Longaberger Basket Building, Office building in Newark, Ohio, United States
This seven-story office building, completed in 1997, takes the form of an oversized woven basket and covers approximately 180,000 square feet (16,720 square meters), featuring distinctive handles that weigh around 725 pounds (329 kilograms) each and contain heating elements to prevent ice accumulation during winter months.
Constructed between 1995 and 1997 at a cost of around 30 million dollars, the building served as headquarters for the Longaberger Company until 2016, when the firm vacated the property amid declining sales, ultimately ceasing operations in 2018 after decades as a major direct-sales basket manufacturer.
The structure represents an example of mimetic architecture, where buildings are designed to resemble familiar objects, and it has become a symbol of Newark and a subject of interest among architecture enthusiasts who study unconventional commercial buildings across the United States.
The building remains largely unoccupied and is not open for public tours, though its exterior can be viewed from the street, and ongoing legal disputes and redevelopment challenges have delayed plans to transform it into mixed-use space such as a hotel or retail venue.
The basket-shaped design includes a central atrium capped by a 4,000-square-foot (372-square-meter) skylight, steel framing clad with painted stucco to simulate woven patterns, and decorative elements such as stucco discs mimicking tacks and painted rivets resembling copper basket handles.
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