Torre Urban Plaza, Corporate building in La Floresta district, Quito, Ecuador.

Torre Urban Plaza is a 16-storey cylindrical office tower at the corner of Avenida 12 de Octubre and Avenida Coruña, facing Plaza Artigas in La Floresta, Quito. Its curved tempered-glass skin is carried on a granite and steel structure, and the compact round plan gives a 360-degree view; the building is computer-controlled and wired with fibre-optic communications. At night its own lighting picks out the curves of the facade.

Developer Tommy Schwarzkopf spent over 20 years pursuing the 610-square-metre corner lot at 12 de Octubre and Coruña, facing Plaza Artigas. Uribe Schwarzkopf built the tower to a design by Quito architect Christian Wiesse, with work running from December 2008 to September 2009. Vice-president Lenín Moreno attended the October inauguration, and the building won a gold medal in the Public Buildings category at the 2009 Miami Architecture Biennial.

The tower stands on the corner of 12 de Octubre and Coruña avenues, facing Plaza Artigas, a roundabout where traffic circulates continuously and radially. Architect Christian Wiesse shaped the cylindrical plan after that redondel, so the building echoes the layout of the junction it overlooks. Its curved glass facade is lit at night, highlighting the curves.

The tower stands at the corner of Avenida 12 de Octubre and Avenida Coruña, facing Plaza Artigas, on higher ground than the La Carolina financial centre, so it reads clearly against the skyline from the surrounding streets. It is an office building housing the Banco del Pacífico and law firms, with no public visiting inside; the curved glass facade and its night lighting are seen from the plaza and the avenue.

The tower was designed by Quito-born architect Christian Wiesse, whose earlier work included the FLACSO headquarters. Developer Tommy Schwarzkopf had pursued the corner of 12 de Octubre and Coruña for over 20 years, calling it a privileged spot. The 610-square-metre plot faces Plaza Artigas.