tower Noida  India 103 338 32 2009-2012 (halted) 2022 Implosion Demolished due to Violation of National Building Code, along with the slightly smaller Ceyane Tower.
t-62 New York Tribune Building New York  United States 102 335 19 1875 1966 Manual
t-62 Enterprise House Melbourne  Australia 102 336 24 1973 2020 Deconstruction Demolished to redevelop the tower's site.
t-64 Friedrich-Engelhorn-Hochhaus Ludwigshafen  Germany 101 333 28 1957 2014 Manual Demolished for the new BASF headquarters building.
t-64 Martin Tower Bethlehem  United States 101 332 21 1972 2019 Implosion Demolished for mixed-use rezoning of the tower's property.
t-66 Sparkasse Hagen Tower Hagen  Germany 101 331 21 1975 2004 Implosion Damage from water leakage problems.
t-66 Tower Building Baltimore  United States 101 330 16 1912 1986 Manual
t-68 Drapers' Gardens London  United Kingdom 100 328 30 1967 2007 Deconstruction Demolished for redevelopment of the tower's site.
t-68 Southwark Towers London  United Kingdom 100 328 25 1976 2008 Deconstruction Demolished to make way for The Shard.

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Young, Michael (June 7, 2021). "270 Park Avenue's Demolition is Complete While New Steel Superstructure Rises in Midtown East". New York Yimby. Retrieved July 6, 2021.
  2. ^ "Meena Plaza I, Abu Dhabi". Emporis. Archived from the original on May 12, 2021. Retrieved 2020-11-27.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  3. ^ Lee, Arthur (21 January 1997). "Breaking up is hard to do". Business Times. Retrieved 30 August 2021.
  4. ^ "37 Sauer Street, Johannesburg". Emporis. Retrieved 2019-11-24.[dead link‍]
  5. ^ "Almost 900kg of explosives used to demolish Bank of Lisbon building". TimesLIVE. Retrieved 2019-11-24.
  6. ^ "Building where fatal fire started was bad' but it was not the worst". TimesLIVE. Retrieved 2019-11-24.
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