Santa Maria Tower, Office skyscraper in Providencia, Santiago, Chile
The Santa María Tower is a 110-metre office skyscraper on the slopes of Cerro San Cristóbal, near Avenida Santa María in Providencia, Santiago. Inspired by the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center, it has four glass facades whose verticality comes from repeated exposed concrete elements and free floor plans. A second twin tower planned for the site was never built.
Inspired by the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center, the tower was built in 1978 and inaugurated on 4 April 1979, financed by the Banco Hipotecario y de Fomento de Chile. It was the tallest building in Chile for 14 years, until the Torre de la Industria was built in 1994. The project planned two twin office towers, but only this 110-metre one was built; the second was postponed indefinitely after Chile's 1982 economic crisis.
The tower's name comes from Avenida Santa María, the street at its foot, and its design was inspired by the Twin Towers of New York's World Trade Center. A second twin tower was planned beside it but never built after Chile's 1982 economic crisis, so the lone slab stands as a reminder of that halted project.
The tower stands on the slopes of Cerro San Cristóbal, near Avenida Santa María in Providencia, Santiago. It is an office building, not a public attraction, so there is no observation deck or visitor access to the upper floors. After the 1981 fire, Chilean regulations prohibited using elevators during a high-rise emergency.
The tower was conceived as one of two identical office towers, but the second was postponed indefinitely after Chile's 1982 economic crisis, so only the 110-metre Santa María was ever built. Its glass was installed with training brought in from the American manufacturer PPG Industries.
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