Lamar Building, Gothic Revival bank building in Downtown Augusta, United States
The Lamar Building is a 17-story bank structure completed after World War One that rises along Broad Street in downtown Augusta with Gothic Revival details throughout its design. The structure contains three elevators and features a glass addition on top that crowns its roofline.
Construction started in 1913, and the building was scheduled for completion in 1916, but the Augusta Fire of 1916 forced crews to demolish it and start over. It was finally finished in 1918. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on 24 April 1979.
The Lamar Building has been Augusta's tallest structure since its completion, and the Marion Building beside it is known as its "sister building". In July 2011, architectural critic James Howard Kunstler named it his "Eyesore of the Month", comparing the 1976 penthouse to a Darth Vader helmet. The building has stood vacant for years and was sold in June 2021 to developer Pace Burt.
The Lamar Building stands at Broad Street in downtown Augusta, next to the Marion Building. It has been vacant for years and was sold in June 2021 to developer Pace Burt, who plans fewer than 70 residential units. Expect construction work and limited access while the conversion proceeds.
The 1976 penthouse by I. M. Pei, later architect of the Louvre pyramid, was called "Eyesore of the Month" by critic James Howard Kunstler in July 2011, who compared it to a Darth Vader helmet. Fire insurance maps put the roof of the 16th floor at 165 feet, just below Pei's addition.
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