1350 ALA MOANA BUILDING HABS HI-584 1350 Ala Moana Boulevard HABS HI-584 Honolulu Honolulu County Hawaii PHOTOGRAPHS WRITTEN HISTORICAL AND DESCRIPTIVE DATA FIELD RECORDS HISTORIC AMERICAN BUILDINGS SURVEY PACIFIC WEST REGIONAL OFFICE National Park Service U.S. Department of the Interior 333 Bush Street San Francisco, CA 94104 HISTORIC AMERICAN BUILDINGS SURVEY 1350 ALA MOANA BUILDING HABS No. HI-584 Location: 1350 Ala Manoa is situated at the corner of Ala Moana Boulevard and Pi`ikoi Street in downtown Honolulu, Honolulu County, on the island of Oah`u, Hawai`i. The ocean front property is located approximately 500’ from the southern coastline of Oah`u between Kaka`ako and Waikiki, adjacent to Ala Moana Regional Park and Ala Moana Shopping Center. The area surrounding the building is dominated by residential high rise and commercial structures. The building is part of the commercial, retail, and residential district of Ala Moana, which is south of Makiki, east of Kaka`ako, and west of Waikīkī. 21.291794, -157.848113 (4N) Significance: 1350 Ala Moana, together with its site features, is historically significant under National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) Criterion A for its association with the expansion of Hawai`i’s post-Statehood population and the emergence of the high rise apartment as a pervasive building type in the Modern period in Honolulu architecture (1955-1979). At the time of construction in 1968, 1350 Ala Moana became the state’s tallest building at 33 stories, surpassing the previous record holder, the Ala Moana Building. It remained the tallest building in the state until 1970, and is also significant under Criterion C as an excellent example of Hawai`i Modernism and the work of a master, architect Minoru Yamasaki. The building’s engineer, Alfred Yee, is also known for his pioneering work in Honolulu high rise construction.1The building is an excellent example of regional Modern high rise architecture, distinguished by its rectangular footprint, clean lines, and distinctive lanai design. As with many of Hawai`i’s Modernist buildings from the 1950s and 1960s, the building mixes elements of the International Style with regional features, like native lava rock walls and indoor/outdoor living amenities. Minoru Yamasaki (December 1, 1912 – February 6, 1986) was an American architect, best known for designing the original World Trade Center in New York City. Yamasaki was one of the most prominent architects of the 20th century, and was elected as a fellow of the American Institute of Architects (FAIA) in 1960. Yamasaki won the American Institute of Architect’s First Honor Award three times, and was featured as the cover story of TIME on January 18, 1963.2 In Hawaii, he 1 Fung Associates, Inc. Hawai`i Modernism Context Study. Honolulu: Historic Hawai`i Foundation, 2011. Accessed March 10, 2017. http://historichawaii.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/HawaiiModernismContextStudy_Nov2011.pdf. p.4- 59 2 Crowley, Walt. “Yamasaki, Minoru (1912-1986), Seattle-born architect of New York's World Trade Center.” History Link, 2003, accessed March 10, 2017. http://www.historylink.org/File/5352 1350 ALA MOANA BUILDING HABS No. HI-584 (page 2) also designed Queen Emma Gardens (1964), another residential high rise in Honolulu. Description: 1350 Ala Moana is a Modern style high rise residential structure that has 33 stories, with 27 apartment floors, containing 353 units. The concrete structure is rectangular in footprint, with the approximate dimensions of 210’ x 69’, rising to a height of 308’. The concrete pilings and foundation are cast in place with slabs ranging from 6” to 12” thick. Concrete slabs at the floor deck are 4-1/2” thick. The concrete garage structure consists of 6” cast-in-place walls, which form the foundation for the 3rd floor plaza level. The overall structural system contains a mix of precast and cast-in- place, prestressed members including: cast-in-place concrete columns, beams, and walls; and precast concrete framing, joists, and planks. The foundation walls continue to the 7th floor and all concrete members contain typical reinforcing steel. Exterior infill walls consist of concrete masonry units (reinforced vertically with rebar at the upper levels), while interior apartment walls are framed in wood studs. The two top penthouse floors are set back approximately 3’ along the perimeter of the building and the base of the 32nd floor is capped by a wide concrete fascia. The flat roof has a concrete parapet wall, with an additional concrete fascia located at the top of the 33rd floor. A concrete mechanical room and associated equipment is concealed behind a rigid panel screen on the top of the roof. The entrance to 1350 Ala Moana is located along Pi`ikoi Street, where a circular driveway leads to the main lobby and an adjacent two-level parking garage. The parking garage delineates the property’s southeast corner boundary at street level with continuous, precast concrete grills and lava rock walls. The open-air plaza, located at the top of the parking structure (3rd floor), contains an oval-shaped swimming pool with concrete decking, open landscaped areas, and meandering concrete pathways. The east and west elevations (approximately 200’ in width) are dominated by three vertical bays, comprised of two sets of stacked concrete lanai at levels 4 through 31. The bays are separated by vertical bands of concrete panels with scored expansion joints. The north elevation (approximately 69’ in width) is dominated by an expressed concrete stairwell that rises vertically to the upper roof level. The south elevation is comprised of two vertical columns of stacked lanai at the outside edge, with two vertical bands of concrete panels between them. The exterior walls are finished with painted concrete plaster. The fenestration pattern is established by horizontal bands of stacked and repeating, cantilevered lanais. The shape of the lanais, together with the symmetrical nature of the fenestration pattern, emphasizes the verticality of the building. Aluminum sash windows are located at either side of the vertical concrete panels on all sides. Aluminum sliding glass doors with fixed sash sidelights are located at each lanai. The two top floors (32nd and 33rd) contain penthouse apartments. According to the original design drawings, the 32nd floor is referred to as the “lanai floor,” since a 1350 ALA MOANA BUILDING HABS No. HI-584 (page 3) continuous concrete deck wraps around the building at this level with an aluminum railing.3 The design of all aluminum railings is consistent on all elevations. The building terminates at the top of the 33rd floor. History: At the beginning of the 20th century, the site surrounding 1350 Ala Moana was part of a marshy eighty-two-acre parcel, in the area known as Kālia. The 50-acre lot of land was classified as unproductive by Bernice Pauahi Bishop Estate. In 1912, Walter F. Dillingham, head of the Hawaiian Dredging Co. Ltd., purchased the land from the Estate, with the intention to fill the land with dredging material in preparation for development.4 (Founded in 1902 by Walter F. Dillingham, Hawaiian Dredging Construction Company, Inc. is the oldest and largest full-service general contractor in the State of Hawai`i.) According to 1936 historic tax records, Land Court Application 709 initially subdivided the lot that 1350 Ala Moana now occupies at the corner of Ala Moana Boulevard and Pi`ikoi Street.5 The lot continued to be subdivided into smaller lots throughout the 1940s and remained under the ownership of Hawaiian Dredging Co. Ltd., until September 24, 1965. During this time, the remaining subdivided lots were consolidated (Land Court Consolidation #100), under new ownership with Hawaiian Land Company, Ltd, a subsidiary of Hawaiian Dredging and part of the Dillingham family owned group of companies.6 The building was commissioned during this time, with design drawings by Minoru Yamasaki, dated February 24, 1966. According to the original design drawings, Alfred Yee & Associates were the structural engineers, while the general contractor was Hawaiian Contracting Co. Ltd. Immediately following the passage of the Horizontal Property Regime (HPR) in 1961, a state law enabling the creation of condominiums, Honolulu saw a surge in high rise development during its Modern period in architecture (1955-1979). It is at the height of this surge in 1968 that 1350 Ala Moana was constructed. High rise developments were also a direct response to the population boom following statehood in 1959, when land scarcity and rising costs became an issue in downtown Honolulu. The idea of condominiums as an abode and as an investment opportunity immediately took hold in Honolulu, and was more popular in Hawai`i than in any other state which authorized condominium developments.7 High rise buildings still stand out as one of the foremost tangible symbols of the 3Yamasaki, Minoru. “Original design drawings.” City & County of Honolulu Department of Planning and Permitting, February 24, 1966. 4Jones, Lesleigh and Barbara Shideler. “Ala Moana Center: Architectural History Report.” Honolulu: Mason Architects, 2013. p. 9 5 City & County of Honolulu Department of Budget and Fiscal Services. “Land Court Application 709 Map.” Honolulu: Real Property Assessment Division. April 13, 1936. 6 City & County of Honolulu Department of Budget and Fiscal Services. “Land Court Application 709 Map.” Honolulu: Real Property Assessment Division. September 24, 1965. 7 Fung Associates, Inc. Hawai`i Modernism Context Study. Honolulu: Historic Hawai`i Foundation, 2011. Accessed March 10, 2017. http://historichawaii.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/HawaiiModernismContextStudy_Nov2011.pdf. p.4- 59 1350 ALA MOANA BUILDING HABS No. HI-584 (page 4) enormous growth and development that Hawai`i experienced in the Modern period. Sources: Chu, Alison. Preserving Hawai`i’s Post-War Commercial Development. Honolulu: Docomomo, 2012. Accessed March 15, 2017.